Thriller (album)

Jackson's previous album Off the Wall (1979) received critical acclaim and was a commercial success, having sold 10 million copies at the time.{{cite web |title= Michael Jackson: Off the Wall |publisher= Virgin Media |access-date= December 12, 2008 |url= http://www.virginmedia.com/music/classicalbums/michaeljackson-offthewall.php |archive-date= October 14, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131014010941/http://www.virginmedia.com/music/classicalbums/michaeljackson-offthewall.php |url-status= live }}{{cite magazine|first= Stephen |last= Holden |author-link= Stephen Holden |title= Off the Wall: Michael Jackson |magazine= Rolling Stone |date= November 1, 1979 |url= https://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/259585/review/6067502/off_the_wal |archive-date= December 23, 2007 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071223010621/http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/259585/review/6067502/off_the_wal}}{{cite web |first= Stephen Thomas |last= Erlewine |author-link= Stephen Thomas Erlewine |title= Michael Jackson – Off the Wall – Overview |publisher= AllMusic |access-date= June 15, 2008 |url= http://www.allmusic.com/album/off-the-wall-mw0000190332 |archive-date= December 20, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151220235825/http://www.allmusic.com/album/off-the-wall-mw0000190332 |url-status= live }} The years between Off the Wall and Thriller were a transitional period for Jackson, a time of increased independence.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=196}} The period saw him become deeply unhappy; Jackson said, "Even at home, I'm lonely. I sit in my room sometimes and cry. It's so hard to make friends ... I sometimes walk around the neighborhood at night, just hoping to find someone to talk to. But I just end up coming home."{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=206}}

When Jackson turned 21 in August 1979, he hired John Branca as his manager.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=190}} Jackson told Branca that he wanted to be the biggest and wealthiest star in showbusiness. He was upset about what he perceived as the underperformance of Off the Wall, feeling it had deserved the Grammy Award for Record of the Year.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=191}} He also felt undervalued by the music industry; in 1980, when Rolling Stone declined to run a cover story on him, Jackson responded: "I've been told over and over that black people on the cover of magazines doesn't sell copies ... Just wait. Some day those magazines are going to be begging me for an interview. Maybe I'll give them one, and maybe I won't."{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=191}}

For his next album, Jackson wanted to create an album where "every song was a killer". He was frustrated by albums that would have "one good song, and the rest were like B-sides ... Why can't every one be like a hit song? Why can't every song be so great that people would want to buy it if you could release it as a single? ... That was my purpose for the next album."{{cite magazine |first= Bryan |last= Monroe |title= Q&A: Michael Jackson in His Own Words |date= December 2007 |magazine= Ebony |publisher= Johnson Publishing Company |volume= 63 |issue= 2 |pages= 96–98 |issn= 0012-9011 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=WdMDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA96 |access-date= July 23, 2021 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223083947/https://books.google.com/books?id=WdMDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA96 |url-status= live }}

File:Quincy jones 1980.jpg.]]

Jackson reunited with Off the Wall producer Quincy Jones to record his sixth studio album, his second under the Epic label. They worked together on 30 songs, nine of which were included on the album.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=220–21}} Thriller was recorded at Westlake Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California, with a production budget of $750,000 (US${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|750000|r=2|1982}}}} in {{Inflation/year|US}} dollars{{Inflation/fn|US}}). The recording commenced on April 14, 1982, at noon with Jackson and Paul McCartney recording "The Girl Is Mine"; it was completed on the final day of mixing, November 8, 1982.{{cite AV media notes|first= Michael |last= Jackson |title= Thriller 25 |type= booklet}} Several members of the band Toto were involved in the album's recording and production.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=220–21}} Jackson wrote four songs for the record: "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", "The Girl Is Mine", "Beat It" and "Billie Jean". Unlike many artists, Jackson did not write these songs on paper. Instead, he dictated into a sound recorder; when recording he would sing from memory.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=209–210}}

The relationship between Jackson and Jones became strained during the recording. Jackson spent much of his time rehearsing dance steps alone. When the album was completed, both Jones and Jackson were unhappy with the result and remixed every song, spending a week on each.

File:Eddie Van Halen at the New Haven Coliseum 2.jpg.|252x252px]]

"Billie Jean" was personal to Jackson, who struggled with obsessed fans. Jones wanted to shorten the long introduction, but Jackson insisted that it remain because it made him want to dance.{{cite AV media notes|first= Michael |last= Jackson |title= Thriller Special Edition Audio |type= CD}} The ongoing backlash against disco made it necessary to move in a different musical direction from the disco-heavy Off the Wall.{{cite interview |first= Michael |last= Jackson |interviewer= Jesse Jackson |title= Jesse Jackson Interviews Michael Jackson |date= March 27, 2005 |url= http://www.allmichaeljackson.com/interviews/jessejackson.html |access-date= September 8, 2014 |archive-date= March 29, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180329105215/http://www.allmichaeljackson.com/interviews/jessejackson.html |url-status= usurped }} Jones and Jackson were determined to make a rock song that would appeal to all tastes and spent weeks looking for a suitable guitarist for the song "Beat It". Eventually, they found Steve Lukather of Toto to play the rhythm guitar parts and Eddie Van Halen of the rock band Van Halen to play the solo.{{cite news|first= Peter |last= Lyle |title= Michael Jackson's Monster Smash |newspaper= The Daily Telegraph |location= London |date= November 25, 2007 |access-date= April 20, 2008 |url= https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3669538/Michael-Jacksons-monster-smash.html |archive-url= https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3669538/Michael-Jacksons-monster-smash.html |archive-date= January 11, 2022 |url-status= live}} {{cbignore}}

When Rod Temperton wrote the song "Thriller", he wanted to call it "Starlight" or "Midnight Man", but settled on "Thriller" because he felt the name had merchandising potential. Wanting a notable person to recite the closing lyrics, Jones brought in actor Vincent Price, an acquaintance of Jones' wife; Price completed his part in two takes. Temperton wrote the spoken portion in a taxi on the way to the recording studio. Jones and Temperton said that some recordings were left off the album because they did not have the "edginess" of other album tracks. A cover of "Behind the Mask", originally by the Japanese band Yellow Magic Orchestra, was omitted when the parties could not agree on royalties.{{cite book |last1=Halstead |first1=Craig |url=https://archive.org/details/michaeljacksonfo00cadm |title=Michael Jackson: For the Record |last2=Cadman |first2=Chris |publisher=Authors OnLine Ltd |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7552-0267-6 |location=Bedfordshire |pages=[https://archive.org/details/michaeljacksonfo00cadm/page/n38 31]–32 |url-access=limited}}

Thriller explores genres including post-disco,{{cite magazine |first= Brian |last= Raftery |title= Michael Jackson: The Unlikely King of Rock |magazine= Rolling Stone |date= July 7, 2009 |access-date= January 14, 2013 |url= https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/michael-jackson-the-unlikely-king-of-rock-20090707 |quote= the lustrous post-disco sound of Thriller seems an unlikely muse for Stump and his bandmates |archive-date= April 14, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160414183546/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/michael-jackson-the-unlikely-king-of-rock-20090707 |url-status= dead }}{{cite web|first= M. |last= Heyliger |title= A State-of-the-Art Pop Album: Thriller by Michael |website= Consumerhelpweb.com |url= http://music.consumerhelpweb.com/artists/jackson/thriller.htm |url-status= dead |archive-date= December 4, 2008 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081204150926/http://music.consumerhelpweb.com/artists/jackson/thriller.htm |quote= Not many artists could pull off such a variety of styles (funk, post-disco, rock, easy listening, ballads)...}} funk, pop, synth-pop,{{cite web |title=Michael Jackson's Thriller turns 35: How it shaped the artist, industry and MTV generation|url=https://www.firstpost.com/entertainment/michael-jacksons-thriller-turns-35-how-it-shaped-the-artist-industry-and-mtv-generation-4234599.html|website=firstpost|date=November 30, 2017 |quote=With a domestic revenue of approximately $4.1 billion, the album restored the confidence of the industry in the post-disco era by straddling multiple genres, riding high on the fully matured voice of the young star, and optimising the synth pop sound. It was the first album to achieve such dizzying success through all the media available at the time: radio, records and music videos.}} R&B,{{Cite magazine |date=2012-11-30 |title=Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' At 30: Classic Track-By-Track Review |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/michael-jacksons-thriller-at-30-classic-track-by-track-review-473938/ |access-date=2023-12-28 |magazine=Billboard}} and rock. According to Steve Huey of AllMusic, it refined the strengths of Off the Wall; the dance and rock tracks are more aggressive, while the pop tunes and ballads are softer and more soulful. The album includes the ballads "Human Nature", "The Girl Is Mine" and "The Lady in My Life", the funk tracks "Billie Jean" and "Wanna Be Startin' Something'", and the disco songs "Baby Be Mine" and "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)".{{cite web |first= Eric |last= Henderson |title= Michael Jackson – Thriller |work= Slant Magazine |date= October 18, 2003 |access-date= June 15, 2008 |url= http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/michael-jackson-thriller |archive-date= August 18, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170818025804/http://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/michael-jackson-thriller |url-status= live }}

"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" climaxes in an African-inspired chant (often misidentified as Swahili, but actually syllables based on Duala),{{cite web |first= Ben |last= Zimmer |title= Ma ma se, ma ma sa, ma ma coo sa |date= June 26, 2009 |work= Language Log |url= http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=1542 |quote= The story behind these seemingly nonsensical syllables is a fascinating one, originating in the Cameroonian language Duala ... Jackson apparently claimed his version was Swahili, but he eventually acknowledged his debt to [Cameroonian singer Manu] Dibango ... |access-date= November 2, 2010 |archive-date= May 31, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110531130052/http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=1542 |url-status= live }} giving the song an international flavor.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=223–25}} "The Girl Is Mine" tells of two friends' fight over a woman, arguing over who loves her more, and concludes with a rap.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=223–25}} The album's songs have a tempo ranging from 80 beats per minute on "The Girl is Mine", to 138 on "Beat It".{{cite book|title= The Complete Michael Jackson |year= 1997 |publisher= International Music Publications |isbn= 1-85909-447-3}}

Thriller foreshadows the contradictory themes of Jackson's later works.{{cite news |first= Jon |last= Pareles |author-link= Jon Pareles |title= Critic's Notebook; How Good Is Jackson's 'Bad'? |newspaper= The New York Times |date= September 3, 1987 |access-date= April 19, 2007 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/03/arts/critic-s-notebook-how-good-is-jackson-s-bad.html |archive-date= October 7, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20221007152214/https://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/03/arts/critic-s-notebook-how-good-is-jackson-s-bad.html |url-status= live }} With Thriller, Jackson began using a motif of paranoia and darker themes including supernatural imagery in the title track. This is evident on the songs "Billie Jean", "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" and "Thriller".{{cite web |first= Stephen Thomas |last= Erlewine |title= Michael Jackson – Thriller – Overview |publisher= AllMusic |access-date= June 15, 2008 |url= http://www.allmusic.com/album/thriller-mw0000056882 |archive-date= December 29, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151229031238/http://www.allmusic.com/album/thriller-mw0000056882 |url-status= live }} In "Billie Jean", Jackson sings about an obsessive fan who alleges he fathered her child; in "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" he argues against media gossip.{{cite magazine |first= Christopher |last= Connelly |author-link= Chris Connelly (journalist) |title= Michael Jackson: Thriller |magazine= Rolling Stone |date= January 28, 1983 |access-date= January 22, 2016 |url= https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/thriller-19830128 |archive-date= July 2, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150702093257/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/thriller-19830128 |url-status= dead }} For "Billie Jean", Jones had Jackson sing overdubs through a six-foot (180 cm) cardboard tube and brought in jazz saxophonist Tom Scott to play the lyricon, a wind-controlled synthesizer. Bassist Louis Johnson ran through his part on a Yamaha bass guitar. The song opens with a long bass-and-drums introduction. "Thriller" includes sound effects such as creaking doors, thunder, footsteps, wind, and howling dogs.

The anti-gang-violence "Beat It" became an homage to West Side Story and was Jackson's first successful rock cross-over piece.{{cite magazine|title= Michael Jackson – Biography |magazine= Rolling Stone |url= https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/michaeljackson/biography |archive-date= January 9, 2008 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080109140141/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/michaeljackson/biography}} Jackson later said of "Beat It", "the point is no one has to be the tough guy, you can walk away from a fight and still be a man. You don't have to die to prove you're a man".{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=223–25}} "Human Nature", co-written by Steve Porcaro of the band Toto,{{cite web |first= Ed |last= Hogan |title= Steve Porcaro – Artist Biography |publisher= AllMusic |access-date= April 12, 2013 |url= http://www.allmusic.com/artist/steve-porcaro-mn0000038489 |archive-date= December 15, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131215143649/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/steve-porcaro-mn0000038489 |url-status= live }} is moody and introspective, as conveyed in lyrics such as, "Looking out, across the morning, the City's heart begins to beat, reaching out, I touch her shoulder, I'm dreaming of the street".{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=223–25}}

By the late 1970s, Jackson's abilities as a vocalist were well regarded; AllMusic described him as a "blindingly gifted vocalist". Rolling Stone critic Stephen Holden likened his vocals to the "breathless, dreamy stutter" of Stevie Wonder, and wrote that "Jackson's feathery-timbred tenor is extraordinarily beautiful. It slides smoothly into a startling falsetto that's used very daringly." With the release of Thriller, Jackson could sing low—down to a basso low C—but he preferred to sing higher because pop tenors have more range to create style. Rolling Stone critic Christopher Connelly wrote that Jackson was now singing in a "fully adult voice" that was "tinged by sadness".

