A year after his death, Michael Jackson is still hailed as the favourite musical legend among younger generations.
According to a recent poll, just over a quarter (27%) of British 18-34 year olds believe that Jackson is the musician that has left the greatest legacy, be it through their personality or their music. However, while Jackson may have a strong following among 18-34s, only 14% of the British population as a whole chose him; he was beaten to the top spot by two other towering musical legends.
Elvis Presley and John Lennon came first and second with 22% and 17% respectively, and Presley was the clear favourite of older generations, taking 26% of the vote among the over 55s.
Geographically, Presley also wins out; the cool American rock tunes are most popular in the South (25%), compared to 19% in London, 21% in the Midlands and the North, and 23% in Scotland.
Legends on the leaderboard
The battle for legendary status rages on between the three giants on TellYouGov as well, with one user, or ‘tygger’, declaring that ‘there will never be anybody like [Elvis] again’, while a Lennon fan emphatically announced that ‘[Lennon] will always be the best singer and entertainer’.
The anniversary of Jackson’s death has provoked a flood of leaderboard activity, with comments, or ‘tygs’, such as ‘[the] legend lives on even a year after his passing, there will never be another’, while another remarked ‘long will his music live’. One simply wrote, ‘timeless’.
Other musical acts vying for legend status included Freddie Mercury, Frank Sinatra, Johnny Cash and Ella Fitzgerald.
