Madonna pays tribute to Michael Jackson at the memorial service

Michael Jackson was born in August 1951 . So was I . Michael Jackson grew up in the suburbs of the Midwest . So did I . Michael Jackson had eight brothers and sisters . So do I . When Michael Jackson was six , he became a superstar , and was perhaps the world’s most beloved child . When I was six , my mother died . I think he got the shorter end of the stick . I never had a mother , but he never had a childhood . And when you never get to have something , you became obsessed by it . I spent my childhood searching for my mother’s figures , sometimes I was successful , but how do you recreate your childhood when you are under the magnifying glass of the world for your entire life .
 There is no question that Michael Jackson was one of the greatest talents the world has ever known . That when he sang a song at the ripe old age of eight he could make you feel like an experienced adult was squeezing your heart with his words . That when he moved he had the elegance of Fred Astaire and packed the punch of Muhammad Ali . That his music has an extra layer of inexplicable magic that did’t just make you want to dance but actually made you believe you could fly , dare to dream , be anything that you wanted to be . Because that is what heroes do and Michael Jackson was a hero .
 He performed in soccer stadiums around the world and sold hundreds of millions of records and dined with prime ministers and presidents . Girls fell in love with him , boys fell in love with him , everyone wanted to dance like him . He seemed otherworldly – but he was a human being . Like most performers he was shy and plagued with insecurities . I can’t say we were great friends , but in 1991 I decided I wanted to try to get to know him better . I asked him out to dinner , I said “My treat , I’ll drive – just you and me .” He agreed and showed up to my house without any bodyguards , we drove to the restaurant in my car . It was dark out , but he was still wearing sunglasses . I said , “Micheal , I feel like I’m talking to a limousine . Do you think you can take off your glasses so I can see your eyes ? ” He paused for a moment then he tossed the glasses out the window , looked at me with a wink and a smile and said , “Can you see me now ? Is that better ? ”
 In that moment , I could see both his vulnerability and his charm . The rest of the dinner , I was hellbent on getting him to eat French fries , drink wine , have dessert and say bad words . Things he never seemed to allow himself to do . Later we went back to my house to watch a movie and sat on the couch like two kids , and somewhere in the middle of the movie , his hand snuck over and held mine . It felt like he was looking for a friend more than a romance , and I was happy to oblige . In that moment , he did’t feel like a superstar . He felt like a human being .
 We went out a few more times together , and then for one reason or another we fell out of touch . Then the witch hunt began , and it seemed like one negative story after another was coming out about Michael . I felt his pain , I know what it’s like to walk down the street and feel like the whole world is turned against you . I know what it’s like to feel helpless and unable to defend yourself because the roar of lynch mob is so loud you feel like your voice can never be heard . But I had a childhood , and I was allowed to make mistakes and find my own way in the world without the glare of the spotlight .
 When I first heard that Michael had died , I was in London , days away from the start of my tour . Michael was going to perform in the same venue as me a week later . All I could think about in this moment was , “I had abandoned him .” That we had abandoned him . That we had allowed this magnificent creature who had once set the world on fire to somehow slip through the cracks . While he was trying to build a family and rebuild his career , we were all passing judgement . Most of us had turned our backs on him . In a desperate attempt to hold on his memory , I went on the Internet to watch old clips of his dancing and singing on TV and a stage and I thought , “my God , he was so unique , so original , so rare , and there will never be anyone like him again . He was a king . ” But he was also a human being , and also we were all human beings and sometimes we have to lose things before we can appreciate them .
 I want to end this on a positive note and say that to my sons , age nine and four , are obessed with Michael Jackson . There’s a whole lot of crotch grabbing and moon walking going on in my house . And , it seems like a whole new generation of kids have discovered his genius and are bringing him to life again . I hope that wherever Michael is right now he is smiling about this .
 Yes , Michael Jackson was a human being but he was a king . Long live the king .