"P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", credited to James Ingram and Quincy Jones, and "The Lady in My Life" by Rod Temperton, gave the album a stronger R&B direction; the latter song was described as "the closest Jackson has come to crooning a sexy, soulful ballad after his Motown years" by J. Randy Taraborrelli.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=223–25}} Jackson had already adopted a "vocal hiccup" (first used in 1973 on "It's Too Late to Change the Time"{{sfn|Brown|1996|pp=29–30}}), which he continued to implement in Thriller. The purpose of the hiccup—somewhat like a gulping for air or gasping—is to evoke emotion, be it excitement, sadness, or fear.{{sfn|George|2004|p=22}}

The cover for Thriller features Jackson in a white suit that belonged to photographer Dick Zimmerman. The gatefold sleeve reveals a tiger cub at Jackson's leg, which, according to Zimmerman, Jackson kept away from his face, fearing he would be scratched.{{cite web |title= The Creation of the "Thriller" Album Cover |publisher= Dick Zimmerman |access-date= September 2, 2016 |url= http://www.dickzimmerman.com/stories.html |archive-date= March 4, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170304174747/http://www.dickzimmerman.com/stories.html |url-status= dead }} Another picture from the shoot, with Jackson embracing the cub, was used for the 2001 special edition of Thriller.{{cite web |first= Ann Marie |last= Chandy |title= Ferociously popular |newspaper= The Star |date= February 12, 2010 |access-date= September 2, 2016 |url= http://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/entertainment/music/news/2010/02/12/ferociously-popular/ |archive-date= July 25, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180725110803/https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/entertainment/music/news/2010/02/12/ferociously-popular/ |url-status= dead }}

Thriller was released on November 29, 1982, through Epic Records{{cite magazine |last1=Green |first1=Paul |title=Stars Due Out |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1982/1982-11-06-Billboard-Page-0004.pdf |magazine=Billboard|page=4|location=New York|date=November 6, 1982|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712153534/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1982/1982-11-06-Billboard-Page-0004.pdf|archive-date=July 12, 2023|url-status=live}}{{cite magazine |author1=Grein, Paul |title=Stars Due Out: Platinum acts prominent in labels' November releases |magazine=Billboard |date=1982-11-06 |volume=94 |issue=44 |page=4 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1982/BB-1982-11-06.pdf |location=New York, NY, USA |language=English |issn=0006-2510 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127015023/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1982/BB-1982-11-06.pdf |archive-date=January 27, 2021 |quote=Epic has set a Nov. 29 release date for "Thriller"}}{{cite magazine |author1=Martinez, Michael |title=The Rhythm Section: Short cuts |magazine=Cash Box |volume=44 |issue=28 |page=27 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1982/CB-1982-12-04.pdf |access-date=29 November 2022 |location=New York, NY, USA |language=English |issn=0008-7289 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809235144/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/80s/1982/CB-1982-12-04.pdf |archive-date=August 9, 2020 |quote=The much-awaited "Thriller" album on Epic by Michael Jackson, due to ship November 29}} and internationally by CBS Records.{{cite magazine |first= Steve |last= Greenberg |title= Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' at 30: How One Album Changed the World |magazine= Billboard |date= November 29, 2012 |access-date= April 26, 2016 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/473949/michael-jacksons-thriller-at-30-how-one-album-changed-the-world |archive-date= May 3, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160503105615/http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/473949/michael-jacksons-thriller-at-30-how-one-album-changed-the-world |url-status= live }}{{sfn|Dyson|1993|p=60}} It reached number one on the Billboard Top LPs & Tapes chart on February 26, 1983. Thriller sold one million copies worldwide per week at its peak. Thriller was the best-selling album in the United States in 1983 and 1984, making it the first album to be the best-selling for two years. It also spent a record 37 weeks at number one on the Billboard 200, from February 26, 1983, to April 14, 1984, and has remained on the chart for 626 nonconsecutive weeks (and counting).{{cite magazine |title= Michael Jackson Chart History (Billboard 200) |magazine= Billboard |access-date= May 3, 2022 |url= https://www.billboard.com/artist/michael-jackson/chart-history/tlp/ |archive-date= May 10, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180510055821/https://www.billboard.com/music/michael-jackson/chart-history/billboard-200/song/181096 |url-status= live }}{{cite magazine |first= Keith |last= Caulfield |title= Most Weeks at No. 1 on Billboard 200 By Title |magazine= Billboard |date= November 12, 2015 |access-date= October 21, 2019 |url= https://www.billboard.com/articles/events/greatest-of-all-time/6760795/michael-jackson-thriller-most-weeks-at-no-1-on-billboard-200-by-title |archive-date= August 19, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200819202543/https://www.billboard.com/articles/events/greatest-of-all-time/6760795/michael-jackson-thriller-most-weeks-at-no-1-on-billboard-200-by-title |url-status= live }}

Thriller was Jackson's global breakthrough, topping the charts in Australia, Austria, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. It has gained Diamond certifications in Argentina, Canada, Denmark, France, Mexico and the UK. Thriller sells an estimated 130,000 copies in the US per year; it reached number two in the US Catalog charts in February 2003 and number 39 in the UK in March 2007. It is the sixth-best-selling album in the UK.{{cite web |first= Rob |last= Copsey |title= The best-selling albums of all time on the Official UK Chart |publisher= Official Charts Company |date= April 11, 2019 |access-date= December 8, 2019 |url= https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/the-best-selling-albums-of-all-time-on-the-official-uk-chart__15551/ |archive-date= January 9, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220109082630/https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/the-best-selling-albums-of-all-time-on-the-official-uk-chart__15551/ |url-status= live }}

On December 16, 2015, Thriller became the first album to be certified 30× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of at least 30 million units in the US.{{cite magazine |first= Colin |last= Stutz |title= Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Becomes First-Ever 30 Times Multi-Platinum Album: Exclusive |magazine= Billboard |date= December 16, 2015 |access-date= December 16, 2015 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/6812781/michael-jackson-thriller-30x-multi-platinum-album |archive-date= December 18, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151218030827/http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/6812781/michael-jackson-thriller-30x-multi-platinum-album |url-status= live }}{{cite web |title= Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' First Ever 30X Multi-Platinum RIAA Certification |publisher= Recording Industry Association of America |date= December 16, 2015 |access-date= January 22, 2016 |url= https://www.riaa.com/michael-jacksons-thriller-first-ever-30x-multi-platinum-riaa-certification/ |archive-date= January 28, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160128023221/http://www.riaa.com/michael-jacksons-thriller-first-ever-30x-multi-platinum-riaa-certification/ |url-status= live }} Following the inclusion of streaming and tracks sales into the RIAA album awards in 2017, Thriller was certified 33× platinum, representing 33 million album-equivalent units.{{cite magazine |first= Hugh |last= McIntyre |title= Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Has Now Been Certified 33-Times Platinum |magazine= Forbes |date= February 16, 2017 |access-date= February 18, 2017 |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2017/02/16/michael-jacksons-thriller-has-now-been-certified-33-times-platinum/ |archive-date= February 17, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170217064839/http://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2017/02/16/michael-jacksons-thriller-has-now-been-certified-33-times-platinum/ |url-status= live }} As of August 2021, the album has been certified 34× platinum in the US, denoting 34 million album-equivalent units.{{cite web | url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/michael-jacksons-thriller-becomes-certified-34x-platinum-3028771 | title=Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' becomes certified 34x platinum | website=NME | date=25 August 2021 }} By the end of 1983, Thriller became the world's best-selling album, having sold 32 million copies.{{cite web | url=https://www.euronews.com/culture/2022/11/30/michael-jacksons-thriller-a-pop-revolution-launched-40-years-ago | title=Michael Jackson's "Thriller": A pop revolution launched 40 years ago | date=30 November 2022 }}{{cite web |first= Matt |last= White |title= 1984: Best-Selling Album of All Time |work= Guinness World Records |date= August 18, 2015 |access-date= October 18, 2019 |url= https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/60at60/2015/8/1984-best-selling-album-of-all-time-392913 |archive-date= October 18, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191018202023/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/60at60/2015/8/1984-best-selling-album-of-all-time-392913 |url-status= live }} By the end of the decade, Thriller had sold 48 million copies.{{Cite web |last=Parales |first=John |date=Nov 14, 1991 |title=RECORDINGS VIEW; Michael Jackson in the Electronic Wilderness |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/11/24/arts/recordings-view-michael-jackson-in-the-electronic-wilderness.html |access-date=October 15, 2024 |website=New York Times}}Note: Industry estimates & congressional hearings suggest an additional 15+ million international sales were lost to bootleg cassette sales by 1985, and millions more between 1987-1990. Bringing total circulation of Thriller to 70+ million by the end of the decade

{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://books.google.ca/books?id=ISQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT104&dq=thriller+cassettes+pirated&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjZ1OqCvKuNAxUfJjQIHemzEjcQ6AF6BAgHEAM#v=onepage&q=thriller%20cassettes%20pirated&f=false |title=Billboard - More Acts to pledge Money to IFPI Piracy Battle |date=1985-07-20 |publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. |language=en |quote=George Benson and Ahmet Ertegun (Atlantic Records President) estimated that Cassette Piracy has lost Epic Records between 10-20 million additional international sales of Michael Jackson's Thriller}}

{{Cite book |last= |first= |url=https://www.google.ca/books/edition/Digital_Audio_Tape_Recorder_Act_of_1990/WAkSAAAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=julia+pirate+michael+jackson+cassettes&pg=PA175&printsec=frontcover |title=Digital Audio Tape Recorder Act of 1990: Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Communications of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, United States Senate, One Hundred First Congress, Second Session, on S. 2358 ... June 13, 1990 |date=1990 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |language=en |quote=Julia Pirate is a copy criminal. She sells 2,000,000 Michael Jackson cassettes every year. Julia’s profit is $1 million/year. She paid $5000 for a “professional” DAT recorder because she understood that $1000 consumer machines are hobbled by an act of Congress. DAT isn’t useful in her piracy career, so she keeps her machine on her 75’ sailboat. Commercial piracy will not be affected by the DAT Bill: Julia gave $4000 in windfall profit to a Japanese company and added $4000 to the trade deficit.}}

It remains the best-selling album of all time, having sold over 70 million copies worldwide.{{refn|group=nb|Representatives for Sony and Jackson's estate say that Thriller has sold 105 million copies globally.{{cite magazine |first= Keith |last= Caulfield |title= Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Extends Reign as Highest Certified Album in U.S. History |magazine= Billboard |date= February 16, 2017 |access-date= October 11, 2017 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7693419/michael-jackson-thriller-highest-certified-album |archive-date= October 19, 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171019095515/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/7693419/michael-jackson-thriller-highest-certified-album |url-status= live }} Although sales estimates for Thriller have been as high as 110 million copies,{{cite magazine |first= Daniel |last= Durchholz |title= Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' At 30: Classic Track-By-Track Review |magazine= Billboard |date= November 30, 2012 |access-date= October 28, 2014 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/473938/michael-jacksons-thriller-at-30-classic-track-by-track-review |archive-date= July 4, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150704195113/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/473938/michael-jacksons-thriller-at-30-classic-track-by-track-review |url-status= live }} these sales figures are unreliable according to various music specialists.{{cite magazine |first= Bill |last= Wyman |title= Did "Thriller" Really Sell a Hundred Million Copies? |magazine= The New Yorker |date= January 4, 2013 |access-date= January 10, 2013 |url= http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/did-thriller-really-sell-a-hundred-million-copies |archive-date= May 15, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150515103954/http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/did-thriller-really-sell-a-hundred-million-copies |url-status= live }}{{cite magazine |first= Carl |last= Bialik |title= How Many Albums Did Michael Jackson Sell? |magazine= The Wall Street Journal |date= July 14, 2009 |access-date= January 10, 2013 |url= https://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/how-many-albums-did-michael-jackson-sell-755/ |archive-date= January 29, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150129053710/https://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/how-many-albums-did-michael-jackson-sell-755/ |url-status= live }}{{cite news |first= David |last= Lara |title= Michael Jackson's 'Bad' Gets a Revamp and More Inflated Sales! |work= Impre |publisher= ImpreMedia |date= May 12, 2012 |access-date= January 10, 2013 |url= http://www.impre.com/la-gente-dice/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978979962 |archive-date= July 3, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140703115822/http://www.impre.com/la-gente-dice/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978979962 |url-status= live }}}}{{cite web |first= Del |last= Crookes |title= Adele's 21 overtakes sales of Thriller in UK album list |website= Newsbeat |date= May 4, 2012 |access-date= July 2, 2021 |url= https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-17935650 |archive-date= June 11, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210611174537/https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-17935650 |url-status= live }}{{cite news|author= Asian News International (ANI) |title= MJ nearly scrapped 'Thriller' release |publisher= Zee News |date= September 27, 2009 |access-date= July 2, 2021 |url= https://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/musicworld/mj-nearly-scrapped-thriller-release_42076.html |archive-date= September 26, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200926073042/https://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/musicworld/mj-nearly-scrapped-thriller-release_42076.html}}{{Cite web |last=Six |first=David |date=2009-08-09 |title=MICHAEL JACKSON’S ‘THIS IS IT’ TO BE PRESENTED IN THEATERS AROUND THE WORLD BY SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT AND SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT - Sony Music |url=https://www.sonymusic.com/sonymusic/michael-jacksons-this-is-it-to-be-presented-in-theaters-around-the-world-by-sony-pictures-entertainment-and-sony-music-entertainment/ |access-date=2025-03-22 |website=Sony Music Entertainment |language=en-US |quote=Thriller” holds the distinction as the largest selling album worldwide in the history of the recording industry with more than 70 million units sold. Additionally, singles released from the Thriller album sold more than 100 million copies worldwide (110 Million copies from album and single sales)}}{{Cite web |title=The fight over Michael Jackson's millions - Oct. 23, 2009 |url=https://money.cnn.com/2009/10/23/news/companies/michael_jackson_money_assets.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2009102304 |access-date=2025-03-22 |website=CNN |quote=His album "Thriller" has sold more than 70 million copies, and he (Michael Jackson) is the biggest-selling recording artist of all time.}}

Seven singles were released from Thriller. The first, "The Girl Is Mine", was criticized as a poor choice; critics predicted that the album would disappoint and suggested that Jackson was bowing to a white audience.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=223–25}} "The Girl Is Mine" topped the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart, reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number 1 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart.{{sfn|George|2004|p=38}}

"Billie Jean" was released on January 2, 1983.{{sfn|George|2004|p=39}} It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, where it remained for seven weeks. It also topped the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart within three weeks, and it remained at number 1 for nine weeks. Billboard ranked it as the No. 2 song for 1983.{{cite web |title= Top 100 Hits for 1983 |website= The Longbored Surfer |access-date= January 13, 2014 |url= http://longboredsurfer.com/charts/1983 |archive-date= August 23, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130823110447/http://longboredsurfer.com/charts/1983.php |url-status= live }} It topped the charts in 9 countries and reached the top 10 in many others. "Billie Jean" was one of the best-selling singles of 1983, helping Thriller become the best-selling album of all time. It also became Jackson's best-selling solo single. "Billie Jean" was described as a pioneer of "sleek, post-soul pop music" and also the beginning of a more paranoid lyrical style for Jackson, a trademark of his later music.

