Last Sunday’s Grammys brought out the music industry’s finest, as Lady Gaga’s strutting around in a “Rings of Saturn” inspired Giorgio Armani gown and Taylor Swift swooned in skin-tight sparkly blue sheath. But the next day, fashion nor the fact that Pink performed like a human sprinkler was not the foremost event in most Grammy recaps. In fact, many a water cooler was buzzing over talk of the touching Michael Jackson eco-tribute from his peers and children.

Jackson, long known for his commitment to the environment, was recently called “the world’s biggest environmentalist” by Treehugger.  In 1997, he told Ebony magazine that he was deeply concerned about the state of the world and the global warming. As Jackson stated, "For me, this is earth's song, because I think nature is trying so hard to compensate for man's mismanagement...and with the ecological unbalance going on and a lot of the problems in the environment, I think earth feels the pain and she has wounds."

Jackson’s green legacy was honored at the Grammys with a tribute performance set to his 1995 hit, “Earth Song.” Don’t remember it topping the charts in the United States? It was a mega-hit across Europe, and number one in the U.K., but it was never released in the United States. The song calls attention to the destruction of the world's endangered rainforests and natural habitats. And it sold over a million copies in Europe.

The tribute was introduced by Jackson's longtime friend and “We Are the World” collaborator Lionel Richie. Richie spoke about how Jackson expressed a need for humanity to be in greater harmony with “mother earth” through a sense of awareness and awakening. Then Jackson’s “Earth Song” video began to play. Ecroazzi reports that the video would have been shown during the concert series in London Jackson was preparing for when he died.

And the tribute was pretty. A gorgeous little girl with a butterfly played across a giant LED screen intercut with pictures of Jackson. Celine Dion, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson, Smokey Robinson all sang the eco-friendly lyrics while Beyonce and Rhiannon rocked it out in the audience wearing 3-D glasses.

After the performance, Jackson's children, Prince and Paris accepted a Grammy lifetime-achievement award for their father. “Our father was always concerned about the planet and humanity," Prince said. "Through all his hard work and dedication, he has helped many charities and donated to all of them. Throughout his songs, his message was simple: love. We will continue to spread his message and help the world. Thank you. We love you, Daddy."

Miss the tribute? Watch it here – and better yet, slip on some 3-D glasses and let us know how it look to you!

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