Paris and Prince Jackson Honor Late Father Michael Jackson at His 60th Birthday Celebration
The apples don’t fall far from the tree.
On Wednesday, Michael Jackson‘s daughter Paris Jackson, 20, and son Prince Jackson, 21, were together at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas for a special celebration honoring what would have been late singer’s 60th birthday.
Taking the stage at the event, dubbed the “Michael Jackson Diamond Birthday Celebration,” the two followed in their father’s footsteps by accepting the Elizabeth Taylor Legacy Award on his behalf for his humanitarian work with the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation.
They looked good doing it, too — Paris in a pink strapless dress with ruffled train and Prince wearing a look reminiscent of his late father’s iconic style (black pants, a white T-shirt, and a red bomber jacket).
Both also rocked matching black sneakers, custom designed with the word “Tribute” bedazzled into the sole.
The award was presented to Paris and Prince by two very special people: Elizabeth Taylor’s grandson Quinn Tivey and Diana Ross’s son, Evan Ross.
Taylor and Ross were both incredibly close with Michael before his death in June 2009 (Taylor died in March 2011).
“It is extremely a privilege and an honor to be here accepting an award not only for something my dad was so passionate about, but someone he held so very near and dear to his heart, and a foundation that he worked so hard to strive and make the goals that they are achieving right now,” Prince told the crowd.
“The way my father like to lead his life, he liked to lead by example and he never thought that he was too big,” Prince continued. “The King of Pop, the biggest entertainer in the world, he never thought he was too big for any person, no matter what it is that you did or where you came from. I think it’s important to do this to make this world a better place.”
Paris, who is an ambassador of the foundation, let her brother do the talking — telling the crowd that “he’s always the most well-spoken.”
She was more vocal on the red carpet, where she wore colorful silk pants, a short-sleeve white T-shirt, silver heels, and an mix of bold jewelry.
“We celebrate our father and his legacy in our own ways. It’s very exciting to be here,” Paris told E! News. “And it’s a celebration of love, and obviously today is very meaningful to so many people, but I think we honor him every day. It’s not so much the date. It’s more just the feeling of it, but there’s a lot of love here tonight and I’m excited about that.”
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Also at the event, guests took in a viewing of the King of Pop’s Cirque Du Soleil show, Michael Jackson ONE — which is housed at the Mandalay Bay.
Usher gave a surprise performance, while stars like Gabrielle Union, Vanessa Hudgens, and Angela Bassett made appearances.
The award presentation was held at the afterparty, at the hotel and casino’s daylight pool party.
All in all, it was all a special evening Michael would have loved.
“If Michael was here, he’d go crazy because he loved the pageantry, he loved Las Vegas,” Jackie Jackson told PEOPLE on the red carpet. “He loved his birthday. He was always celebrating his birthday at [Neverland Ranch]. We used to have fun times.”