The third single, "Beat It",{{cite web |title= Artist |url= http://www.stevelukather.com/artist.aspx |publisher= Steve Lukather |access-date= January 22, 2016 |archive-date= July 5, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130705133138/http://www.stevelukather.com/artist.aspx |url-status= live }} also reached number one on the Black Singles chart.{{sfn|George|2004|p=39}} Billboard ranked it number five for 1983. "Beat It" reached number one in Spain and the Netherlands.{{sfn|George|2004|p=39}} "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin{{'-}}" was Jackson's fourth consecutive top-ten single from Thriller on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 5. "Human Nature" reached number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 2 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" charted at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.

"Thriller", the final single, was released on November 2, 1983.{{cite web |first= Tim |last= McPhate |title= Michael Jackson's "Thriller": For the Record |date= November 2, 2017 |access-date= November 17, 2019 |publisher= The Recording Academy |url= https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/michael-jacksons-thriller-record-1 |archive-date= August 9, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200809092005/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/michael-jacksons-thriller-record-1 |url-status= live }} It was not initially planned for release, as Epic saw it as a novelty song;{{cite magazine |first= Aja |last= Romano |title= Michael Jackson's "Thriller" is the eternal Halloween bop — and so much more |website= Vox |date= October 31, 2018 |access-date= November 25, 2021 |url= https://www.vox.com/2018/10/31/18046940/michael-jackson-thriller-facts-trivia-making-of-john-landis |archive-date= October 4, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191004001542/https://www.vox.com/2018/10/31/18046940/michael-jackson-thriller-facts-trivia-making-of-john-landis |url-status= live }} according to executive Walter Yetnikoff, "Who wants a single about monsters?"{{cite magazine |first= Nancy |last= Griffin |title= The "Thriller" Diaries |magazine= Vanity Fair |date= June 24, 2010 |access-date= November 28, 2019 |url= http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/features/2010/07/michael-jackson-thriller-201007?printable=true¤tPage=2 |archive-date= October 30, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141030215556/http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/features/2010/07/michael-jackson-thriller-201007?printable=true¤tPage=2 |url-status= live }} By mid-1983, when sales of Thriller began to decline, Jackson convinced Epic to release "Thriller", backed by a new music video.{{cite book|first= Daniel |last= Eagan |year= 2012 |title= America's Film Legacy, 2009–2010: A Viewer's Guide to the 50 Landmark Movies Added to the National Film Registry in 2009–10 |publisher= Bloomsbury Publishing |page= 175 |isbn= 978-1-4411-9328-5 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=g_moAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA175}} It reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart.{{cite web|title= Michael Jackson – Thriller – Awards |website= AllMusic |access-date= November 28, 2019 |url= http://www.allmusic.com/album/thriller-mw0000056882/awards |archive-date= July 27, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130727114455/http://www.allmusic.com/album/thriller-mw0000056882/awards}}

File:Michael Jackson Beat It Jacket (6043162620).jpg" displayed at the Hard Rock On Wheels Exhibit in Miami]]

The "Billie Jean" music video debuted on March 10, 1983, on MTV.{{cite magazine |first= Tamara |last= Palmer |title= How the 'Billie Jean' Video Changed MTV |website= The Root |date= March 10, 2013 |access-date= March 27, 2019 |url= https://www.theroot.com/how-the-billie-jean-video-changed-mtv-1790895543 |archive-date= December 2, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201202163355/https://www.theroot.com/how-the-billie-jean-video-changed-mtv-1790895543 |url-status= live }} It brought MTV—until then a fairly new and unknown music channel—to mainstream attention. It was one of the first videos by a black artist to be aired regularly by the channel, as the network's executives felt black music was not "rock" enough.{{sfn|Campbell|1993|p=58}} Directed by Steve Barron, the video shows a photographer who follows Jackson. The paparazzo never catches him, and when photographed Jackson fails to materialize on the developed picture. He dances to Billie Jean's hotel room and as he walks along a sidewalk, each tile lights up at his touch.{{sfn|Campbell|1993|p=58}}{{cite magazine|first= Sean |last= Weitner |title= Michael Jackson: A Life in Film |magazine= Flak Magazine |year= 2001 |url= http://www.flakmag.com/music/mj/videos.html |archive-date= March 6, 2003 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20030306071527/http://www.flakmag.com/music/mj/videos.html}}

The "Beat It" music video had its premiere on MTV during primetime on March 31, 1983.{{cite news |first= Chris |last= Willman |title= Cover Story : Traveling Along the MTV Time Line... |newspaper= Los Angeles Times |date= July 28, 1991 |access-date= September 21, 2010 |url= https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-07-28-ca-435-story.html |archive-date= October 11, 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121011072546/http://articles.latimes.com/1991-07-28/entertainment/ca-435_1_mtv-videos/2 |url-status= live }} To add authenticity to the production but also to foster peace between them, Jackson had the idea to cast members of rival Los Angeles street gangs the Crips and the Bloods,{{cite magazine|first= Kevin |last= Ritchie |title= Q&A: Bob Giraldi on directing "Beat It" |magazine= Boards |date= July 7, 2009 |url= http://www.boardsmag.com/articles/online/20090707/giraldibeatit.html |archive-date= March 28, 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120328131555/http://www.boardsmag.com/articles/online/20090707/giraldibeatit.html}} and included around 80 genuine gang members.{{cite magazine|first= J.D. |last= Reed |title= Music: New Rock on a Red-Hot Roll |magazine= Time |date= July 18, 1983 |url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,950986-4,00.html |url-status= dead |archive-date= November 6, 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121106040506/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,950986-4,00.html}} Its plot is Jackson bringing two gangsters together through the power of music and dance. It is also notable for its "mass choreography" of synchronized dancers, which would become the hallmark of Jackson's music videos.{{cite magazine|first= Sean |last= Weitner |title= Michael Jackson: A Life in Film |magazine= Flak Magazine |url= http://www.flakmag.com/music/mj/videos.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120705071354/http://www.flakmag.com/music/mj/videos.html |archive-date= July 5, 2012}}

The "Thriller" music video premiered on MTV on December 2, 1983.{{cite magazine |first= Leslie |last= Richin |title= On This Day in 1983, Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Premiered on MTV |magazine= Billboard |date= December 2, 2016 |access-date= November 28, 2019 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6334779/michael-jackson-thriller-premiere-mtv-anniversary |archive-date= June 30, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190630040926/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6334779/michael-jackson-thriller-premiere-mtv-anniversary |url-status= live }} In the video, Jackson and his girlfriend (played by Ola Ray) are confronted by zombies while walking home from a movie theater; Jackson becomes a zombie and performs a dance routine with a horde of the undead. It was named the greatest video of all time by MTV in 1999,{{cite web |title=MTV: 100 Greatest Music Videos Ever Made |url=http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1999/mtv100.htm |access-date=January 23, 2010 |work=RockOnTheNet.com |publisher=Rock on the Net |archive-date=June 30, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130630124007/http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/1999/mtv100.htm |url-status=live }} by VH1 in 2001,{{cite web |author=Vinny Marino |date=May 2, 2001 |title=VH1 Names '100 Greatest Videos of All Time' |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=105861&page=1 |access-date=January 22, 2010 |publisher=ABC News |archive-date=October 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101024162824/http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=105861&page=1 |url-status=live }} and by Time in 2011.{{cite magazine |last=Duff |first=Craig |date=July 26, 2011 |title=The 30 All-TIME Best Music Videos – Michael Jackson, 'Thriller' (1984) |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2011/07/28/the-30-all-time-best-music-videos/slide/michael-jackson-thriller-1984/ |url-status=live |magazine=Time |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728224445/http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2085389_2085392_2085363,00.html |archive-date=July 28, 2011 |access-date=October 19, 2024}} In 2009, it became the first music video to be selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.{{cite web |author=Alex Dobuzinskis |date=December 30, 2009 |title=Jackson "Thriller" film picked for U.S. registry |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BT43W20091230?type=musicNews |access-date=January 22, 2010 |work=Reuters |archive-date=January 16, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100116143648/http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BT43W20091230?type=musicNews |url-status=live }} The Library described it as "the most famous music video of all time".{{cite news |author=Dave Itzkoff |date=December 30, 2009 |title='Thriller' Video Added to U.S. Film Registry |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/31/arts/music/31arts-THRILLERVIDE_BRF.html |access-date=January 23, 2010 |archive-date=December 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214141903/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/31/arts/music/31arts-THRILLERVIDE_BRF.html |url-status=live }}

{{Music ratings

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{Rating|5|5}}

| rev2 = Blender

| rev2Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite magazine|title= Michael Jackson: Thriller |magazine= Blender |date= April 2007 |access-date= October 3, 2018 |url= http://www.blender.com/guide/back-catalogue/54450/thriller.html |archive-date= December 28, 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101228065501/http://www.blender.com/guide/back-catalogue/54450/thriller.html}}

| rev3 = Christgau's Record Guide

| rev3Score = A

| rev4 = Encyclopedia of Popular Music

| rev4Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite book|first= Colin |last= Larkin |author-link= Colin Larkin (writer) |year= 2011 |title= The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |title-link= Encyclopedia of Popular Music |edition= 5th concise |chapter= Jackson, Michael |publisher= Omnibus Press |isbn= 978-0-85712-595-8}}

| rev5 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev5Score = A{{cite magazine |first= Leah |last= Greenblatt |title= Michael Jackson's albums |magazine= Entertainment Weekly |date= July 3, 2009 |access-date= August 21, 2016 |url= http://www.ew.com/article/2009/07/03/michael-jacksons-albums |archive-date= April 2, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150402101413/http://www.ew.com/article/2009/07/03/michael-jacksons-albums |url-status= live }}

| rev6 = MusicHound R&B

| rev6Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite book|editor1-first= Gary |editor1-last= Graff |editor-link1= Gary Graff |editor2-first= Josh Freedom |editor2-last= du Lac |editor3-first= Jim |editor3-last= McFarlin |year= 1998 |title= MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide |chapter= Michael Jackson |publisher= Visible Ink Press |isbn= 1-57859-026-4 |chapter-url= https://archive.org/details/musichoundrbesse00graf}}

| rev7 = Q

| rev7Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite magazine|title= Michael Jackson: Thriller |magazine= Q |issue= 160 |date= January 2000 |page= 138}}

| rev8 = Rolling Stone

| rev8Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev9 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

| rev9Score = {{Rating|5|5}}

| rev10 = Slant Magazine

| rev10Score = {{Rating|5|5}}

}}

Thriller was widely acclaimed by critics, further strengthening Jackson's position in popular music. In a contemporaneous review for Rolling Stone, Christopher Connelly called Thriller "a zesty LP" with a "harrowing, dark message". He compared the songs on the album with the life challenges that the 24-year-old Jackson had faced since Off the Wall, while observing that he "dropped the boyish falsetto" and was facing his "challenges head-on" with "a feisty determination" and "a full, adult voice". Connelly emphasized Jackson's musical progression from Off the Wall, writing, "Jackson's new attitude gives Thriller a deeper, if less visceral, emotional urgency than any of his previous work, and marks another watershed in the creative development of this prodigiously talented performer."

