MJ's Final Send-Off: Emotional, Funny and Fitting

CLEVELAND - Michael Jackson was an incomparable giant during his illustrious 45-year career in the music industry that began when he was just a 5-year old kid from Gary, Indiana. He was also a son, brother, uncle and father who was relentlessly criticized and ridiculed by the media and many in the general public for the past 20 years.

Yesterday, those dichotomies met and produced an amazing and emotional tribute to the man.

Jackson, who tragically and unbelievably died on June 25 at just 50 years of age was memorialized in a star-studded farewell at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA reminiscent of a final send-off typically seen only in Black churches.

Against the backdrop of a faux church-style stain glass window, legendary musician Smokey Robinson kicked things off as he read moving statements from two of Michael's closest friends who were conspicuous by their absence; Diana Ross and Elizabeth Taylor. After a long break in the action, the Andrae Crouch Choir infused a jolt of electricity into the building with a performance of the famous gospel song "Soon and Very Soon."

That's when nearly all of the 17,000 in attendance got an unexpected treat; one final moment with Michael himself. The fallen icon was carried by his brothers into the building inside his closed casket, which appeared to be made of solid gold. It was covered with dozens of roses and was placed in front of the stage, a few feet from the front row where the grieving Jackson family sat and wept.

The star tributes were outstanding and clearly heartfelt. Mariah Carey sang Michael's "I'll Be There" and Queen Latifah reminisced about trying to replicate the "robot dance" from the Jacksons' 1970's tune "Dancing Machine" with relatives as a child. She also recited an awesome poem written to honor Michael by the legendary Maya Angelou. Lionel Richie moved the crowd with his return from obscurity and still-potent singing and Motown Records founder Berry Gordy shared his memories of first meeting a precocious yet wildly talented Michael in 1968 when he was the nine-year old lead singer of The Jackson 5.

By the way, I LOVED the fact that each of Michael's brothers wore a single, sequined glove in tribute to the iconic accoutrement that Michael made world famous in the 1980's.

Stevie Wonder, another of Michael's friends and former label mates at Motown in the early '70's touched me greatly, not so much with his awesome musical performance, but with his words before the music began. "This is a day that I'd hope I wouldn't live to see," said a visibly somber Wonder.

NBA megastar Kobe Bryant joined Hall of Fame hoopster Earvin "Magic" Johnson on stage to speak glowingly of Michael, a man they both knew personally. A teary-eyed Bryant spoke of Michael's record-setting benevolence around the world and how it earned him entry into The Guiness Book of World Records. Johnson, also teary-eyed, told a funny story about having dinner with Jackson in 1992 while discussing the former point guard's role in Michael's then-upcoming video, "Remember the Time" and being blown away that the entertainer ate Kentucky Fried Chicken.

For some reason, seeing Kobe and Magic all choked up brought tears to my eyes.

Jennifer Hudson's rendition of Michael's 1991 hit "Will You Be There?" was pitch perfect in my opinion, but the Rev. Al Sharpton brought the house down. Sharpton spoke of his friendship with Michael, which dates back to the early 1970's and hailed the man as a seminal force in race relations. He said that Michael expanded on the great progress of Jackie Robinson and MLK and himself laid the groundwork for the prosperity and widespread acceptance of such Black cultural figures as Oprah Winfrey and Tiger Woods as well as President Barack Obama.

Sharpton said that Michael "outsang the cynics, outdanced the doubters and outperformed the pessimists." He went on to mention how people like to "keep up mess instead of listening to the message." He thanked Michael repeatedly for never giving up or allowing others to "set his boundaries" and for "knocking down barriers." In what is sure to become one of the most famous moments of the ceremony, Sharpton took a stab at the media's continual bashing of MJ's unique style and eccentric behavior by speaking directly to Michael's three children from his position on stage. "Wasn't nothing strange about your daddy. What was strange was what he had to deal with."

This brought the house down.

John Mayer's scintillating guitar rendition of "Human Nature" was a jaw dropper, but the appearance of Brooke Shields brought back many memories for me seeing her accompany Michael to awards shows during his super-duper Thriller era. Shields, who became a celebrity at just 11 months old spoke of how she used to playfully tease Michael about that fact and how he took so long to get in the business at age 5. With a delightful mix of levity and palpable sadness, Shields affirmed their relationship as a true friendship, in spite of the crass comments made by the public-at-large since the '80's.

Shields said that the two child stars had to grow up very quickly and as a result became kindred spirits who laughed and engaged in mischief whenever they got together. Though she ended on a teary and sad note, my favorite moment from her was when she referred to Michael as "a genius of unchallenged ability."

Absolutely.

Michael's brother Jermaine reminded everyone that he was once (and still is) a very good vocalist as he sang MJ's favorite song, the Charlie Chaplin tune "Smile." MLK's eldest son and daughter Bernice took to the stage and both spoke with nearly the same command and substance that made their father a master orator. R&B superstar Usher absolutely nailed Michael's "Gone Too Soon" and punctuated the awesome performance by moving close to Michael's casket and emotionally touching it. Smokey Robinson returned to the stage and told poignant stories of the 10-year old Michael's prowess in singing songs that Robinson himself wrote, and actually singing them better.

Michael's brother Marlon was very grief-stricken as he spoke after a filled stage of people sang two anthemic Michael tunes, "We Are the World" and "Heal the World." He spoke of a childhood with Michael and being pulled away from cartoons to go to recording studios and asked Michael to hug their stillborn brother Brandon in heaven.

Without a shred of doubt, Michael's daughter Paris put the entire event in perspective. Flanked by her aunts and uncles, the 11-year old girl stood on stage and struggled to fight back tears and painful emotion. She recovered enough to say, "ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine." She went on to say, "I love him so much" before breaking down and seeking comfort from her relatives.

That moment alone should finally shut up the idiots that question his story with children, but it won't.

After an excellent final prayer, the service had ended and my emotions were heavily disjointed. I felt a true sense of satisfaction while also feeling very depressed that my Michael is truly gone. Yes, I know he will live on through his legendary work, but I wish that he were still here. For one day though, the man got the respect he hardly ever got in life.

For all that he gave us, he deserved so much more.