Harry Styles is having the biggest year of his life. Not only has he put out a worldwide hit album, Harry’s House, and embarked on a colossal stadium tour in support of it, but he is also set to make his star shine a little bit brighter with two impending film releases—Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling and Michael Grandage’s My Policeman.
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For all this, and many more accolades amassed in previous years, it is tenable to suggest that Styles is reigning firmly over the pop world—although many Michael Jackson fans aren’t eager to give up the title.
In a recent cover story for Rolling Stone, Styles is dubbed “The New King of Pop”—a seemingly innocuous moniker that quickly amassed a healthy bout of criticism. Fans of Jackson, who was given the original crown, took to Twitter to dismiss the claim, saying that MJ should still hold the title exclusively.
One user, @Jaxstan7, replied to the outlet’s post with a picture of Jackson, writing, “Here is a picture of the current, new and old King of Pop all together.”
User @iamveronica777 mirrored the same sentiment, writing, “This title belongs to the black man who worked his ass off since the age of 5, who was a veteran by the age of 15, broke racial barriers and revolutionized the music industry. Michael Jackson is THEE King of Pop of EVERY generation.”
Even Jackons’ nephew, Taj Jackson, commented on the controversy writing, “There is no new King of Pop. You don’t own the title @RollingStone, and you didn’t earn it, my uncle did. Decades of dedication and sacrifice. The title has been retired. No disrespect to @Harry_Styles, he’s mega talented. Give him his own unique title.”
Elsewhere, user @andjustice4some, completed their repetitions writing, “There is no new King of Pop” nine times while @sh3driv3sm3wild compiled a thread’s worth of evidence on why searching for a new King of Pop is a futile effort.
Though there were a few tweets that marked Styles’ new moniker as well deserved, the overwhelming response was negative, illustrating just how cemented into pop culture Jackson truly is. Check out a selection of tweets below.
(Photo by Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
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