Jordan Neely had a fan club.
The 30-year-old Michael Jackson impersonator had amassed a following within New York City and beyond, with thousands online admiring the young man’s aptitude for dance and creating a Facebook group to share his performances.
But on 1 May, Neely was choked to death on a subway car as he complained about being homeless, hungry, and thirsty. He was confronted by a man, reportedly a US marine veteran, who placed Neely in a chokehold for several minutes.
The man, 24, had not been named by authorities by Thursday evening and no charges had been filed. The Manhattan district attorney’s office is investigating. Neely’s death was classified by the city’s medical examiner on Wednesday as homicide.
Meanwhile, many were remembering Neely as kind and talented, despite others’ attempts to portray him as dangerous and violent.
Jony Espinal, 33, was a neighbor who first met a young Neely in 2012 when the two lived in the upper Manhattan neighborhood of Washington Heights.
Espinal said he would see Neely dressed in his Michael Jackson outfit and described him as calm and quiet.
Espinal said he and Neely talked about video games during one 30-minute conversation, their shared love of anime, and Neely’s busking.
“He was just a normal, nerdy kid,” he said.
Espinal expressed his frustrations at those accusing Neely of being violent, knowing nothing about the beloved dancer.
“They’re portraying him as somebody that he’s not,” said Espinal, referring to negative slants on Neely by some media outlets. “He didn’t deserve what happened to him and he really didn’t deserve the way everybody is portraying him.”
Others similarly remembered Neely as kind.
Larry Malcolm Smith, Jr, who had first gotten to know Neely a decade ago while the two lived in foster care, told Gothamist that Neely would sometimes share money he made dancing to help other kids buy food or get a haircut.
“This was a good guy,” said Smith. “He would be in the New York City train station using his God-gifted ability and talent.”
Family members of Neely have said that the 30-year-old struggled with mental health issues after he suffered his mother was murdered when he was 14.
“My sister Christie was murdered in 07, and after that, he has never been the same,” said Neely’s aunt, Carolyn Neely, 40, to the New York Post.
In 2007, Christie Neely, 36, was strangled by a partner in the family’s New Jersey home. Her remains were later discovered in a suitcase thrown off a highway in the Bronx borough. Neely later testified during the trial of his mother’s killer.
Since then, Carolyn told the Post that Neely’s family had trouble accessing mental health resources for her nephew.
In an online fundraiser organized by Carolyn to offset funeral expenses, she mentioned that despite Neely’s struggles, he remained firm in his love of dance.
“I love my nephew Jordan Neely, he was a very talented black man who loves to dance. Performance was his thing,” wrote Carolyn.
Advocates who worked with Neely also described him positively, and said he was simply a person in acute need.
“He was a nice person, not aggressive or violent. Everyone who knew him knows that. He’d accept anything you had – many of the homeless down here are sober. They’re needing food or shelter or clothing, not strung out and shooting up dope,” said Minister Ray Tarvin to the Guardian during a protest for Neely on Wednesday in the subway.
Christopher Joyner, a case manager with the Bronx-based non-profit organization The Bridge, told Gothamist he spoke to Neely on several occasions during outreach work meant to get unhoused people into city shelters.
“He was a decent guy,” said Joyner. “Definitely a guy I looked forward to working more with.”
Espinal became emotional while discussing Neely’s impact in the community and on him personally: “I think he [represented] happiness in spite of all the bad things happening in your life.
“I just want everybody to know that he wasn’t a bad kid and that he needs justice.”
This article was amended on 5 May 2023 to correct the date of Neely’s death.