译文：

迈克尔·杰克逊出生于1958年8月。我也是。迈克尔·杰克逊在美国中西部的郊区长大，我也是。迈克尔·杰克逊有八个兄弟姐妹，我也有。在迈克尔·杰克逊年仅6岁的时候，他便成为了一个超级巨星，或许更是世界上最受钟爱的小孩。而我6岁的时候，母亲永远离开了我。我认为他比我更不幸。我从没有拥有过母爱，而他却从来没有享受过童年。当一个人意识到永远得不到某种东西时，你就会对此念念不忘。我耗尽了童年寻找母亲的形象，；有时我成功了。但当你的一生都被放在放大镜下被人关注时，试问你如何重新找回你的童年？
毫无疑问，迈克尔·杰克逊是世界上最伟大的天才之一……当他还是个8岁的小孩时，他的歌声已经让人感觉像个饱经沧桑的成人在述说他的故事，也因此扣人心弦……他舞动的方式，带着弗雷德·阿斯泰尔（Fred Astaire）的高雅，充满着拳王阿里（Muhammad Ali）的力量……他的音乐附着有一层无法解释魔力，令你不仅仅想随之而舞，更令你相信你可以飞翔，敢于梦想，成为任何你想成为的人。因为这就是英雄的影响力！而迈克尔·杰克逊就是个英雄！
他在世界各地的体育场里表演，他卖出了上亿张唱片，他和总理首相总统共进晚餐。女孩爱上他，男孩爱上他，所有人都想像他一样舞蹈，他看上去就像来自另外一个世界，但他依然是一个普通人。就像大多数表演家一样，他害羞，苦恼着没有安全感。我无法说我们是很要好的朋友，但是在1991年，我决定我要更多地了解他。我邀请他出来共进晚餐：我说：“我请客，我开车，只有你和我。”他答应了，并只身一人不带保镖出现在我家中。我开车和他去餐馆，天已经很黑的可他仍然戴着他的墨镜。于是我说：“迈克尔，我觉得我是在跟这部车说话。你能把眼镜摘掉让我看见你的眼睛吗？”他犹豫了一会儿然后把眼镜扔出窗外，用闪烁的眼睛看着我，微笑着说：“现在你能看见我了没？有没有好点？”
在这时，我终于感受到他的脆弱和他的魅力。晚餐的其它部分，我则是努力要让他吃点炸薯条，喝点酒，享用点甜点，说点脏话，这些事情看上去是他永远不会允许自己去做的。之后，我们回到我的房子，看了部电影，我们坐在沙发上，就像两个孩子，就在电影放映中，他的手悄悄伸过来，握住了我的手。感觉上他是在寻找一个朋友，而不是寻找一份浪漫，我很高兴地遵从了他。在那个时刻，他感觉不像一个超级巨星，他就感觉是一个普通人。
我们后来又一起出去过好几次，但因为一些原因，我们失去了联络。然后，猎杀行动开始了，一个又一个负面故事纠缠着迈克尔。我可以体会他的痛苦。我很清楚当一个人走在街上而全世界似乎都与你为敌的感觉。我也很清楚那种无助和无法为自己辩护的痛苦，因为那些嘶吼着要将你处死的声音实在太大，以至于你确信无论如何，你的声音也不会有人听见。但我有过童年，我可以被允许去犯错误，然后在没有聚光灯闪耀的情况下，再在这个世界上找到属于我的路。
当我听到迈克尔去世的消息时，我正在伦敦，还有几天我就将在这里开始我的巡演。迈克尔也将于一周后在我表演的同一个场馆里开唱。而我当时的感觉便是我遗弃了他。我们都遗弃了他。我们曾让这个如此高贵壮美的生命，这个曾经让世界为之疯狂的生命，不知所以地被我们置之不理！当他试图建立自己的家庭和重拾他的事业时，我们都忙于对他做出评判。我们中的大部分人都对他背过身去。为拼命留住关于他的记忆，我上网，去看那些他在电视和舞台上唱歌跳舞的老片段，这时我想的是，“我的上帝，他是那么的独特，那么的原创，那么的罕见。再也不会有一个人和他一样了。”他就是国王。但他也是一个普通人，而，天啦，我们都是凡人，有时我们必须得等到失去以后，才能真正懂得去珍惜。
最后，我想以一个积极乐观的方式结束我的发言。我的两个儿子，一个9岁，一个4岁，都非常痴迷于迈克尔·杰克逊。他们成天都在家里跳月球漫步，抓着裤裆，就好像全世界新一代的小孩儿们都发现了他的天才，并要让他起死回生。我希望迈克尔现在无论身在何方，他都能为之微笑。
是的，迈克尔·杰克逊是一个凡人，但该死的，他还是一个国王！国王万岁！7