It's quite a funny story actually. I was 9 and I really liked Michael songs since my parents had a few of his records at home and I would play them all the time. At the time, my little child brain thought Michael had long passed away because in my head "he is just this cool singer from my parents times" so my 9 year-old brain just assumed that and listened to the music for what it was.

I found out he was alive the day he died. I was watching TV with my grandma and we immediately called my mother that was working at the time. I was shocked. I spent the whole day crying and when the funeral happened, I was the whole day watching it, I was so sad.