Latest on MJJC

Is there a cultural difference between Michael’s oldest fans and younger fans?

StarlightXX

StarlightXX

Proud Member
Joined
Oct 2, 2023
Messages
261
Points
63
Location
Melbourne, Australia
I hope I’m making sense.

Michael gained fans since literally the 1960s. So in the pre-Thriller time, there were fans around Michael’s age who listened to The Jackson 5 and his Off The Wall album. Then if one compares them to the fans of the 1990s and 2000s - there is a strong difference, culturally speaking.

Fans of the 1960-early 1980s spoke of Michael as a normal, albeit extraordinarily talented, man. Then from Thriller and Bad and Dangerous, younger fans will became very excited and faint at the sight of him, like he was Jesus.

So before and after Thriller, there seems to be a difference on how fans treated Michael once he showed what he was capable of accomplishing.

I think there is a difference between a fan of the 1970s to a fan of the 2000s, culturally speaking. The older fans don’t seem so fanatic over Michael.
 
From the 'Thriller' era onwards, Michael Jackson started to be promoted in a different, more grandiose way.

Especially, from the 'BAD' era onwards, when the record company began to spend a lot of money in order for him to be viewed as some sort of Demigod (in his costly music videos, etc).

This, in turn, attracted more excitement from his younger fans towards him.
 
StarlightXX said:
I think there is a difference between a fan of the 1970s to a fan of the 2000s, culturally speaking. The older fans don’t seem so fanatic over Michael.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure how much of this can be accounted to generational differences, as I'm pretty sure teen fans of any generation go through an intense fandom phase of some sort as they gain interests and differentiate themselves. Hence MJ was mobbed by young fans in the 70s just as he was mobbed by a different set of young fans in the 00s. I think any noticeable difference in how older fans perceive MJ will be largely due to outgrowing this young phase and evolving in our fandom, just as we all do irrespective of our generation. The fans of the 70s are just further along that process, but the fans of the 00s will get there too at some point.
 
I am young fan, i think that older fans are a bit unhinged honestly, and very bigoted. but of course, there are exceptions to that.
 
maybe it's just my flawed personal observation but I noticed that older fans are the one who hold the most on the Peter Pan/jesus like persona and tend to forget that Michael was very much human, albeit a once in history kind of human.
 
Zizzistar said:
maybe it's just my flawed personal observation but I noticed that older fans are the one who hold the most on the Peter Pan/jesus like persona and tend to forget that Michael was very much human, albeit a once in history kind of human.
Click to expand...
I think we need to be careful about making sweeping generalisations.

I do feel older fans experienced MJ in real time, and that will have impacted them in a way that younger fans cannot find relatable. I became a fan in the 90s, I cannot access the lived experiences of a fan of the 70s or 80s however much I read/learn about those eras, so I don't think I am in a position to disrespect those views.

I also feel younger fans can take a look at MJs life more holistically without the emotional bondage of being a fan in real time, and outside the contextual constraints of a given period in MJs life. And this in turn will inform their views as younger fans that older fans may find unrelatable.

We are effectively looking at MJ through two different angles, therefore we will inevitably have differences in our perspectives and see nuances the other angle misses.
 
Last edited:
I think there are both similarities and differences between them
First: people who became fans back when he was still alive I think are automatically different from those who became a fan after 2009. They actually got to experience Michael in real time instead of us where get our entire view of him from off a screen.
Second: the age difference would also be a factor, a little kid intoxicated by the man’s performance is different from a teen that most likely considers him their idol or has that super star obsession which would be different from an adult who has most likely quiet literally grown up with Michael and have a deeper appreciation or however that view him (idk🤷‍♀️).
Third: basically just how we appreciate him. Some are more about his looks, while others are about the dance, another group likes to listen to him sing, yet another likes to listen to the music behind the voice, while more look at his humanitarian side, and another observes his more cozy silly human side, while another looks at the business man. There are many more and we love it all but are main fascination can change our appreciation for him.
Fourth: back to the age . People who grew up on and around him saw him in the 70s, 80s, 90s, Y2K, whatever. They saw the world and him through that perspective. People who become fans afterwards see him through the lens new lens which can bring misunderstanding or a kool fresh perspective