John Rockwell wrote in The New York Times that perhaps Jackson was a "sometimes too practiced ... performer", that at times Quincy Jones may "depersonalize his individuality" with his "slightly anonymous production", and that Jackson may be hiding his true emotions behind "layers of impenetrable, gauzy veils".{{cite news |first= John |last= Rockwell |author-link= John Rockwell |title= Michael Jackson's Thriller': Superb Job |newspaper= The New York Times |date= December 19, 1982 |access-date= July 3, 2008 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1982/12/19/arts/michael-jackson-s-thriller-superb-job.html |archive-date= February 9, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180209003215/https://www.nytimes.com/1982/12/19/arts/michael-jackson-s-thriller-superb-job.html |url-status= live }} Rockwell nonetheless deemed Thriller "a wonderful pop record, the latest statement by one of the great singers in popular music today" and that there are "hits here, too, lots of them". Rockwell believed it helped breach "the destructive barriers that spring up regularly between white and black music", especially as "white publications and radio stations that normally avoid black music seem willing to pretend he isn't black after all". In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau said "this is virtually a hits-plus-filler job, but at such a high level it's almost classic anyway".{{cite news |first= Robert |last= Christgau |author-link= Robert Christgau |title= Christgau's Consumer Guide |newspaper= The Village Voice |location= New York |date= December 28, 1982 |access-date= July 3, 2008 |url= http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv12-82.php |archive-date= April 25, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160425194704/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv12-82.php |url-status= live }} He later wrote in Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s (1990), "what we couldn't know is how brilliantly every hit but 'P.Y.T.' would thrive on mass exposure and public pleasure."{{cite book |first= Robert |last= Christgau |author-link= Robert Christgau |year= 1990 |title= Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s |title-link= Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s |publisher= Pantheon Books |chapter= Michael Jackson: Thriller |chapter-url= http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_album.php?id=2373 |isbn= 0-679-73015-X |access-date= October 17, 2016 |archive-date= March 4, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160304041844/http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_album.php?id=2373 |url-status= live }}

A year after the album's release, Time summed up the three main singles from the album, saying, "The pulse of America and much of the rest of the world moves irregularly, beating in time to the tough strut of 'Billie Jean', the asphalt aria of 'Beat It', the supremely cool chills of 'Thriller'." In 1989, Toronto Star music critics reflected on the albums they had reviewed in the past ten years in order to create a list judging them on the basis of "commercial impact to social import, to strictly musical merit." Thriller was placed at number 1 on the list, where it was referred to as his "master work" and that "commercial success has since overshadowed Jackson's artistic accomplishments on Thriller, and that's a pity. It was a record for the times, brimming with breathless anticipation and a dread fear of the adult world, a brilliant fantasy that pumped with sexual heat, yet made room for serious reflection".{{cite news|first= Craig |last= MacInnis |title= The Top 100 Albums of the '80s |newspaper= Toronto Star |location= Toronto, Ontario |date= August 5, 1989 |page= G1 |issn= 0319-0781}}

Thriller topped The Village Voice{{'}}s Pazz & Jop poll of 1983.{{cite news |title= Pazz & Jop: Top 10 Albums by Year, 1971–2017 |newspaper= The Village Voice |date= January 22, 2018 |access-date= March 27, 2020 |url= https://www.villagevoice.com/2018/01/22/pazz-jop-top-10-albums-by-year-1971-2016/ |archive-date= August 16, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180816025450/https://www.villagevoice.com/2018/01/22/pazz-jop-top-10-albums-by-year-1971-2016/ |url-status= live }} Jackson was nominated for a record 12 Grammy Awards at the 26th Grammy Awards.{{Cite web |date=Feb 29, 1984 |title=JACKSON WINS 8 GRAMMYS |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/29/arts/jackson-wins-8-grammys.html |website=The New York Times}} The album won a record-breaking eight Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year. Jackson won seven of the Grammy Awards for the album, while the eighth Grammy Award went to Bruce Swedien.{{cite web |title=Winners: Michael Jackson |url=http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=%22Michael+Jackson%22 |access-date=November 12, 2016 |website=Grammy.com}}{{cite web |title=Winners: Winners: Bruce Swedien |url=http://www.grammy.com/nominees/search?artist=%22Bruce+Swedien%22 |access-date=November 12, 2016 |website=Grammy.com}}{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/guinnessworldrec2007guin |title=Guinness World Records 2007 |publisher=Guinness World Records Ltd |year=2006 |isbn=1-904994-12-1 |location=New York |url-access=registration}} Richard Harrington of The Washington Post described the ceremony as 'The Michael Jackson Show', writing "it was exactly the kind of one-man show that everyone had anticipated".{{Cite news |last=Harrington |first=Richard |date=Feb 29, 1984 |title=Jackson's Thriller Finish |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1984/02/29/jacksons-thriller-finish/efe8020e-0900-4ff0-967c-47ac4faf729f/ |newspaper=The Washington Post}} In winning the Album of the Year award, Jackson became the third-youngest to win the award after Barbra Streisand at 22 and Stevie Wonder at 23. That same year, Jackson won eight American Music Awards, including the American Music Award of Merit, and three MTV Video Music Awards.{{cite AV media notes|first= Michael |last= Jackson |title= Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection |type= booklet}} Thriller was recognized as the best-selling album of all time on February 7, 1984, when it was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=482 (pictures)}}

In 1992, Thriller was awarded the Special Billboard Award to commemorate its 10th anniversary.{{cite web |title=Winners Database: Michael Jackson |url=https://www.billboardmusicawards.com/winners-database/?winnerKeyword=Michael+Jackson&winnerYear=&winnerCategory= |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170624120641/https://www.billboardmusicawards.com/winners-database/?winnerKeyword=michael+jackson&winnerYear=&winnerCategory= |archive-date=June 24, 2017 |access-date=November 27, 2019 |website=Billboard Music Awards}} In 2000, it was voted number 64 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums. It was also ranked number 2 in the Soul/R&B – All Time Top 50 albums. The book states; it is the finest example of perfect disco-pop, and a record that should be prescribed to musical snobs and manic depressives.{{cite book |title=All Time Top 1000 Albums |title-link=All Time Top 1000 Albums |publisher=Virgin Books |year=2000 |isbn=0-7535-0493-6 |editor-last=Larkin |editor-first=Colin |editor-link=Colin Larkin |edition=3rd |page=63}} At the 2002 Billboard Music Awards, as a sign of the album's longevity, Thriller was awarded a second Special Billboard Award as a recognition for spending more weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 than any other album in history.{{cite web |title=2002 Special Billboard Award |url=https://www.billboardmusicawards.com/winner-categories/special-billboard-award-michael-jackson-recognizing-his-1982-epic-album-thriller-which-spent-more-weeks-at-no-1-37-than-any-other-album-in-the-history-of-the-billboard-200/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021151106/https://www.billboardmusicawards.com/winner-categories/special-billboard-award-michael-jackson-recognizing-his-1982-epic-album-thriller-which-spent-more-weeks-at-no-1-37-than-any-other-album-in-the-history-of-the-billboard-200/ |archive-date=October 21, 2019 |access-date=October 21, 2019 |publisher=Billboard Music Awards}} In 2003, it was ranked at number 20 on the Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, maintaining the ranking in a 2012 revised list — it's the highest ranked pop album on both lists.{{cite magazine |date=May 31, 2012 |title=20: Michael Jackson, 'Thriller' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-20120531/michael-jackson-thriller-20120524 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021053108/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-20120531/michael-jackson-thriller-20120524 |archive-date=October 21, 2012 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} In a 2020 updated list by Rolling Stone, Thriller was ranked number 12.{{cite magazine |date=September 22, 2020 |title=The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922163403/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/ |archive-date=September 22, 2020 |access-date=October 5, 2020 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} It was ranked by the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM), in conjunction with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, at number three on its list of the Definitive 200 Albums of All Time.{{cite web |year=2007 |title=Definitive 200 |url=http://www.rockhall.com/pressroom/definitive-200 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406020211/http://www.rockhall.com/pressroom/definitive-200 |archive-date=April 6, 2008 |publisher=The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum}}{{cite magazine |date=May 31, 2012 |title=500 Greatest Albums of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-156826/michael-jackson-thriller-2-170241/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190704094852/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-156826/michael-jackson-thriller-2-170241/ |archive-date=July 4, 2019 |access-date=September 23, 2019 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} "Beat It" and "Billie Jean" were both included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.{{cite web |title=Experience the Music: One Hit Wonders and the Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll |url=http://rockhall.com/exhibits/one-hit-wonders-songs-that-shaped-rock-and-roll/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509180015/http://rockhall.com/exhibits/one-hit-wonders-songs-that-shaped-rock-and-roll/ |archive-date=May 9, 2012 |publisher=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum}} In 2006, Time included Thriller in its list of the All-TIME 100 Albums.{{cite magazine |date=November 2, 2006 |title=All-TIME 100 Albums |url=https://entertainment.time.com/2006/11/02/the-all-time-100-albums/slide/all/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20181117041230/http://entertainment.time.com/2006/11/02/the-all-time-100-albums/slide/all/ |archive-date=November 17, 2018 |access-date=November 20, 2019 |magazine=Time}} In 2008, 25 years after its release, the record was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and, a few weeks later, was among 25 recordings preserved by the Library of Congress to the National Recording Registry as "culturally significant".{{cite web |title=GRAMMY Hall Of Fame – t |url=http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame#t |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110122042616/http://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame |archive-date=January 22, 2011 |access-date=January 14, 2013 |publisher=Grammy Hall of Fame Award}}{{cite web |date=May 14, 2008 |title=Thriller, Joni Mitchell album make the cut for U.S. recording registry |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/thriller-joni-mitchell-album-make-the-cut-for-u-s-recording-registry-1.720520 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090724175221/http://www.cbc.ca/arts/media/story/2008/05/14/08us-recregistry.html |archive-date=July 24, 2009 |access-date=February 3, 2009 |publisher=CBC News}} In 2009, music critics for MTV Base and VH1 both listed Thriller as the best album released since 1981.{{cite news |date=April 9, 2009 |title=MTV's Greatest Album Ever — Number 1 |url=https://www.mtv.co.uk/news/p26ix3/mtvs-greatest-album-ever-number-1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160128162426/http://www.mtv.co.uk/greatest-album-ever/news/mtvs-greatest-album-ever-number-1 |archive-date=January 28, 2016 |access-date=January 22, 2016 |publisher=MTV}} Thriller, along with other critic favorites, were then polled by the public. 40,000 people found Thriller to be the Best Album of all time by MTV Generation, gaining a third of all votes.{{cite news |date=April 9, 2009 |title=Michael Jackson's album Thriller voted best album since 1981 |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/04/09/michael-jackson-s-album-thriller-voted-best-album-since-1981-115875-21265620/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090715224715/http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/04/09/michael-jackson-s-album-thriller-voted-best-album-since-1981-115875-21265620/ |archive-date=July 15, 2009 |access-date=January 22, 2016 |newspaper=Daily Mirror}} In 2012, Slant Magazine ranked Thriller as the best album of the 1980s.{{Cite web |author=Slant Staff|date=2012-03-05 |title=The 100 Best Albums of the 1980s |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/best-albums-of-the-1980s/ |access-date=2025-01-07 |website=Slant Magazine |language=en-US}} Thriller was ranked third on the Greatest of All Time Billboard 200 Albums.{{cite magazine |title=Greatest of All Time Billboard 200 Albums |url=http://www.billboard.com/charts/greatest-billboard-200-albums |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161001122709/http://www.billboard.com/charts/greatest-billboard-200-albums |archive-date=October 1, 2016 |access-date=November 12, 2015 |magazine=Billboard}} Billboard also ranked the album fourth on its list of All 92 Diamond-Certified Albums Ranked from Worst to Best: Critic's Take.{{cite magazine |last=Unterberger |first=Andrew |date=September 29, 2016 |title=All 92 Diamond-Certified Albums Ranked from Worst to Best: Critic's Take |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/billboard-lists/7526410/diamond-certified-album-riaa-ranked |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211013162126/https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/billboard-lists/7526410/diamond-certified-album-riaa-ranked/ |archive-date=October 13, 2021 |access-date=January 24, 2020 |magazine=Billboard}} In 2018, The Independent named Thriller the "most inspiring album of all time".{{cite news |last=Knight |first=Rob |date=September 14, 2018 |title=Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' named most inspiring album of all time |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/lifestyle/michael-jackson-thriller-inspiring-album-uk-survey-a8537866.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220507/https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/lifestyle/michael-jackson-thriller-inspiring-album-uk-survey-a8537866.html |archive-date=May 7, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2019 |newspaper=The Independent}} {{cbignore}}

File:President Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan with Michael Jackson.jpg Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan at the White House in 1984]]

Following the release of Thriller, Jackson's immediate success led to him having a standing of cultural significance that was not attained by an African American before him in the history of the entertainment industry.{{cite magazine |first= Joseph |last= Vogel |title= How Michael Jackson Made 'Bad' |magazine= The Atlantic |date= September 10, 2012 |access-date= May 29, 2020 |url= https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/09/how-michael-jackson-made-bad/262162/ |archive-date= December 18, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161218073140/http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/09/how-michael-jackson-made-bad/262162/ |url-status= live }} Blender described Jackson as the "late 20th century's preeminent pop icon", while The New York Times gave the opinion that he was a "musical phenomenon" and that "in the world of pop music, there is Michael Jackson and there is everybody else".{{cite magazine|title= The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born: Number 1: Michael Jackson, "Billy Jean" |magazine= Blender |date= April 1, 2009 |url= http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?ID=1777 |url-status= dead |archive-date= March 27, 2009 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090327230138/http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?ID=1777}}{{cite news |first= Jon |last= Pareles |title= Michael Jackson at 25: A Musical Phenomenon |newspaper= The New York Times |date= January 14, 1984 |access-date= May 15, 2007 |url= https://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/14/arts/michael-jackson-at-25-a-musical-phenomenon.html |archive-date= December 14, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20221214050439/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/14/arts/michael-jackson-at-25-a-musical-phenomenon.html |url-status= live }} Richard Corliss of Time hailed Thriller as "the greatest pop album of all time".{{cite magazine |first= Lily |last= Rothman |title= Why Michael Jackson's Biggest Success Was a Surprise |magazine= Time |date= November 19, 2017 |access-date= December 29, 2019 |url= https://time.com/5033766/thriller-michael-jackson-anniversary/ |archive-date= June 5, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190605134018/http://time.com/5033766/thriller-michael-jackson-anniversary/ |url-status= live }} Jackson changed the way the industry functioned: both as an artistic persona and as a financial, profitable entity. His attorney John Branca observed that Jackson achieved the highest royalty rate in the music industry to that point: approximately $2 (US${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|2|1984|r=2}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars{{inflation-fn|US}}) for each album sold.

