Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

"Lights! It's too dark here!"

As Link and Selena walked by, a beam of light fell onto the bottom of the stage, illuminating the front row of the audience.

West and a few others were engaged in a lively conversation with MJ below, surrounding him like starstruck younger brothers meeting their leader, their eyes filled with intense admiration and eagerness.

Link glanced at MJ amidst the crowd, tall and slender, wearing a black fedora, a curl of hair hanging over his forehead, and sunglasses, looking as cool as he did in his music videos.

While talking to West and the others, he gently patted West's arm, wearing a friendly smile on his face.

But his complexion was unnaturally pale, his facial contours rigid, with high cheekbones and sunken cheeks, resembling a white mask.

Link felt Selena's grip on his hand tighten a bit, he chuckled softly, put his arm around her shoulders, and quickly walked over.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Jackson, I'm Link Baker, and this is my sister Selena Gomez. It's an honor to meet you here!"

Link said enthusiastically.

MJ also looked up at him, smiled slightly, and stepped out from the group to extend his hand, saying, "Link, I'm also delighted to meet you. I've seen your match with Tyson in Atlantic City."

"Oh?"

Link was surprised. Had he actually gone to watch his match with Tyson last time?

However, remembering the media reports from last May, claiming MJ had disguised himself and appeared at the MGM in Las Vegas, watching the ultimate fighting championship amongst the crowd.

And his frequent disguises as common folk for grocery shopping or visiting CD and antique shops in Beverly Hills.

It wasn't impossible that he had come to Atlantic City to watch his match with Tyson. After all, being an Emperor Superstar, he didn't need to lie to a less famous star like himself.

"Mr. Jackson, what do you think of my boxing?"

Link asked with a smile.

"Call me Mike!"

MJ replied with a gentle smile, then greeted a nervous Selena, saying, "Link, you are certainly one of the best boxers in the world. Moreover, it's amazing that you're only 21 years old."

Link chuckled softly and quickly responded modestly with thanks.

"Mike, he's not that great. If Tyson weren't older now, this guy would definitely be no match for Tyson," Lil Wayne said, sounding displeased.

MJ patted his shoulder, saying, "I've called Tyson, and he said that even ten years younger, he could only tie with Link. Link as a Super Middleweight boxer defeating Heavyweight Tyson is real strength. No one can deny that."

While they were talking, MJ's doctor and nurses hurried over, asking him to sit and rest, and started checking on him.

In 1999, MJ had suffered a severe on-stage accident when he fell from a bridge 50 feet high, causing serious injuries to his waist and back, necessitating pain-relieving injections. This led to his prescription drug addiction and progressively weakening health.

He also suffered from severe vitiligo and hereditary lupus among other conditions.

These ailments and old injuries constantly tormented him, severely affecting his performance on stage.

This also necessitated that he had a medical team with him during rehearsals and performances.

MJ apologized to everyone, sat down in a massage chair, and underwent checks from the doctor and nurses.

Link, looking at the frail MJ, once again deeply understood the burden of wearing a crown.

He debuted in the 1960s, gained global fame in the 1970s, became a top superstar in the 1980s, and then a unique superstar in the world's entertainer circle in the 1990s. He was also a musician, a philanthropist, a peace advocate, a humanitarian, among other titles.

The more titles he held, the more skepticism he faced.

In 1984, during a Pepsi-Cola commercial shoot, an accident caused his hair to catch fire, leading to severe burns on his scalp and face. Subsequent skin graft operations, coupled with his vitiligo, caused his skin to gradually lighten.

From that time, much news concerning his skin whitening appeared in the media.

By 1993, when the child molestation case broke for the first time, he faced a massive public outcry, vilification, and criminal investigations, barely avoiding imprisonment.

Afterward, he appeared in court multiple times to defend himself and was acquitted twice by the courts, but people tend to presume guilt when judging public figures, to achieve some psychological balance.

That incident had become an indelible stain on him, with media reports on the event persisting to this day.

To resolve these problems, he had no choice but to temporarily retreat from the public eye.

After the change in Washington this year, the situation seemed to have improved, leading to the current comeback concert.

Link related MJ's experiences to his own, wondering if he too might be subjected to numerous media condemnations should he become a unique superstar like MJ.

The answer was definite.

Every celebrity, after gaining fame, found themselves burdened by their reputation, which seemed to be an inescapable law in the entertainment industry.

The greater the fame, the more interests are involved; the more people want to profit from him; this law becomes even more apparent.

Like MJ, the King of Entertainment, with over a billion fans worldwide.

In the United States and globally, he held tremendous influence; each incoming president invited him to Washington to chat and awarded him various medals to win him and his fans over.

MJ had indeed become a 'too big to fail' entity.

For many people, this was not a good thing.

There were others like Taylor who would also become immensely influential stars capable of swaying political landscapes.

During her rise to fame, she too faced massive public scrutiny; however, being a blonde Caucasian, she was relatively less attacked.

Additionally, she was smart in making her relationships public with many boyfriends, creating a reputation as a bad girl, an imperfect idol, providing the media with a target, thus leaving them with fewer breakthroughs in her private life.

Link thought that if he truly became a global superstar in the future, he could follow Taylor's example and mold himself into an imperfect idol to avoid a lot of troubles.

"Mr. Baker, Mr. West, please come this way."

While MJ was getting a massage, the concert's executive director Kenny Ortega sought out Link and Kanye to discuss rehearsal arrangements.

According to the plan, Link would perform two songs with MJ.

The first was "Remember The Time," where he would perform alongside MJ.

The second was "We are the world," led by MJ, featuring Link, Kanye, Lil Wayne, the Backstreet Boys, Billy Gilman, Lisa Minnelli, and several other invited singers; it was one of the reserved numbers in MJ's concert, somewhat similar to "Unforgettable Tonight."

Link's task was to familiarize himself with these two songs over the next month and make time for rehearsals; the concert was scheduled for June.

"Mr. Baker, any questions?"

Director Kenny Ortega asked.

"Is there going to be dancing involved? If there are dance performances, I hope the directorial team could notify me earlier to give me some time to practice."

Link didn't want to be outperformed by MJ on stage, so he could only make time to practice more.

Director Ortega nodded, indicating that was not a problem.

Link, given his tasks, went to bid farewell to MJ, and MJ asked him about the time of his next match. Link mentioned that he had a boxing championship next month in New York.

MJ didn't say whether he would come, just acknowledged it.

After chatting for more than ten minutes, seven or eight staff members came to discuss matters with MJ. Seeing how busy he was, Link, accompanied by Selena, took his leave.