Dean's Thoughts on Entertainment

Justin Timberlake – The King of Pop?



For some reason Michael Jackson has retained the moniker “King of Pop” despite him not smashing the charts in probably at least a decade, as such I would no longer consider him the “King of Pop” but instead a one-time King of Pop. Much like the World Heavyweight Champion of Boxing, George Foreman is not the “King of Boxing” because he once had the title, he is a former Heavyweight Champion of the world, so at one point George Foreman was the undisputed baddest mother in the World, but is no more. Michael Jackson owned the Pop radio for well over a decade, and I would say he was the King of Pop in the Eighties, but at what point do we hand the title to another? Other titles in music are honorary and lasting, like James Brown as the Godfather of Soul. James Brown rocked the world of soul and made it more commercially viable and so his title will last forever, because it doesn’t say he is and will be the most significant power in soul music it just says he fathered it. But the King of Pop has to reign, and Michael has abandoned his throne for the closest pre-school and should no longer be in power. The radio doesn’t really play him, his cd’s don’t sell well, and all we do is mock him on TV, what kind of King is this?

But if Michael Jackson is no longer the King of Pop, then who owns the throne? Although his longevity can still be questioned, I believe that Justin Timberlake is making the kind of moves in his career and has the skills and pop sensibilities to take the title for a few years. I will lay out what criteria I believe should describe the reigning King of Pop, and then I will argue for how Justin is achieving or is on his way to achieving each point.

The King of Pop must be

1. Popular to both Men and Women
2. Able to Dance
3. Able to Release Back-to-Back Hit Records with multiple singles
4. Able to release equally astonishing music videos (Note: Even Elvis and the Beatles made music videos, although they were feature length)
5. Able to remain in the spotlight between records and tours
6. Attractive to Women
(There may be more criteria; I only brainstormed for about a minute)

Alright, now I don’t think there is any controversy over points 2, 5, and 6 so I will address the others. First and probably most important for Justin is that he must win over a portion of the Anti-N’Sync men of the world to fully take the title. Normally, men who take roles that anger their own kind they fail, like Jonathan Taylor Thomas who was only a heartthrob and when he grew up and wanted legitimate roles he couldn’t get them because men hate him. An alternate story would be Leonardo DiCaprio, who stayed away from roles that would alienate men after Titanic so he wouldn’t suffer the same fate, now he can make any movie he wants. Justin has been making those kinds of steps as well, mostly with his comic personality. His hosting of the MTV movie awards and the hilarious Matrix parody won over thousand of people as he did the Robot with Wanda Sykes and battled hundreds of Stiflers. Since then, he has been spending a lot of time in clubs all over the U.S. hanging out and giving shows to boost his image, and most men are jealous or at least respectful of the many women Justin has been attached to (Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, Alyssa Milano, and Cameron Diaz). Plus, his appearances on Punk’d and other cameos he has done did much to break down the boyband image that limited him. The only people who still hate him hate Pop music in general or those who bought Britney’s pouting and thought it was his fault that she cheated on him.

Point 3, Justified Justin’s first solo record has had 4 songs released as singles and all of them have done very well on the charts (Like I Love You, Senorita, Cry Me a River, and Rock Your Body). His previous hits have all been with N’Sync, although songs he has appeared on have also rocked the chart like his work on the Black Eyed Peas song Where’s the Love?. If we were to eliminate his hits with N’Sync, which I don’t think we should because we still honor Michael Jackson for his work with the Jackson 5, then I would say his next CD will decide whether or not he can vie for the title of “King of Pop”.

Point 4, Justin has accomplished many things with his 4 singles on MTV and other Music Video Channels. Cry Me a River was a hot item for a long time since it revealed a bit about Justin’s relationship with Britney and it was a beautifully shot video in its own right. Like I Love You and Senorita both were solid pop videos and Rock Your Body is just brilliant and worthy of multiple viewings. Cry Me a River is probably his best video so far although I would have to say that Michael’s videos are a bit more epic just thinking of Thriller and Remember the Time which were movie-like in essence.



In conclusion, Michael Jackson has become the Former King of Pop, and I think Justin has assumed the throne and will wear the crown until he is smitten with scandal or releases a bomb. As for the queen, you can all argue that one, I don’t think anyone truly deserves the title right now. Britney gets the most press, Christina Aguilera has the most hits, and Mandy Moore gets the most movies. I can’t pick from the litter, and I would argue against anyone who did.