As a result, Jackson earned record-breaking profits from compact disc sales and from the sale of copies of the documentary, The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller, produced by Jackson and John Landis. Funded by MTV, the film sold over 350,000 copies in its first few months. In a market then driven by singles, Thriller raised the significance of albums, yet its multiple hit singles changed preconceived notions as to the number of successful singles that could be taken from an individual album. The era saw the arrival of novelties like the Michael Jackson doll, that appeared in stores in May 1984 at a price of $12 (US${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|12|1984}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars{{inflation-fn|US}}). Thriller retains a position in American culture; biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli explains, "At some point, Thriller stopped selling like a leisure item—like a magazine, a toy, tickets to a hit movie—and started selling like a household staple".{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|p=226}}

Thriller was released at around the peak of the album era, which had positioned full-length records ahead of singles as the dominant form of recorded-music consumption and artistic expression in the industry. The success of Thriller{{'}}s singles, however, marked a brief resurgence in the sales of the format.{{cite journal |first= Jeffrey Philip |last= Wachs |date= December 2012 |title= The Long-Playing Blues: Did the Recording Industry's Shift from Singles to Albums Violate Antitrust Law? |journal= UC Irvine Law Review |volume= 2 |issue= 3 |page= 1058 |url= https://scholarship.law.uci.edu/ucilr/vol2/iss3/12/ |access-date= July 23, 2021 |archive-date= June 26, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210626082055/https://scholarship.law.uci.edu/ucilr/vol2/iss3/12/ |url-status= live }} At the time of the album's release, a press statement from Gil Friesen, the then President of A&M Records, read that, "The whole industry has a stake in this success". Time magazine speculated that "the fallout from Thriller has given the [music] business its best years since the heady days of 1978, when it had an estimated total domestic revenue of $4.1 billion".{{cite magazine |first= Jay |last= Cocks |title= Why He's a Thriller |magazine= Time |date= March 1984 |access-date= March 17, 2007 |url= https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,950053,00.html |archive-date= October 1, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181001235725/http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,950053,00.html |url-status= live }} Time summed up Thriller{{'}}s impact as a "restoration of confidence" for an industry bordering on "the ruins of punk and the chic regions of synthesizer pop". The publication described Jackson's influence at that point as, "Star of records, radio, rock video. A one-man rescue team for the music business. A songwriter who sets the beat for a decade. A dancer with the fanciest feet on the street. A singer who cuts across all boundaries of taste and style and color too".

{{quote box|quote=The '80s were when stars replaced artists as bearers of significance... When art is intellectual property, image and aura subsume aesthetic substance, whatever exactly that is. When art is capital, sales interface with aesthetic quality—Thriller{{'}}s numbers are part of its experience.|source=—Robert Christgau in Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s (1990){{cite web |first= Robert |last= Christgau |author-link= Robert Christgau |year= 1990 |title= CG 80s: Decade |via= Robertchristgau.com |access-date= April 12, 2019 |url= https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg80/in_decade.php |archive-date= April 13, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190413024950/https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg80/in_decade.php |url-status= live }}|width=25em|align=left|style=padding:8px;}}

At that time, when Thriller and "Billie Jean" were searching to reach their market demographic, MTV and cable TV had a smaller market share than the much larger reach of broadcast television stations in the United States. A national broadcast TV audience on ABC, NBC and CBS affiliate stations, as well as major independent TV stations, was desired by CBS/Epic Records to promote Thriller. The national broadcast TV premiere of the Thriller album's first video, "Billie Jean", was during the week of Halloween in October 1984 and was the idea of Video Concert Hall executive producers Charles Henderson and Jerry Crowe.{{cite news|title= Vincent Price's Halloween Thriller |type= fact sheet |publisher= Henderson-Crowe Syndications, Inc. |location= Atlanta |date= September 24, 1984}}{{cite news|title= Vincent Price Hosts His First American Halloween Special |type= news release |publisher= Henderson-Crowe Syndications, Inc. |date= September 24, 1984}} Video Concert Hall, the first nationwide music video TV network, taped the one-hour special in Hollywood and Atlanta, where the TV studios of Video Concert Hall were located.{{cite magazine|first= Jim |last= McCullaugh |title= Atlanta Firm Claims First Ever Nationwide Cable Music Show |magazine= Billboard |date= May 3, 1980 |pages= 1, 38 |url= http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1980/BB-1980-05-03.pdf}}{{cite news|first= Bill |last= King |title= Atlantans Pioneering Cable Video Music Show |newspaper= The Atlanta Constitution |date= June 3, 1980 |pages= 1-B, 10-B}}{{cite news|first= Dianne |last= Werts |title= Din of Modern Hit Parade Invades Cable Homes |newspaper= The Dallas Morning News |date= May 23, 1980}}{{cite book|first= Serge R |last= Denisoff |year= 1986 |title= Tarnished Gold: The record industry revisited |location= Oxford, UK |publisher= Transaction Books |page= 369}} The Thriller TV special was hosted by Thriller video co-star Vincent Price, distributed by Henderson-Crowe Syndications, Inc. and aired in the top 20 TV markets and much of the United States, including TV stations WNEW (New York), WFLD (Chicago), KTTV (Los Angeles), WPLG (Miami), WQTV (Boston) and WXIA (Atlanta), for a total of 150 TV stations.

Thriller had a pioneering impact on black-music genres and crossover. According to ethnomusicologist Miles White, the album completely defined the "sound of post-disco contemporary R&B" and "updated the crossover aesthetic that had been the holy grail of black popular music since Louis Jordan in the 1940s". Noting its unprecedented dominance of mainstream pop music by an African-American artist, White goes on to write that "the record's song selection and sound aesthetics played to soul and pop sensibilities alike, appealing to a broad audience and selling across lines of race, gender, class and generation", while demonstrating Jackson's emergence from Motown as "the king of pop-soul crossover".{{cite book |first= Miles |last= White |editor-first= David |editor-last= Horn |year= 2012 |title= Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World |chapter= R&B, Contemporary |volume= 8 |pages= 372–377 |publisher= Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn= 978-1-4411-6078-2 |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=__DTvryrBZkC&pg=PA374 |access-date= July 23, 2021 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223083954/https://books.google.com/books?id=__DTvryrBZkC&pg=PA374 |url-status= live }} Entertainment Weekly writer Simon Vozick-Levinson has considered it "the greatest pop-soul album",{{cite magazine |first= Simon |last= Vozick-Levinson |title= How (and how not) to sample Michael Jackson |magazine= Entertainment Weekly |date= December 21, 2007 |access-date= June 24, 2021 |url= https://ew.com/article/2007/12/21/thriller-kanye/ |archive-date= June 25, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210625034857/https://ew.com/article/2007/12/21/thriller-kanye/ |url-status= live }} Included in their list of The 40 Most Groundbreaking Albums of All Time, Rolling Stone wrote:{{cite magazine |title= 40 Most Groundbreaking Albums of All Time |magazine= Rolling Stone |access-date= November 6, 2019 |url= http://www.rollingstone.com/most-groundbreaking-albums-of-all-time |archive-date= February 22, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180222185950/https://www.rollingstone.com/most-groundbreaking-albums-of-all-time |url-status= live }}

It's hard to imagine the present-day musical landscape without Thriller, which changed the game both sonically and marketwise. The album's nervy, outsized blend of pop, rock and soul would send seismic waves throughout radio, inviting both marquee crossovers (like Eddie Van Halen's guitar solo on "Beat It") and sneakier attempts at genre-meshing. The album's splashy, cinematic videos — from the John Landis-directed short film that promoted "Thriller" to the West Side Story homage accompanying "Beat It" — legitimized the still-nascent form and forced MTV to incorporate black artists into its playlists. Its promotional strategy, which led to seven of its nine tracks being released as singles, raised the bar for what, exactly, constituted a "hit-laden" LP. Beyond breaking ground, it broke records, showing just how far pop could reach: the biggest selling album of all time, the first album to win eight Grammys in a single night and the first album to stay in the Top 10 charts for a year.

Epic Records also reflected on the importance of the album: "More than just an album, Thriller has remained a global cultural multi-media phenomenon for both the 20th and the 21st centuries, smashing musical barriers and changing the frontiers of pop forever. The music on Thriller is so dynamic and singular that it defied any definition of rock, pop or soul that had gone before."{{cite web |title= Michael Jackson's Thriller Is the First Album Certified RIAA 30x Multi-Platinum |publisher= Epic Records |date= December 16, 2015 |access-date= October 21, 2019 |url= https://www.epicrecords.com/michael-jacksons-thriller-is-the-first-album-certified-riaa-30x-multi-platinum/ |archive-date= October 21, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191021095023/https://www.epicrecords.com/michael-jacksons-thriller-is-the-first-album-certified-riaa-30x-multi-platinum/ |url-status= live }} Alan Light writing in Rolling Stone explained the historic significance of the album: "In today’s world of declining sales and fragmented audiences, it is almost impossible to imagine how much this one album dominated and united the culture."{{cite web |last1=Light |first1=Alan |title='Thriller': How Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones Made the Bestselling Album of All Time |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/thriller-how-michael-jackson-and-quincy-jones-made-the-bestselling-album-of-all-time-199391/ |website=Rolling Stone}}

From the moment Thriller was released, it set the standard for the music industry: artists, record labels, producers, marketers and even choreographers. The music video was ahead of its time and it is considered a monumental one—not only in Jackson's career, but also in the history of pop music. Epic Records' approach to creating a song and video that would appeal to the mass market ended up influencing the way that professionals now market and release their songs.{{cite magazine |first1= Gail |last1= Mitchell |first2= Melinda |last2= Newman |title= How "Thriller" Changed the Music Business |magazine= Billboard |date= July 11, 2009 |pages= 121, 22–25 |volume= 121 |issue= 28 |issn= 0006-2510 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=T0sB47TxoCwC&pg=PT21 |access-date= November 1, 2020 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223083955/https://books.google.com/books?id=T0sB47TxoCwC&pg=PT21 |url-status= live }} John Landis' production of a mini-movie, rather than the usual short music video, would raise the bar for other directors and producers.{{cite magazine|first= Ayala |last= Ben-Yehuda |title= Video Thrilled the Radio Star |magazine= Billboard |date= July 11, 2009 |pages= 121, 26–27 |volume= 121 |issue= 28 |issn= 0006-2510 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=T0sB47TxoCwC&pg=PT25}}

File:Paul McCartney 930-6404 (cropped).jpg duet "The Girl Is Mine"—are credited with helping promote racial equality in the United States.]]

Before the success of Thriller, many felt Jackson had struggled to get MTV airtime due to being black. CBS Records president Walter Yetnikoff told MTV: "I'm not going to give you any more videos and I'm going to go public and fucking tell them about the fact you don't want to play music by a black guy." Yetnikoff persuaded MTV to begin airing "Billie Jean" and "Beat It", which led to a long partnership and helped other black artists to gain mainstream recognition.{{cite news |first= Edna |last= Gundersen |title= Music videos changing places |newspaper= USA Today |date= August 25, 2005 |access-date= April 6, 2008 |url= https://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2005-08-25-mtv_x.htm |archive-date= October 30, 2005 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20051030101653/http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2005-08-25-mtv_x.htm |url-status= live }} MTV denies claims of racism in their broadcasting.{{cite magazine |first= Margena A. |last= Christian |title= Why it took MTV so long to play black music videos |magazine= Jet |date= October 9, 2006 |volume= 110 |issue= 14 |pages= 16–18, 53–54 |issn= 0021-5996 |access-date= September 2, 2009 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=fDoDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA16 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223093957/https://books.google.com/books?id=fDoDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA16 |url-status= live }}

The popularity of Jackson's videos, such as "Beat It" and "Billie Jean", helped popularize MTV, and its focus shifted towards pop and R&B.{{cite news |first= Brian |last= Robinson |title= Why Are Michael Jackson's Fans So Devoted? |publisher= ABC News |date= February 23, 2005 |access-date= April 6, 2007 |url= https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/LegalCenter/story?id=464753&page=1 |archive-date= October 20, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131020041828/http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/LegalCenter/story?id=464753 |url-status= live }} Jackson transformed the medium of music video into an artform and promotional tool through the use of complex storylines, dance routines, special effects, and celebrity cameos.{{cite web|first= Steve |last= Huey |title= Michael Jackson – Artist Biography |publisher= AllMusic |access-date= November 11, 2006 |url= http://www.allmusic.com/artist/michael-jackson-mn0000467203/biography |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150507080746/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/michael-jackson-mn0000467203/biography |archive-date= May 7, 2015}}

When the 14-minute-long "Thriller" video aired, MTV ran it twice an hour to meet demand.{{sfn|Taraborrelli|2004|pp=270–71}} The video marked an increase in scale for music videos and has been routinely named the best music video ever. The video is credited for transforming music videos into a serious artform, breaking down racial barriers in popular entertainment, and popularizing the making-of documentary format.{{cite news |first= Phil |last= Hebblethwaite |title= How Michael Jackson's Thriller changed music videos for ever |newspaper= The Guardian |date= November 21, 2013 |access-date= November 28, 2019 |url= https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/nov/21/michael-jackson-thriller-changed-music-videos |archive-date= December 18, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191218125357/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/nov/21/michael-jackson-thriller-changed-music-videos |url-status= live }} Many elements have had a lasting impact on popular culture such as the zombie dance and Jackson's red jacket designed by Landis's wife Deborah Nadoolman.

