Dying has long been good for musicians. It’s been especially good for Michael Jackson.

When Tom Petty died, there were 7 million streams of his music the next day, a 1,149% increase. But only around 210,000 albums and songs were sold, anemic compared to the 4.41 million albums and songs sold after Prince died. The instantaneous acquisition of music extends the life of the music with any small mention of a dead artist resulting in an instant increase in streams. Whereas most major artists’ sales fade within a year of their death, the music of Michael Jackson, deceased for a decade, still sees spikes in streaming.

Most notably, in the UK “Ones” went from 61 to 28 on the charts in one blow when HBO’s documentary “Leaving Neverland” came out with renewed accusations of sexual abuse. That might seem macabre, but consider the indelible mark Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, has left on music — and our lives.

For many, Michael Jackson’s music was the soundtrack to their lives. Music has that power thanks to nostalgia. It anchors the key moments of our lives and becomes ingrained in our psyche. Hearing a familiar song is a transporting experience and “our” music is deeply personal, creating a manic longing for days gone by. Couples dance to “our song,” and individuals sing along to the radio when “my jam” comes on.

When people hear “Thriller,” their first thought isn’t of Michael Jackson, it’s of the first time they heard “Thriller.” Indeed, research has shown that our brains bind us to the music we heard as angst-ridden teenagers or young adults, the power of the music not fading with years. As Mark Joseph Stern wrote in Slate, “Musical nostalgia, in other words, isn’t just a cultural phenomenon: It’s a neuronic command.”

This is an impressive feat when you think about the decades of controversy Michael Jackson has faced. Since 1993, he has been accused, investigated, sued and charged numerous times. His own sister, La Toya Jackson, told media the allegations were true. But somehow Michael Jackson and his music survived, escaping substantive repercussions of the despicable crimes alleged to have repeatedly occurred.

“Thriller,” when it first came out, was inescapable. Even those who claimed to not like the song, or Michael Jackson, still knew it by heart. Radio rotation used to be crucial to the success of a record because familiarity builds liking. Given how much air time “Thriller” got in its day, it’s not surprising the song became so ingrained in who we are. Being released a decade before Michael Jackson was first accused, it had time to take on a life of its own before its creator came under fire.

Because music is woven into the fabric of our lives, it’s hard, and even undesirable to disentangle ourselves from it. Hardcore fans of the music will not be deterred from listening to a contentious artist. In fact, musicians of most all genres, especially POP, are often associated with decadent/rebellious lifestyles, deserved or not, it’s almost expected. While this does not excuse artists for behavior like the terrible accusations aimed at Michael Jackson, there is a distinct break between the musician and the music. A great song will always be a great song. And a great song will always be in demand. In fact, Michael Jackson was the highest paid dead celebrity of 2018.

But that doesn’t mean the King of Pop’s reign is eternal. As the outcry about his behavior portrayed in the documentary fades, so does his music. As new music is put out more quickly now, and with streaming services always offering the latest songs, it’s harder for oldies to stick around in the rotation of anyone who doesn’t actively seek them out. But the music of Michael Jackson will never die as it remains a never-ending stream, waiting to surge again with some new accusation or documentary.

In the future, after his star has seemingly faded out of existence, one of Michael Jackson’s songs might be used in a movie, with the movie goers discovering the music of Michael Jackson, starting the cycle anew to cries of ‘The King is Dead, Long Live the King’.

Music critic Bob Lefsetz has said, “On a funeral, everyone rallies around the identity of the person who died, but when you come to music these people are icons who fill a hole in people’s lives,” he said. “Somebody once put it to me. Movies when done right are larger than life. Music when done right is life itself.”

Jeff Snyder is a professor of music, chair of the Music Department, and director of the Music Industry Program at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pa.