LOS ANGELES?With a genre-transcending musical style, awe-inspiring dance moves and jaw-dropping record sales, Michael Jackson transformed the entertainment industry like few others in history.

The King of Pop, who died Thursday at age 50, goes to his grave still holding the all-time record for album sales for 1982's "Thriller." Over his nearly four-decade career, he sold more than 750 million albums.

"All the planets were aligned; everything was where it needed to be," said Jerry Del Colliano, a professor at the University of Southern California.

"You take some luck, some talent, some ability, the right time in history," he said.

While Jackson's star dimmed late in his life, his death sent global shockwaves like few other celebrity passings could with fans across continents spontaneously singing and dancing his songs in remembrance.

Across the recording industry, virtually all artists from pop to rock to electronica declared Jackson to be one of the greatest influences in modern music.

"He has been an inspiration throughout my entire life and I?m devastated he?s gone," pop starlet Britney Spears told People magazine.

"He made the music come to life!! He made me believe in magic. I will miss him!" said the hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs.

From another side of the music world, John Mayer, a blues and rock guitarist, said on Twitter: "A major strand of our cultural DNA has left us."

M.I.A., the British-born rapper of Sri Lankan descent who recorded a track for the Oscar-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire," said that Michael Jackson was "the first two English words I ever spoke."

"The future sucks!" she opined.

Jackson's death instantly transformed Britain's celebrated Glastonbury rock festival, where the music temporarily switched to the King of Pop, uniting thousands in dance. Singer Lily Allen paid tribute by appearing on stage wearing a white glove.

Musical publications -- from influential Rolling Stone to the US indie-rock online bible Pitchfork -- all dedicated themselves to the King of Pop.

And his influence was not just in the United States. In nations as different as China and Denmark, fans flocked to mourn Jackson -- and to remember the early era of cultural globalization that he represented.

The 13-time Grammy winner was "a real American export that has worldwide appeal and is beloved all over the world," Del Colliano said.

Del Colliano said that Jackson -- one of the few artists admitted twice to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame -- belonged to an exclusive pantheon of musicians with historic influence such as The Beatles, Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra.

Jackson's influence is partly a reflection of his own openness to different musical styles. On the "Thriller" album, Jackson goes from rock guitar on "Beat It" to late-disco-era dance on the title track to slower, more meditative tracks drawing on his African-American heritage.

"He has been such a pivotal transformational figure in American and global music," the Reverend Jesse Jackson, the civil rights leader, told CNN.

"His music has torn down walls and built bridges," Jackson said.

Michael Jackson was also on top of his game in adapting to the latest industry trends. He was the first African-American artist to appear on MTV, which while reluctant at first later hailed Jackson as its greatest asset.

Jackson showed the new possibilities of music videos with "Thriller," a 14-minute production with special effects that more closely resembled a mini movie than the music-videos which were then mostly promotional footage.

Jackson also helped pioneer the idea of mega-concerts -- grand theatrical spectacles where the music was just one part of the experience.

He used one televised concert to unveil the "moonwalk," his forward-and-backward-at-once dance that was a stark contrast to his typically brash, almost jittery moves.

Jackson left the scene at a dire time for the music industry. New media -- and the loss of big-target artists -- have decimated record sales.

"It is not an accident that the music industry declined in direct proportion to the loss of radio and the loss of some of the biggest acts in recording history," Del Colliano said.