Author, music critic and journalist Nelson George wrote in 2004, "It's difficult to hear the songs from Thriller and disengage them from the videos. For most of us the images define the songs. In fact it could be argued that Michael is the first artist of the MTV age to have an entire album so intimately connected in the public imagination with its imagery".{{sfn|George|2004|p=23}} Short films like Thriller largely remained unique to Jackson, while the group dance sequence in "Beat It" has been frequently imitated. The choreography in Thriller has become a part of global pop culture, replicated everywhere from Bollywood to prisons in the Philippines.{{cite news |title= Jacko Goes Bollywood |work= TMZ |date= October 3, 2006 |access-date= April 8, 2008 |url= http://www.tmz.com/2006/10/03/jacko-goes-bollywood/ |archive-date= December 16, 2008 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081216132107/http://www.tmz.com/2006/10/03/jacko-goes-bollywood/ |url-status= live }}{{cite web|title= 1500 Prisoners Perform Thriller Dance |website= The Wrong Advices |date= July 21, 2007 |url= http://thewrongadvices.com/lazy-monkey/1500-prisoners-perform-thriller-dance/ |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100210003610/http://thewrongadvices.com/lazy-monkey/1500-prisoners-perform-thriller-dance/ |archive-date= February 10, 2010}}

Jackson's success as a black artist was unprecedented. Time wrote in 1984: "Jackson is the biggest thing since the Beatles. He is the hottest single phenomenon since Elvis Presley. He just may be the most popular black singer ever." According to The Washington Post, Thriller paved the way for other African-American artists to achieve mainstream recognition, such as Prince.{{cite news |first= Richard |last= Harrington |title= Prince & Michael Jackson: Two Paths to the Top of Pop |newspaper= The Washington Post |date= October 9, 1988 |access-date= May 21, 2007 |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1988/10/09/prince-michael-jackson-two-paths-to-the-top-of-pop/4ff69a1b-e67c-4f54-8d98-58be1453867f/ |archive-date= October 29, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181029152418/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/style/1988/10/09/prince-michael-jackson-two-paths-to-the-top-of-pop/4ff69a1b-e67c-4f54-8d98-58be1453867f/ |url-status= live }} Christgau credited "The Girl Is Mine" for giving radio exposure to the idea of interracial love.

Thriller has continued to receive critical acclaim. In 2024, Andrew R. Chow wrote in Time that Thriller is "a towering pillar of American culture" and "the gold standard to which all pop artists aspire in its beloved omnipresence".{{Cite magazine |last=Chow |first=Andrew R. |date=2024-11-04 |title=How Quincy Jones Helped Make 'Thriller' The Biggest Album of All Time |url=https://time.com/7171996/quincy-jones-legacy-thriller/ |access-date=2025-01-07 |magazine=TIME |language=en}} Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote that it had something to interest everyone. He believed it showcased harder funk and hard rock while remaining "undeniably fun", and wrote that "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'", was "the freshest funk on the album [but] the most claustrophobic, scariest track Jackson ever recorded." Erlewine felt it was an improvement on Jackson's previous album, although he was critical of the title track, describing it as "ridiculous" and "sucked out the momentum" of the record. In The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (2004), Jon Pareles wrote that Jackson had "doubled his ambitions and multiplied his audience ... Thriller had extra musical help in becoming the best-selling non compilation album of all time: Jackson's dancing feet and dazzling stage presence, amplified by the newfound promotional reach of music video and the Reagan era's embrace of glossy celebrity. But especially in the album's seven hit singles (out of nine songs), the music stands on its own."{{cite book |first= Jon |last= Pareles |editor1-first= Nathan |editor1-last= Brackett |editor2-first= Christian |editor2-last= Hoard |year= 2004 |title= The New Rolling Stone Album Guide |title-link= The Rolling Stone Album Guide |edition= 4th |publisher= Simon & Schuster |chapter= Michael Jackson |chapter-url= https://books.google.com/books?id=t9eocwUfoSoC&pg=PA414 |access-date= October 17, 2016 |pages= [https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/414 414–15] |isbn= 0-7432-0169-8 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223083958/https://books.google.com/books?id=t9eocwUfoSoC&pg=PA414 |url-status= live }} Culture critic Nelson George wrote that Jackson "has educated R. Kelly, Usher, Justin Timberlake and countless others with Thriller as a textbook".{{sfn|George|2004|p=24}}

Thriller was reissued on October 16, 2001, in an expanded set, Thriller: Special Edition. The album is remastered and includes a new booklet and bonus material, including the songs "Someone in the Dark", "Carousel" and Jackson's original "Billie Jean" demo, as well as audio interviews with Jones and Temperton.{{cite AV media notes|first= Michael |last= Jackson |title= Thriller Special Edition |type= booklet}} Sony also hired sound engineer and mixer Mick Guzauski{{cite magazine |first= Paul |last= Verna |title= Mick Guzauski |magazine= Mix |date= May 1, 2001 |access-date= July 7, 2009 |url= http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/mick-guzauski/365129 |archive-date= June 27, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150627015945/http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/mick-guzauski/365129 |url-status= live }}{{cite magazine |first= Kevin |last= Becka |title= Mix Interview: Mick Guzauski |magazine= Mix |date= June 1, 2006 |access-date= July 7, 2009 |url= http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/mix-interview-mick-guzauski/365646 |archive-date= December 31, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141231212805/http://www.mixonline.com/news/profiles/mix-interview-mick-guzauski/365646 |url-status= live }} to create 5.1-channel surround sound mixes of Thriller and Jackson's other albums for the Super Audio CD format, but Jackson did not approve the mixes.{{cite news|first= Roger |last= Friedman |title= First Jackson Effort Rejected, New One Not Ready |publisher= Fox News Channel |date= July 23, 2001 |access-date= July 7, 2009 |url= http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,30233,00.html |url-status= dead |archive-date= March 5, 2009 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090305073356/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,30233,00.html}} Consequently, Thriller was issued on SACD only in a stereo version.{{cite web |title= Michael Jackson on SACD |website= PS3SACD.com |date= July 9, 2009 |access-date= July 26, 2009 |url= http://www.ps3sacd.com/news.html#_20090709 |archive-date= September 29, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180929020229/http://www.ps3sacd.com/news.html#_20090709 |url-status= live }} A surround sound version of Thriller would not be realized until November 2022, when Sony created and released 360 Reality Audio and Dolby Atmos mixes of Thriller for Amazon Music and Apple Music respectively in honor of the album's 40th anniversary.{{Cite web |date=2022-11-18 |title=Thriller 40 – A Double CD Set Of Michael Jackson's Original Masterpiece Thriller & Bonus Disc Out Now |url=https://www.legacyrecordings.com/2022/11/18/thriller-40-a-double-cd-set-of-michael-jacksons-original-masterpiece-thriller-bonus-disc-out-now/ |access-date=2022-11-18 |website=Legacy Recordings |language=en-US |quote=Immersive audio mixes of Thriller are now available at various DSPs, including 360 Reality Audio on Amazon, Spatial Audio on Apple Music, mixed by Şerban Ghenea from the original masters for immersive audio, with the immersive mixes by John Hanes. |archive-date=November 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118202102/https://www.legacyrecordings.com/2022/11/18/thriller-40-a-double-cd-set-of-michael-jacksons-original-masterpiece-thriller-bonus-disc-out-now/ |url-status=live }}

In February 2008, Epic Records released Thriller 25; Jackson served as executive producer.{{cite press release|title= Epic Records/Legacy Recordings Unveil the 25th Anniversary Edition of Michael Jackson's... |work= Reuters |date= November 30, 2007 |url= https://www.reuters.com/article/2007/11/30/idUS58333%2B30-Nov-2007%2BPRN20071130 |url-status= dead |archive-date= November 3, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131103161426/https://www.reuters.com/article/2007/11/30/idUS58333%2B30-Nov-2007%2BPRN20071130}} Thriller 25 appeared on CD, USB and vinyl with seven bonus tracks, the new song "For All Time", a snippet of Price's voiceover and five remixes featuring American artists Fergie, will.i.am, Kanye West and Akon.{{cite news |title= Kanye West, Will.I.Am on New Edition of Michael Jackson's Thriller; Plus Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, 'High School Musical' & More, In For the Record |publisher= MTV |access-date= December 7, 2007 |url= http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1575462/20071130/west_kanye.jhtml |archive-date= October 2, 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101002032520/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1575462/20071130/west_kanye.jhtml |url-status= dead }}{{cite web |title= Kanye, Akon Help Jackson Revisit 'Thriller' |magazine= Billboard |date= November 30, 2007 |access-date= June 23, 2008 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1047176/kanye-akon-help-jackson-revisit-thriller |archive-date= July 23, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130723065958/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1047176/kanye-akon-help-jackson-revisit-thriller |url-status= live }} It also included a DVD featuring three music videos, the Motown 25 "Billie Jean" performance and a booklet with a message from Jackson. The ballad "For All Time" supposedly dates from 1982, but is often credited as being from the Dangerous sessions.{{cite news|first= Pete |last= Paphides |title= Michael Jackson: Thriller 25 |newspaper= The Times |date= February 8, 2008 |url= http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/cd_reviews/article3327950.ece |archive-date= May 17, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110517082449/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/cd_reviews/article3327950.ece}}

Thriller 25 was a commercial success and did particularly well as a reissue. It peaked at number one in eight countries and Europe. It peaked at number two in the US, number three in the UK and reached the top 10 in over 30 national charts. It was certified Gold in 11 countries including the UK, received a 2× Gold certification in France and received platinum certification in Poland.{{cite web|title= Zona Musical |website= Zm.nu |access-date= April 5, 2008 |url= http://zm.nu/detalle.php?base=zmnews&lay=cgi&form=detalle&tok4=notici&tok5=Noticias&id=17840 |language= es}} {{cbignore}}{{cite news |title= Michael Jackson's Thriller 25 – The 25th Anniversary Edition of the World's Top-Selling Album of All Time – Is America's #2 Best-Selling Album This Week!!! |work= Digital Producer |agency= PR Newswire |date= February 20, 2008 |url= http://www.digitalproducer.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=312105&afterinter=true |access-date= January 22, 2016 |archive-date= October 5, 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181005171334/http://www.digitalproducer.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=312105&afterinter=true |url-status= live }}{{cite web |title= Michael Jackson – Thriller 25 |publisher= Ultratop. Hung Medien |access-date= January 22, 2016 |url= http://www.ultratop.be/nl/album/14252/Michael-Jackson-Thriller-25 |language= nl |archive-date= January 22, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160122182736/http://www.ultratop.be/nl/album/14252/Michael-Jackson-Thriller-25 |url-status= live }} In the United States, Thriller 25 was the second-best-selling album of its release week, selling one hundred and sixty six thousand copies, just fourteen thousand short of reaching the number one position. It was ineligible for the Billboard 200 chart as a re-release but entered the Pop Catalog Charts at number one (where it stayed for ten non-consecutive weeks),{{cite web|first= Paul |last= Grein |title= Week Ending May 18, 2008: Diva Smackdown Ends with Ingenues on Rise |date= May 18, 2008 |publisher= Yahoo! Music |url= http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/chart_watch/7658/week-ending-may-18-2008-diva-smackdown-ends-with-ingenues-on-rise |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110519145210/http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/chart_watch/7658/week-ending-may-18-2008-diva-smackdown-ends-with-ingenues-on-rise |archive-date= May 19, 2011}} with the best sales on that chart since December 1996.{{cite news |first= Gary |last= Trust |title= Big Grammy Gains For Many; King of Pop Returns |magazine= Billboard |date= February 20, 2008 |access-date= February 20, 2008 |url= http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1312521/big-grammy-gains-for-many-king-of-pop-returns |archive-date= July 14, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150714080149/http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/1312521/big-grammy-gains-for-many-king-of-pop-returns |url-status= live }}{{cite news |first= Katy |last= Hasty |title= Johnson Remains No. 1; Winehouse, Hancock Soar |magazine= Billboard |date= February 20, 2008 |access-date= February 20, 2008 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1046492/johnson-remains-no-1-winehouse-hancock-soar |archive-date= January 1, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160101131052/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1046492/johnson-remains-no-1-winehouse-hancock-soar |url-status= live }}{{cite news |title= US fans shun CD |publisher= BBC |date= July 30, 2005 |access-date= April 7, 2008 |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/entertainment/music/4730407.stm |archive-date= September 20, 2008 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080920030746/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/entertainment/music/4730407.stm |url-status= live }} With the arrival of Halloween, Thriller 25 spent an eleventh non-consecutive week atop the US catalog chart. This brought US sales of the album to 688,000 copies, making it the best-selling catalog album of 2008.{{cite magazine |first= Ray |last= Waddell |title= Michael Jackson Eyeing London Run? |magazine= Billboard |date= November 7, 2008 |access-date= November 8, 2008 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1043559/michael-jackson-eyeing-london-run |archive-date= July 4, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130704090734/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1043559/michael-jackson-eyeing-london-run |url-status= live }} This was Jackson's best launch since Invincible in 2001, selling three million copies worldwide in 12 weeks.{{cite news|first= Roger |last= Friedman |title= Jacko: Neverland East in Upstate New York |publisher= Fox News Channel |date= May 16, 2008 |access-date= May 22, 2008 |url= http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356282,00.html#3 |url-status= dead |archive-date= May 19, 2008 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080519112250/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356282,00.html#3}}

