"That's kind of a shock."

It's a feeling echoed across Lansing today, as the word spread: The King of Pop is gone.

"Nobody was expecting this at all," said John Robinson, disc jockey at WFMK in Lansing. "It just kinda, boom, happened like that. And so people are gonna be shocked. And then the sadness will kick in."

Robinson's a 30-year DJ veteran -- every year spent in Lansing. He says the city will sorely miss pop's biggest sensation.

"There are so many Michael Jackson fans in this area. I mean, when 'Thriller' first came out, we had tons of 'em here in town," Robinson said. "And now that we do retro weekends, we get tons of requests for Michael Jackson songs."

That Lansing love for MJ hasn't been unanimous. The star's quirky personal life and charges of child molestation hounded Jackson on more than one occasion -- a caveat noted by the city's younger population, raised in the midst of Jackson's more tainted years.

"Yeah, it is kinda sad," said Dave Hueter, an employee at Uncle Sam's Records in Lansing. "But in the last half of his life, he got kinda weird."

But Hueter admits it: Even he has a personal connection with the King.

"Billy Jean jean was the No. 1 song on the charts the day I was born. So I do feel remorse."

A sentiment that John Robinson shares.

"It's been like 40 years since the Jackson Five kicked in in 1969. When you put his entire history in retrospect, I think a lot of people who used to make jokes about the man will feel a little sadder than they realized they would."