It was the grand ballroom of the Sheraton Hotel in New York City. The date is March 10, 1988. The room is packed with absolute legends. Elizabeth Taylor, Whitney Houston, Yoko Ono, and Quincy Jones are all sitting at the tables. They are looking directly at a young man from Gary, Indiana. But he is not wearing his famous glove tonight. He is wearing a graduation cap and gown.
Michael Jackson was already the biggest music star on the planet. He could easily sell out any stadium in the world. But this very special night was not about his dancing. It was about his heart.
A few years earlier, in 1986, Michael donated $1.5 million to the United Negro College Fund. He wanted to make sure young students could afford to go to school. Just days before this big dinner, he threw a massive concert at Madison Square Garden. He took $600,000 straight from that show and gave it all away to charity.
Michael Jackson – Received and Honorary Doctorate Degree – 1988
He spent his free time visiting terminally ill children in hospitals. He co-wrote “We Are The World” with Lionel Richie to help feed starving people across the globe. Fisk University decided it was time to honor all of this work. The school president handed Michael an Honorary Doctorate degree. He looked at the pop star and told him the absolute truth. His musical talent was amazing, but his humanitarian heart is what truly made the world a better place.
Even the President of the United States at that time wanted to say thank you.
The King of Pop at the White House
Ronald Reagan sent a special audio message to the hotel ballroom. He congratulated the singer for his incredible, selfless charity work. Reagan even gave him a brand-new, playful nickname. He proudly called him the new “Dr. J.”
You can be the most famous person in the entire world. You can break every musical record and make millions of dollars. But your truest legacy is never about the trophies you keep for yourself. It is always about the hope you choose to give away.