After Jackson's death in June 2009, Thriller set additional records. the album sold 101,000 units in the US on the chart week ending July 1, 2009 and was the third biggest-selling album of the week. The album placed at number three on the Top Pop Catalog Albums chart.{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/arts/music/02sales.html | title=In Death as in Life, Michael Jackson Sets Music Sales Records | work=The New York Times | date=July 2009 | last1=Sisario | first1=Ben | access-date=December 6, 2022 | archive-date=July 10, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220710212539/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/arts/music/02sales.html | url-status=live }} The following week the album sold 187,000 units in the US on the chart week ending July 8, 2009 and was the second biggest-selling album of the week.{{cite web | url=https://www.mtv.com/news/c8ojrs/michael-jackson-dominates-billboard-charts | title=Michael Jackson Dominates 'Billboard' Charts | website=MTV | access-date=December 6, 2022 | archive-date=December 6, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206055719/https://www.mtv.com/news/c8ojrs/michael-jackson-dominates-billboard-charts | url-status=dead }} Songs from Thriller also helped Jackson become the first artist to sell more than one million song downloads in a week.{{cite magazine |title= Michael Jackson Breaks Billboard Charts Records |magazine= Billboard |date= June 30, 2009 |access-date= July 3, 2009 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/268238/michael-jackson-breaks-billboard-charts-records |archive-date= January 30, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130130032031/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/268238/michael-jackson-breaks-billboard-charts-records |url-status= live }} According to Nielsen SoundScan, Thriller was the 14th best-selling album of 2009 in the United States, with 1.27 million copies sold.{{cite magazine |first= Keith |last= Caulfield |title= Taylor Swift Edges Susan Boyle For 2009's Top-Selling Album |magazine= Billboard |date= January 6, 2010 |access-date= January 18, 2010 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/960801/taylor-swift-edges-susan-boyle-for-2009s-top-selling-album |archive-date= April 27, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140427000452/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/960801/taylor-swift-edges-susan-boyle-for-2009s-top-selling-album |url-status= live }}

For one week beginning November 20, 2015, Google Play Music offered an exclusive free copy of the album to its users in the US which included the 1981 demo of "Billie Jean" as an additional track.{{cite news |first= Gerrick D. |last= Kennedy |title= Google Play is giving away Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' album for free |newspaper= Los Angeles Times |date= November 20, 2015 |access-date= November 21, 2015 |url= http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/posts/la-et-ms-google-play-michael-jackson-thriller-20151120-story.html |archive-date= November 21, 2015 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151121102436/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/posts/la-et-ms-google-play-michael-jackson-thriller-20151120-story.html |url-status= live }} On November 18, 2022, Sony Music released Thriller 40, a 40th-anniversary reissue of Thriller including a bonus disc containing outtakes from the original recording sessions.{{cite news |last1=Sinclair |first1=Paul |title=Michael Jackson / Thriller 40 |url=https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/michael-jackson-thriller-40/ |access-date=20 May 2022 |work=SuperDeluxeEdition |date=16 May 2022 |ref=Sinclair 2022 |archive-date=May 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516143735/https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/michael-jackson-thriller-40/ |url-status=live }} The 2022 reissue was followed by a 2023 documentary.

{{Track listing

| headline = Side one

| extra_column = Producer(s)

| title1 = Wanna Be Startin' Somethin{{'-}}

| writer1 = Michael Jackson

| extra1 = {{hlist|Quincy Jones|Jackson{{ref|a|[a]}}}}

| length1 = 6:03

| title2 = Baby Be Mine

| writer2 = Rod Temperton

| extra2 = Jones

| length2 = 4:20

| title3 = The Girl Is Mine

| note3 = with Paul McCartney

| writer3 = Jackson

| extra3 = {{hlist|Jones|Jackson{{ref|a|[a]}}}}

| length3 = 3:42

| title4 = Thriller

| writer4 = Temperton

| extra4 = Jones

| length4 = 5:58

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Side two

| extra_column = Producer(s)

| total_length = 42:16

| title5 = Beat It

| writer5 = Jackson

| extra5 = {{hlist|Jones|Jackson{{ref|a|[a]}}}}

| length5 = 4:17

| title6 = Billie Jean

| writer6 = Jackson

| extra6 = {{hlist|Jones|Jackson{{ref|a|[a]}}}}

| length6 = 4:57

| title7 = Human Nature

| writer7 = {{hlist|Steve Porcaro|John Bettis}}

| extra7 = Jones

| length7 = 4:06

| title8 = P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)

| writer8 = {{hlist|James Ingram|Jones}}

| extra8 = Jones

| length8 = 3:58

| title9 = The Lady in My Life

| writer9 = Temperton

| extra9 = Jones

| length9 = 5:00

}}

Notes

• ^{{{note|a|[a]}}} signifies a co-producer
• The first pressings contain the original album mix of "Billie Jean". The main difference is the low volume "oh no" ad-lib in the second verse.

Personnel as listed in the album's liner notes are:{{cite AV media notes|title= Thriller |year= 1982 |type= booklet |publisher= Epic Records}}

{{div col|colwidth=25em}}

• Tom Bahler – Synclavier {{small|(track 5)}}
• Brian Banks – synthesizer {{small|(track 4)}}, synthesizer programming {{small|(2)}}
• Steve Bates – assistant engineer {{small|(tracks 3, 7–9)}}
• Michael Boddicker – synthesizers {{small|(tracks 1, 2)}}, Emulator {{small|(6–9)}}, Vocoder {{small|(8)}}, background vocals {{small|(1)}}
• Bruce Cannon – effects {{small|(track 4)}}
• Leon "Ndugu" Chancler – drums {{small|(tracks 2, 6, 8)}}
• Paulinho da Costa – percussion {{small|(tracks 1, 7)}}
• Mark Ettel – assistant engineer {{small|(tracks 3, 7–9)}}
• Matt Forger – engineer {{small|(tracks 2, 3, 7–9)}}
• David Foster – synthesizer {{small|(track 3)}}, synthesizer arrangement {{small|(3)}}
• Humberto Gatica – engineer {{small|(tracks 3, 7–9)}}
• Gary Grant – trumpet and flugelhorn {{small|(tracks 1, 2, 4)}}
• Bernie Grundman – mastering engineer {{small|(tracks 2, 3, 7–9)}}
• Nelson Hayes – bathroom stomp board {{small|(track 1)}}
• Howard Hewett – background vocals {{small|(track 8)}}
• Jerry Hey – horn arrangements, trumpet, and flugelhorn {{small|(tracks 1, 2, 4)}}, string arrangements {{small|(3, 6)}}, strings conductor {{small|(3)}}
• Bunny Hull – background vocals {{small|(tracks 1, 8)}}
• James Ingram – background vocals {{small|(tracks 1, 8)}}, keyboards, handclaps, and musical arrangements {{small|(8)}}
• Janet Jackson – background vocals {{small|(track 8)}}
• La Toya Jackson – background vocals {{small|(track 8)}}
• Michael Jackson – co-producer {{small|(tracks 1, 3, 5, 6)}}, lead vocals {{small|(all tracks)}}, background vocals {{small|(1–7, 9)}}, drum programming {{small|(1, 4)}}, drum case beater {{small|(track 5)}}, handclaps {{small|(8)}}, horn arrangements and bathroom stomp board {{small|(1)}}, vocal arrangements {{small|(1, 3, 5, 6)}}, rhythm arrangements {{small|(1, 5, 6)}}, synthesizer arrangements {{small|(6)}}
• Paul Jackson Jr. – guitar {{small|(tracks 5, 8, 9)}}
• Louis Johnson – bass guitar {{small|(tracks 1, 3, 6, 8, 9)}}, handclaps {{small|(8)}}
• Quincy Jones – producer {{small|(all tracks)}}, rhythm arrangements {{small|(tracks 1, 3, 5)}}, vocal arrangements {{small|(3)}}, musical arrangements {{small|(8)}}
• Donn Landee – engineer {{small|(track 5 guitar solo)}}
• Becky López – background vocals {{small|(tracks 1, 8)}}
• Jerry Lubbock – strings conductor {{small|(track 6)}}
• Steve Lukather – guitars {{small|(tracks 3, 5, 7)}}, bass guitar {{small|(5)}}, musical arrangements {{small|(7)}}
• Anthony Marinelli – synthesizer programming {{small|(tracks 2, 4)}}
• Paul McCartney – lead vocals {{small|(track 3)}}
• David Paich – synthesizers {{small|(tracks 2, 7, 9)}}, rhythm arrangements and piano {{small|(3)}}, musical arrangements {{small|(7)}}
• Dean Parks – guitar {{small|(track 3)}}
• Greg Phillinganes – keyboards {{small|(2, 4)}}, synthesizers {{small|(1, 2, 4–6, 8)}}, Fender Rhodes {{small|(1, 3, 5, 6, 9)}}, synthesizer programming and handclaps {{small|(8)}}
• Jeff Porcaro – drums {{small|(tracks 3, 5, 7, 9)}}
• Steve Porcaro – synthesizers {{small|(tracks 5, 7, 9)}}, synthesizer programming {{small|(2, 3, 5, 7)}}, musical arrangements {{small|(7)}}
• Vincent Price – voice-over {{small|(track 4)}}
• Steven Ray – bathroom stomp board {{small|(track 1)}}, handclaps {{small|(8)}}
• Bill Reichenbach – trombone {{small|(tracks 1, 2, 4)}}
• Greg Smith – Synergy {{small|(track 5)}}, synthesizer {{small|(6)}}
• Bruce Swedien – recording engineer and audio mixer {{small|(all tracks)}}, effects {{small|(4)}}
• Chris Shepard – vibraslap {{small|(track 5)}}
• Rod Temperton – synthesizer {{small|(track 4)}}, rhythm and vocal arrangements {{small|(2, 4, 9)}}
• Eddie Van Halen – guitar solo {{small|(track 5)}}
• Jerry Vinci – concertmaster {{small|(track 3)}}
• Julia Waters – background vocals {{small|(track 1)}}
• Maxine Waters – background vocals {{small|(track 1)}}
• Oren Waters – background vocals {{small|(track 1)}}
• David Williams – guitar {{small|(tracks 1, 2, 4, 6)}}
• Larry Williams – saxophone and flute {{small|(tracks 1, 2, 4)}}
• Bill Wolfer – keyboards {{small|(track 5)}}, synthesizer {{small|(1, 6)}}, programming {{small|(6)}}

{{div col end}}

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-end}}

{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications and sales for Thriller}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Argentina|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Diamond|certyear=2000|certref={{cite web|title= Los premiados |publisher= Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas |url= http://www.capif.org.ar/default.asp?CodOp=DILP&CO=2 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://archive.today/20050318194333/http://www.capif.org.ar/default.asp?CodOp=DILP&CO=2 |archive-date= March 18, 2005 |language= es}}|salesamount=576,779|salesref={{cite news |first= Adriana |last= Franco |title= Nuevo galardón en la industria del disco |newspaper= La Nación |date= October 27, 1999 |access-date= February 19, 2021 |url= https://www.lanacion.com.ar/espectaculos/nuevo-galardon-en-la-industria-del-disco-nid158931/ |language= es |archive-date= June 3, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210603164627/https://www.lanacion.com.ar/espectaculos/nuevo-galardon-en-la-industria-del-disco-nid158931/ |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=17|certyear=2023|access-date=May 3, 2023}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Austria|type=album|artist=Jackson, Michael|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=8|relyear=1982|certyear=2008|access-date=July 17, 2020}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Belgium|type=album|award=|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=true|salesamount=300,000|relyear=1982|salesref={{cite magazine |first= Marc |last= Maes |title= Top-Seller Lotti Looks South |magazine= Billboard |date= January 20, 1996 |volume= 108 |issue= 3 |page= 39 |issn= 0006-2510 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=3g4EAAAAMBAJ&q=%22300,000%22&pg=PA39 |access-date= November 1, 2020 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084511/https://books.google.com/books?id=3g4EAAAAMBAJ&q=%22300,000%22&pg=PA39 |url-status= live }}|note=sales as of 1996}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Brazil|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=|nocert=yes|relyear=1983|access-date=March 31, 2020|salesamount=2,000,000|salesref={{cite journal |last1=Fernandez |first1=Alexandre |title=Michael Jackson: 50 anos |url=http://memoria.bn.gov.br/DocReader/893978/94473 |journal=Expresso Popular |access-date=July 8, 2024 |language=pt |date=August 29, 2008|page=24|edition=2.321}}|note=sales as of 2008}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Diamond|number=3|relyear=1982|certyear=2022|access-date=December 15, 2022}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Chile|type=album|award=|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=true|salesamount=40,000|relyear=1982|salesref={{cite book |first= Eduardo |last= Berti |author-link= Eduardo Berti |year= 1994 |title= Rockología: Documentos de los '80 |publisher= Beas Ediciones |page= 70 |isbn= 9508341114 |via= Google Books |url-access= limited |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=S4NaAAAAMAAJ |quote= En Chile, donde Thriller de Michael Jackson había vendido 40 mil ejemplares hacia 1987, el disco Nada personal de Soda ya superaba las 60 mil copias |language= es |access-date= February 12, 2022 |archive-date= May 3, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220503030921/https://books.google.com/books?id=S4NaAAAAMAAJ |url-status= live }}}}ndi

