MICHAEL JACKSON 

In 2007–2008, Sony Music / Legacy organised the Thriller 25 campaign, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the best-selling album in history and aiming to put Michael Jackson back in the media spotlight.​
As part of this, NRJ and TF1 decided to present him with an honorary NRJ Music Award for “Lifetime Achievement” at the 2008 ceremony, which had become one of the major pop television events in France.

By then largely withdrawn from public life, Jackson ultimately decided not to travel to Cannes. Rumours of his attendance were denied, and the on-stage presentation was cancelled. Instead, he recorded a video message of thanks from Los Angeles, which was broadcast on 26 January 2008 – the only message made to promote this reissue.

This trophy is believed to be the original copy manufactured in France in 2008 for Michael Jackson, intended to symbolise this Lifetime Achievement Award.In
a detailed email dated 2026, Richard Lecocq, then a consultant for Sony Music France on Thriller 25 and author of several reference works on Jackson, states that the trophy was retrieved in 2008 by Nancy Lessert, then Thriller 25 project manager at Sony Music / Legacy.

According to this account, Nancy Lessert was due to present the trophy in person to Michael Jackson at the 50th Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles on 10 February 2008, where the artist’s attendance had been announced by the press.​ A few days before the event, however, Jackson cancelled his appearance. The cancellation was widely reported by media outlets such as Vulture, the Irish Examiner and ExtraTV, and the private meeting never took place.​

With no further opportunity to present the award, the trophy remained in the possession of Nancy Lessert, in her capacity as an executive at Sony Music. She eventually presented the trophy to Richard Lecocq to thank him for their collaborative work on Thriller 25.

According to currently available research, the 2008 NRJ Music Awards “Lifetime Achievement Award” was the last career trophy officially accepted by Michael Jackson during his lifetime, via a video message broadcast on 26 January 2008 on TF1; his subsequent awards (2009 American Music Awards, MOBO Awards, 2010 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, etc.) were awarded posthumously or without the artist’s direct involvement.

Owing to its direct link to Thriller 25, its status as the last career award formally accepted by Michael Jackson during his lifetime, and its provenance from Sony Music, Nancy Lessert and Richard Lecocq, this Lifetime Achievement Award ranks among the rarest and most eloquent testimonies to the relationship between the artist and the French public.