Michael Jackson's daughter Paris has paid an emotional tribute to her father at a public memorial for the pop superstar in Los Angeles.The 11-year-old stood before 20,000 of her father's fans and fought back tears as she said: "I just wanted to say ever since I was born daddy has been the best father you can ever imagine and I just want to say I love him so much."
VIDEO: Watch highlights of the memorial service Fans flock to Facebook during memorial service Australians travel to LA | Memorial guest listParis and her brothers Prince Michael, 12, and Prince Michael II, seven, joined a host of stars on stage at the Staples Centre at the end of the memorial service to sing We Are The World.The farewell for the music superstar began shortly after 8.15am on Tuesday (1.15am Wednesday AEST) as Jackson's family gathered for a private service at a mortuary in the Hollywood Hills.At the end of the private ceremony, pallbearers carrying Jackson's golden casket emerged and loaded it into a black hearse.A motorcade made a stately procession to the Staples Centre, where family, friends and celebrities rubbed shoulders with ordinary fans who had won tickets via an online lottery.The service got under way with soul legend Smokey Robinson reading letters of condolence from stars and world leaders unable to attend, which included a tribute from former South African president Nelson Mandela."Michael was a giant and a legend in the music industry. And we mourn with the millions of fans worldwide,'' Mandela's tribute read.Motown diva Diana Ross meanwhile - named by Jackson in his will as an alternative guardian to his children - said she had chosen to mourn privately."Michael was a personal love of mine, a treasured part of my world, part of the fabric of my life,'' Ross's tribute said."Michael wanted me to be there for his children, and I will be there if they ever need me.''The 12-year-old Welsh schoolboy Shaheen Jafargholi, who wowed TV audiences earlier this year with the Jackson 5 song Who's Loving You on Britain's Got Talent, as given a standing ovation after he sang the same song to the stadium. Veteran poet and writer Maya Angelou paid tribute to Jackson in a moving elegy read by Queen Latifah."Sing our songs among the stars and walk our dances across the face of the moon,'' Angelou wrote.Pastor Lucious W. Smith of the Friendship Baptist Church in Pasadena gave the invocation, followed by Mariah Carey singing the opening performance with a rendition of the Jackson 5 ballad I'll Be There, a duet with Trey Lorenz."We come together and we remember the time,'' said Smith. "As long as we remember him, he will always be there to comfort us.''Lionel Richie gave a gospel-infused performance in front of a shaft of light evoking a cross. Tributes to Jackson from friends and associates, were punctuated by performances from Stevie Wonder and Jennifer Hudson as Jackson's family looked on approvingly."This is a moment that I wished I didn't live to see,'' Stevie Wonder said before his performance.Hudson sang Jackson's hit Will You Be There and John Mayer played guitar on a whisper-light rendition of Human Nature. Jackson's brothers all wore matching suits and their sibling's signature solo sequined glove.Brother Jermaine Jackson took the stage and sang Smile as he fought back tears.One of the biggest ovations came after remarks made by Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown records who launched Jackson's career."The more I think and talk about Michael Jackson, I feel the King of Pop is not big enough for him. I think he is simply the greatest entertainer that ever lived,'' Gordy said.Among those who saluted Jackson were the Reverend Al Sharpton, Brooke Shields and basketball greats Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant.The Reverend Lucious Jackson then made the final remarks.
