u/Naive_Actuator3810

I’ve been seeing people posting and asking about events for Michael’s upcoming birthday this year, so I thought we could compile everything into one thread so that as many of us as possible can find and attend events in our areas. With less than 10 days to go, we can expect this to be one of the biggest worldwide birthday celebrations in many years.

I'm starting the list with some of the ones I know, so please share any other events you know about, by country, city, date, time and exact location and I will be adding them to the list!

🇺🇸 Brooklyn, NY: BK Loves MJ party, organized by Spike Lee, at Fort Greene Park, 12pm - 7pm

🇺🇸 Las Vegas, NV: Michael Jackson One, Cirque du Soleil, hosted by the Estate, at Mandala Bay, 2:30 pm

🇬🇧 London: Michael Jackson street party, at Trafalgar Square, 19:00

🇬🇧 London: Michael Jackson Bottomless Brunch, at The Manor House in Feltham, details not announced yet

🇩🇪 Berlin: Moonwalker Screening + Birthday Celebration at Babylon, 19:30

Also, does anyone know of any online/global fan movements planned for the birthday? There was the Heal the World streaming event around his death anniversary this year, which spread quite widely. I only heard about an attempt to do something similar with Man in the Mirror for his birthday, but it doesn't seem to have spread nearly as far so I'm not sure what's happening with that.

I’ll be happy to keep editing/updating the post based on your comments so we can get as many events and projects as possible in one place! 🌎👑

This was organized by Spike Lee and attended by around 10,000 people.
Spike Lee is organizing a public birthday celebration for this year again, and this may be the biggest one since 2009. If you live in or close to NYC, DO NOT MISS IT!

Spike Lee just announced on his Instagram!

The first birthday block party he organized after Michael's passing in 2009 was absolutely massive, with an estimated 10,000 people attending. This may be the biggest one since, and I hope all of you who live in or around NYC can attend, I know I would drive for hours just for this if I didn't live across the ocean (or cross the ocean if I was rich rich!) 🕺🏽🎂

This is probably one of my favorite pictures of him, and the song is also my favorite, so I would really like to find out the original source material/photoshoot behind this cover, or at least the photographer name, but I haven’t been able to find any information so far.

Anyone know anything about this?

I have this picture of him with Freddie Mercury framed because they are my two absolute favorites and I love this photo so much. It's hanging right above my drumset and it's pretty much my biggest inspiration and reminder to practice. I would love to see everyone else's framed pictures or posters! And if they are not framed, of course feel free to share anyway :)

There, I said it.

Michael Jackson's legacy deserves so much better than an Instagram page that looks like it got stuck in 2014. It feels like it's being run by someone who's never spoken to anyone under the age of 50, has barely any clue how social media works, has never seen another major artist's account, and apparently has never even glanced at MJ fan pages. I've been quietly annoyed about this for a while, and I can see from Instagram comments that I'm definitely not the only one, and at this point I just need to vent.

Every time they post something new, I feel second-hand embarassment. Like do they ever read the comments and take any feedback at all? And it isn't even a recent thing. Scrolling back years and it's the same thing over and over, so the answer to the feedback question seems to be a clear no. It's just one badly cropped 144p screenshot after another "HoLd YoUr ScReEn To SeE wHaT sOnG yOu ArE" post after another random reposted reel with random people dancing. It honestly makes me want to scream at the top of my lungs like PUT SOME RESPECT ON HIS NAME.

How does a billion-dollar business not have a proper, capable Gen Z (or at least young Millenial) social media team? Like... they surely have a PR or communications department, right? What exactly are they doing in the big 2026 if not proper social media? Because whoever is responsible for these slops on Instagram and TikTok seem to be completely out of touch with the zeitgeist. I mean they could literally hire some of the best people in the industry. Hell, they could hire actual fans and they'd probably do a 100x better job. Especially since the biopic brought with it an entire new generation of Gen Z and Gen Alpha fans, If there was ever a moment to bring the way his legacy is presented online up to date, this was it, and they have been missing it by a loooong shot.

And what makes it even more frustrating is that we're talking about Michael Jackson, a man who was insanely meticulous about every visual detail and every aspect of his artistic presentation. I mean I don't expect anyone to match his perfectionism, but I genuinely believe that if he were here today, he'd have looked for and hired some of the best social media managers in the world, and he'd probably want every post to reflect his vision and standards.

So... is there anything fans can realistically do about this? Or am I being naive for thinking we have any influence at all when they couldn't even use the momentum of a billion-dollar biopic (which literally brought like 5 million new followers to the official Instagram page in just a few months) as an opportunity to step up their game?

Am I overreacting? Should I just let it go? I'm tired boss 😭

Disclaimer for the 5 million number: the second slide shows an estimated 4.2 million subscribers from 1 May to 1 July 2026, and Social Blade estimates 500K+ subscribers in the last 2 weeks so that's around 4.7 million in the past 2.5 months!

So, I’m a woman in my early 30s and have been a casual fan for the past two decades, but over the last two months I’ve fully caught Michaelmania (as one does).

I find myself incredibly inspired by so many things about him, and his sense of style is a huge part of that (just so incredibly timeless). I recently got a pair of black loafers, which I absolutely love, and they’re super comfortable too (I can share the brand/link in the comments if that’s allowed!). I’ve been wearing them with white and red socks (talk about him still being a fashion influencer 43+ years later!), and I feel really good and confident in them.

Now I’d love to add more MJ-inspired pieces to my wardrobe, especially button-up shirts, and belts/chains/belt buckles, and brooches.

I thought it could be fun to start a thread where we can share and discuss clothing items, brands, styling ideas, etc. for creating MJ-inspired looks. I’m leaning less toward full-on cosplay and more toward building actual outfits inspired by him I will be wearing day-to-day, as well as for special occasions.

The photos I’m sharing are some of his (mostly casual) looks that I can genuinely see myself wearing out and about, please feel free to add to them your favorites as well!

Back to being the #1 most streamed song on 21st of June 2026, two entire months after the biopic release. Also on #10, #21, #46 and #48.

1- Gabon, 1992
2- Brazil, 1996
3- England, 1985
4- Spain, 1993
5- Russia, 1993
6- Ivory Coast, 1992
7- Tanzania, 1992
8- Gabon, 1992
9- Japan, 1987

What are some of your favorite facial expressions of him? I love these faces he makes when he is completely focused on what he is doing, it looks like the embodiment of flow state to me.

Please feel free to add to this series or share your own favorite facial expressions of him in the comments, I would love to see them!