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Colombia|type=album|award=|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=true|salesamount=300,000|relyear=1982|salesref={{cite news |first= Andres |last= Zambrano D. |title= Jackson, De Vuelta al Futuro |newspaper= El Tiempo |date= June 10, 1995 |access-date= May 3, 2022 |url= https://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/MAM-342334 |language= es |archive-date= January 8, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220108220600/https://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/MAM-342334 |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Denmark|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=6|relyear=1982|certyear=2008|certref={{cite web |title= Guld og platin i 2008 |publisher= IFPI Danmark |page= 40 |year= 2009 |access-date= July 2, 2021 |url= http://www.ifpi.dk/sites/default/files/2018-06/pladebranchen08.pdf |language= da |archive-date= July 9, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210709183432/http://www.ifpi.dk/sites/default/files/2018-06/pladebranchen08.pdf |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Denmark|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=4|relyear=1982|certyear=2023|note=reissue|id=13294|access-date=December 30, 2023}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Finland|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|salesamount=119,061}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=France|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Diamond|source=infodisc|certyear=1988|salesamount=3,500,000|salesref={{Cite web|url=https://www.letelegramme.fr/soir/quel-est-le-disque-le-plus-vendu-en-france-de-tous-les-temps-25-09-2020-12625130.php|title=Quel est le disque le plus vendu en France de tous les temps ?|date=September 25, 2020|website=Le Telegramme|access-date=June 19, 2022|archive-date=June 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220619081428/https://www.letelegramme.fr/soir/quel-est-le-disque-le-plus-vendu-en-france-de-tous-les-temps-25-09-2020-12625130.php|url-status=live}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Germany|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=3|relyear=1982}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Hong Kong|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|relyear=1982|certyear=1984|salesamount=50,000|salesref={{cite magazine |first= Christie |last= Leo |title= Hong Kong Readies Thriller |magazine= Billboard |volume= 99 |issue= 27 |page= 64 |date= July 4, 1987 |issn= 0006-2510 |access-date= May 28, 2020 |url= https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-1987-07-04.pdf |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084512/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-1987-07-04.pdf |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|award=|region=India|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=yes|relyear=1982|salesamount=100,000|salesref={{cite magazine |title= Michael Jackson Remains a Global Phenomenon |magazine= Billboard |date= July 2, 2009 |access-date= May 28, 2020 |url= http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/268216/michael-jackson-remains-a-global-phenomenon |archive-date= April 23, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130423120818/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/268216/michael-jackson-remains-a-global-phenomenon |url-status= live |quote= "more than 100,000 copies sold not including the millions more sold through unofficial releases" }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Israel|type=album|title=Thriller|artist=Michael Jackson|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=1982|salesamount=80,000|salesref={{cite magazine |title= Jackson Awarded for Israeli Success |magazine= Music & Media |volume= 10 |issue= 45 |page= 6 |date= November 6, 1993 |access-date= May 28, 2020 |url= https://www.americanradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1993/MM-1993-11-06.pdf |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084510/https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/90s/1993/MM-1993-11-06.pdf |url-status= live }}|certref=}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|award=|title=Thriller|artist=Michael Jackson|relyear=1982|region=Italy|nocert=yes|salesamount=700,000|salesref={{cite news|title= E' Claudio Baglioni il Jackson italiano |newspaper= La Stampa |page= 24 |date= May 12, 1995 |access-date= September 3, 2020 |url= http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,24/articleid,0706_01_1995_0125_0064_10427145/ |url-status= live |archive-date= August 21, 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190821095326/http://www.archiviolastampa.it/component/option,com_lastampa/task,search/mod,libera/action,viewer/Itemid,3/page,24/articleid,0706_01_1995_0125_0064_10427145/ |language= it}}|note=sales as of 1995}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Italy|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=Platinum|number=4|note=sales since 2009|relyear=2008|certyear=2024|id=13286|access-date=September 30, 2024}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Japan|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller (reissue)|type=album|award=Gold|certyear=1994|certmonth=3|relyear=1991|salesamount=2,500,000|salesref=|access-date=July 21, 2022}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Mexico|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=Diamond+Platinum+Gold|number=2|number2=2|relyear=1982|certyear=2022|access-date=April 22, 2022}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Netherlands|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=8|salesamount=1,400,000|salesref={{cite news |first= Hans |last= Nauta |title= Een ster in het land van lilliputters |newspaper= Trouw |date= October 29, 2001 |access-date= January 22, 2016 |url= http://www.trouw.nl/tr/nl/5009/Archief/archief/article/detail/2486242/2001/10/29/Een-ster-in-het-land-van-lilliputters.dhtml |language= nl |archive-date= July 9, 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120709092344/http://www.trouw.nl/tr/nl/5009/Archief/archief/article/detail/2486242/2001/10/29/Een-ster-in-het-land-van-lilliputters.dhtml |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=12|relyear=1982|certyear=2009|source=archive}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Norway|title=|artist=|type=|award=|nocert=true|salesamount=150,000|salesref={{cite news|url=http://www.nystrom.no/okn/musikk/09.htm|title=9: Perfekt kommerskunst|work=Aftenposten|date=July 15, 1999|access-date=May 21, 2022|language=no|archive-date=August 2, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020802224135/http://www.nystrom.no/okn/musikk/09.htm|via=Nystrom|first=Asbjørn|last=Bakke}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|award=|region=Singapore|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=yes|relyear=1982|salesamount=25,000|salesref={{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ya8DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA61|title=Michael Jackson's 'Bad' Top Seller In Singapore|magazine=Jet|access-date=June 14, 2024|date=October 26, 1987|page=61}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=South Africa|title=Thriller|artist=Michael Jackson|award=Platinum|number=3|type=album|relyear=1982|certyear=1984|certref={{cite magazine |title= Music Video Hits South Africa |magazine= Billboard |volume= 96 |issue= 20 |page= 61 |issn= 0006-2510 |date= May 19, 1984 |access-date= May 28, 2020 |url= https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1984/BB-1984-05-19.pdf |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084513/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1984/BB-1984-05-19.pdf |url-status= live }}|salesamount=120,000|salesref=}}

{{certification Table Entry|region=South Korea|type=album|title=Thriller|artist=Michael Jackson|relyear=1982|award=Platinum|number=4|nocert=yes|salesamount=50,000|salesref={{cite web |title= 1984년 3월 21일 동아일보 :: 네이버 뉴스 라이브러리 ver 1.4.1 |date= March 21, 1984 |access-date= January 22, 2016 |url= http://newslibrary.naver.com/viewer/index.nhn?articleId=1984032100209212012&editNo=2&printCount=1&publishDate=1984-03-21&officeId=00020&pageNo=12&printNo=19220&publishType=00020 |language= ko |archive-date= January 7, 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160107042704/http://newslibrary.naver.com/viewer/index.nhn?articleId=1984032100209212012&editNo=2&printCount=1&publishDate=1984-03-21&officeId=00020&pageNo=12&printNo=19220&publishType=00020 |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|award=|region=Spain|artist=Michael Jackon|title=Thriller|salesamount=500,000|nocert=true|salesref={{cite news|url=https://prensahistorica.mcu.es/es/catalogo_imagenes/grupo.do?path=722058&posicion=31&presentacion=pagina|title=Michael Jackson, "grammysimo"|last=Alejandro|first=Daniel|date=March 1, 1984|page=35|language=es|work=Diario de Burgos|access-date=December 5, 2023}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Sweden|type=album|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|award=Platinum|number=4|certyear=2008|relyear=1982}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Switzerland|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=Platinum|number=6|relyear=1982}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=Platinum|number=15|relyear=1982|id=7588-168-2|certyear=2021}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=Platinum|number=34|relyear=1982|certyear=2021}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Yugoslavia|type=album|award=|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=true|salesamount=112,000|relyear=1982|salesref={{cite magazine |first= Mitja |last= Volvic |title= Pervasive Economic Slump Hits Yugoslav Industry Hard |magazine= Billboard |date= January 12, 1985 |volume= 97 |issue= 2 |page= 57 |issn= 0006-2510 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=DiUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT98 |access-date= May 28, 2020 |archive-date= February 23, 2023 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084513/https://books.google.com/books?id=DiUEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT98 |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Zimbabwe|type=album|award=|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|nocert=true|salesamount=8,000|relyear=1982|salesref={{cite magazine |first= Glenn A. |last= Baker |title= Record Industry Resists Piracy in Zimbabwe |magazine= Billboard |date= December 19, 1987 |volume= 99 |issue= 51 |page= 59 |issn= 0006-2510 |url= https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-1987-12-19.pdf |access-date= February 15, 2022 |archive-date= June 24, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210624024406/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/80s/1987/Billboard-1987-12-19.pdf |url-status= live }}}}

{{Certification Table Summary}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Europe|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=|nocert=true|salesamount=18,000,000|note=1982-1987 sales|salesref={{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4Li0JBWU6E0C&pg=PA146|magazine=Ebony|title=Michael Jackson … continued|page=146|date=September 1987|via=Google Books|access-date=December 18, 2022|archive-date=February 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084512/https://books.google.com/books?id=4Li0JBWU6E0C&pg=PA146|url-status=live}}}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Europe|artist=Michael Jackson|title=Thriller|type=album|award=Platinum|certyear=2009|note=For sales in 2009}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=International|title=Thriller|artist=Michael Jackson|type=album|award=|nocert=true|salesamount=27,000,000|salesref=|note=1982-1991 Sales}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Worldwide|title=|artist=|type=|award=|nocert=true|salesamount=70,000,000|salesref=}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=yes}}

{{div col|colwidth=35em}}

• Thriller (song)
• "Behind the Mask" (song)
• List of 1980s albums considered the best
• List of best-selling albums
• List of best-selling albums by country
• List of best-selling albums in Argentina
• List of best-selling albums in Australia
• List of best-selling albums in Austria
• List of best-selling albums in Belgium
• List of best-selling albums in Brazil
• List of best-selling albums in Canada
• List of best-selling albums in Colombia
• List of best-selling albums in Europe
• List of best-selling albums in Finland
• List of best-selling albums in France
• List of best-selling albums in Germany
• List of best-selling albums in Italy
• List of best-selling albums in Japan
• List of best-selling albums in Mexico
• List of best-selling albums in the Netherlands
• List of best-selling albums in New Zealand
• List of best-selling albums in Spain
• List of best-selling albums in the United Kingdom
• List of best-selling albums in the United States
• List of diamond-certified albums in Argentina
• List of diamond-certified albums in Canada
• List of number-one dance singles of 1983 (U.S.)

{{div col end}}

{{Reflist|group=nb}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Refbegin|30em}}

• {{cite book|first=Geoff|last=Brown|year=1996|title=The Complete Guide to the Music of Michael Jackson & The Jackson Family|publisher=Omnibus Press|location=New York City, New York|isbn=0-7119-5303-1}}
• {{cite book|first=Lisa|last=Campbell|year=1993|title=Michael Jackson: The King of Pop|publisher=Branden|isbn=0-8283-1957-X}}
• {{cite book|first=Michael Eric|last=Dyson|year=1993|title=Reflecting Black: African-American Cultural Criticism|publisher=University of Minnesota Press|isbn=0-8166-2141-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i2KNkKojBHIC|access-date=April 26, 2017|archive-date=February 23, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230223084550/https://books.google.com/books?id=i2KNkKojBHIC|url-status=live}}
• {{cite book|first=Craig|last=Halstead|year=2007|title=Michael Jackson: For the Record|publisher=Authors OnLine|isbn=978-0-7552-0267-6}}
• {{cite AV media notes|last=George|first=Nelson|author-link=Nelson George|year=2004|title=Michael Jackson: The Ultimate Collection|type=booklet |publisher=Sony BMG}}
• {{cite book|first=J. Randy|last=Taraborrelli|author-link=J. Randy Taraborrelli|year=2004|title=The Magic and the Madness|publisher=Headline|location=Terra Alta, WV|isbn=0-330-42005-4}}

{{Refend}}

• {{Discogs master}}
• {{MBrgID}}

{{Thriller (album)|state=expanded}}

{{Michael Jackson}}

{{Quincy Jones}}

{{Navboxes

| title = Awards for Thriller

| titlestyle = background: lightblue

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{{Brit British Album}}

{{Grammy Award for Album of the Year 1980s}}

{{Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance}}

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{{Billboard Year-End number one albums 1970–1989}}

{{UK best-selling albums (by year) 1970–1989}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1982 albums

Category:Michael Jackson albums

Category:Epic Records albums

Category:Albums produced by Michael Jackson

Category:Albums produced by Quincy Jones

Category:Albums recorded at Westlake Recording Studios

Category:Brit Award for British Album of the Year

Category:Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients

Category:Grammy Award for Album of the Year

Category:Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical

Category:Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance

Category:United States National Recording Registry albums

Category:World record holders