rodney yee

OK, I admit, I have been captivated by the media blitz around Michael Jackson. Our TV has been tuned to countless MJ videos and news commentaries. Sure, he was a big part of my music and dance history, which accounts for some of the fascination, but it still leaves me wondering …

The first time my back went out, I was 27 years old. I was about to go on a media tour, appearing on morning news programs to plug a book I had written, and I was terrified. I had a mortal fear of public speaking, and the very thought of waking up at 5 a.m. to talk eloquently about anything to thousands of people was … well, I can’t tell you because I couldn’t even ponder it. Whenever my mind wandered toward my impending TV debut, I froze. It didn’t take long for my back muscles to get the message to freeze, too — and pretty soon I was moving as gingerly as I could, whimpering with every step. And the pain lasted several weeks longer than the media tour.

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