I mean, overall we all love him but we are all human, we aren’t the same so how we appreciate and look at another mortal ain’t gonna be the same either and that ain’t a problem. Since are just further along than others
 
#applehead24 said:
I think there are both similarities and differences between them
First: people who became fans back when he was still alive I think are automatically different from those who became a fan after 2009. They actually got to experience Michael in real time instead of us where get our entire view of him from off a screen.
Second: the age difference would also be a factor, a little kid intoxicated by the man’s performance is different from a teen that most likely considers him their idol or has that super star obsession which would be different from an adult who has most likely quiet literally grown up with Michael and have a deeper appreciation or however that view him (idk🤷‍♀️).
Third: basically just how we appreciate him. Some are more about his looks, while others are about the dance, another group likes to listen to him sing, yet another likes to listen to the music behind the voice, while more look at his humanitarian side, and another observes his more cozy silly human side, while another looks at the business man. There are many more and we love it all but are main fascination can change our appreciation for him.
Fourth: back to the age . People who grew up on and around him saw him in the 70s, 80s, 90s, Y2K, whatever. They saw the world and him through that perspective. People who become fans afterwards see him through the lens new lens which can bring misunderstanding or a kool fresh perspective

I mean, overall we all love him but we are all human, we aren’t the same so how we appreciate and look at another mortal ain’t gonna be the same either and that ain’t a problem. Since are just further along than others
Click to expand...
That colour is not good for my eyes on my work PC.
 
I think it's obvious there would be differences. A younger fan is approaching something very different to someone who lived it. You get all the albums, the controversy, the tours etc all at once. There's no waiting etc. Unfortunately the man himself isn't here either which I think sometimes makes it difficult for a newer fan to properly grasp what it was like at the time.

Doesn't make anyone more of a fan or not, just those of us lucky enough to remember MJ in real time are just that, lucky
 
dam2040 said:
I think it's obvious there would be differences. A younger fan is approaching something very different to someone who lived it. You get all the albums, the controversy, the tours etc all at once. There's no waiting etc. Unfortunately the man himself isn't here either which I think sometimes makes it difficult for a newer fan to properly grasp what it was like at the time.

Doesn't make anyone more of a fan or not, just those of us lucky enough to remember MJ in real time are just that, lucky
Click to expand...
Completely agree. I was born in 1966 so I'm older than most of you on here. But you guys are so knowledgeable. It's incredible.
 
There are definitely different eras and generations of fans.

I remember in the early 2000's every fan and impersonator were mimicing the Dangerous Tour look, which is logical since at that time, Bucharest was the most available concert. And logically In the 80's, impersonators were all set on that Jheri Curl, white glove and aviator sunglasses (Fun fact: If you google Jerry Curl, the first picture you get by google AI is the Thriller album cover...)

Michael was indestructible in the 80's and breaking barriers, but I believe his range of popularity grew enormously from the Bad Tour and onwards. He solidified his status. I wish he would have released some of his early J5 concerts while he was still alive so that people could see how good he was in his pure prime. In the early 2000's we grew up with the narrative that he was mostly lipsynching his songs. We had more History Tour concerts than any other tour concerts combined. A Minneapolis 1988 (or something similar) being released at the time (Or even during the Trial in 2005) would have been a great way to improve his legacy. But nope, it was left to rot in the archives.

Needless to say, a lot of missed opportunites.
 
I think because some of us LUCKY ONES have been with Michael sInce he was a child which is over 45yrs, and we were raised on every new song, new premiers, epic events, album drops in real time and ground breaking and record breaking monumental moments of his greatness!
The new fans are learning everything we knew for decades as truth right now, they don't even know anything ALL about him fully YET but because they have finally come to see why WE LOVE Michael so much they are truly LOVING him in their own way in the purest ways!
I love and respect that Michael's ARMY of LOVE is growing bigger every single day and they are coming in droves on their OWN!!
I think the older MJ Fans are the perfect people to welcome and teach them everything they need to know about THE TRUTH O HIM no one else but a dedicated, loyal, loving, unconditional Michael fan could teach them right!!!
With L.O.V.E 🥹 😘 👑
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top