How "Thriller" Impacted the Music Industry
On November 30, 1982 the "Thriller" album was released around the world. "Thriller" sold well right from the start, however what is more impressive are the continued sales of the album throughout the years. At first release "Thriller" sold 40 million copies and currently record sales stand at 110 million copies worldwide. "Thriller" contained a total of 9 songs, 7 of which were released as singles and reached the top 10. The duration of the album was 42 minutes, 19 seconds, and was released under the genre of R&B. The songs in the album included "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin", "Baby Be Mine", "The Girl Is Mine", "Thriller", "Beat It", "Billie Jean", "Human Nature", "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)", and "The Lady In My Life."
The cover of the album is now a famous image of Michael that is as famous as the album itself. The cover features an iconic image of Jackson in a white suit ...This image of Michael appealed to many different people, both male and female, black and white, different cultures all around the world. His image, like the album itself challenged racial barries.
The first song from the "Thriller" album to be released was "The Girl Is Mine" which was a duet with Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson. This single was released before the entire album in order to generate mass appeal. The song was well received and reached number 2 on the billboard charts. While the song did well on the charts, critics and fans thought the song seemed too tame and were underwhelmed by it.
The next songs to be released from the "Thriller" album were "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" which were both songs written by Jackson. The album quickly became number 1 on the charts. "Beat It" was released while "Billie Jean" was number one on the charts, which was considered to be a bad idea. However, both songs were so successful that they were both in the Top 10 at the same time. The "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" videos fueled the albums ratings and changed the music industry forever. "Billie Jean" was the first video to be played in heavy rotation on MTV which rarely played black artists.
The title track of the album, "Thriller", was released and Jackson's album and his career became a pop culture sensation. Over the next couple of years, "Thriller" stayed on the charts for 80 weeks, holding the number one spot for 37. "Thriller" earned 12 Grammy nominations and won 8 of those awards. He won Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for the song "Beat It", Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B song for "Billie Jean', and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance to name a few. He and Quincy Jones both won for Album of the Year. It was not long before the album hit number one worldwide. Each time a single was released from "Thriller" the album sales soared. In the first year it sold 22 million copies and by 1984 the Guiness Book of World Records declared Jackson's "Thriller" to be the world's best selling album of all time. And, according to the Recording Industry Association of America "Thriller" remains the best selling studio album in the United States, 27 years after its release.
During the "Thriller" era, Jackson became legendary for many things besides his music. He become know worldwide for the moonwalk. He also became famous for his single, sequined, white glove, red leather jacket, fedora, white socks with black shoes, high pitched voice, the crotch grab and his stunning choreographed dances. Jackson was also know as an artist whose lyrics reflected his social concerns and hopes for a better world.
Jackson's "Thriller" also became know for breaking down racial barriers. Jackson fans were all across the board, male and female, different races, cultures and economic backgrounds. His music no longer considered just R&B and was played on many different stations, including rock much due to the song "Beat It." The world had embraced Michael Jackson and his music fully.
The release of Jackson's "Thriller" videos are more ways in which Jackson broke through barriers. Jackson's first video to be released off this album was "Billie Jean." It is reported that MTV boycotted the video by Jackson, claiming that they only played rock music. However, it is widely known that MTV rarely played black artists at that time. Jackson's video did show on MTV and soon was in "heavy rotation" due to the popularity with fans. Jackson wanted to tell a story with his videos and he did and the audience loved it and music video was changed forever. The next video to be released was "Beat It" and later the revolutionary "Thriller" video. "Thriller" was released as a late-night premiere on Channel 4. The video was highly controversial and considered to be suitable for late night viewing only. It was the first of it's kind, filmed more like a feature film (fourteen minutes), and copied again by Jackson five years later when he released "Bad", and copied over and over again by future artists and reinacted in movies like "Thirteen Going on Thirty."
Since Jackson's famous video, many artists have copied his method, making videos an event, from the Beastie Boys, to Lady Gaga and Kayne West. The "Thriller" video is considered by many to be an art form that forever changed the industry, including lifting the ban on black video by MTV. It has been reported that Michael Jackson singlehandedly integrated MTV. In 1984, the "Thriller" video won Best Performance Video, Best Choreography, and Viewer's Choice at the MTV Video Music Awards. In 1999, VH1 named "Thriller" the greatest pop video of all time, based on a viewer survey.
For those still unaware of Jackson and the "Thriller" phenomenon, he won over that audience with his magical performance at the "Motown 25 Anniversay Special which was televised on May 16, 1983. A reported fifty million viewers watched as Jackson performed many of his songs from the "Thriller" album. Jackson's performance, which is most famous for debuting his moonwalk, won over even more fans and once again inspired an increase in "Thriller" sales.
Jackson is a music legend who changed music history in more ways than one. He is truly a legend and he has left behind a legacy like no other. Jackson, his music, particularly "Thriller", changed pop history. This is the reason Jackson is called the "King of Pop." He is a legend.
The cover of the album is now a famous image of Michael that is as famous as the album itself. The cover features an iconic image of Jackson in a white suit ...This image of Michael appealed to many different people, both male and female, black and white, different cultures all around the world. His image, like the album itself challenged racial barries.
The first song from the "Thriller" album to be released was "The Girl Is Mine" which was a duet with Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson. This single was released before the entire album in order to generate mass appeal. The song was well received and reached number 2 on the billboard charts. While the song did well on the charts, critics and fans thought the song seemed too tame and were underwhelmed by it.
The next songs to be released from the "Thriller" album were "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" which were both songs written by Jackson. The album quickly became number 1 on the charts. "Beat It" was released while "Billie Jean" was number one on the charts, which was considered to be a bad idea. However, both songs were so successful that they were both in the Top 10 at the same time. The "Billie Jean" and "Beat It" videos fueled the albums ratings and changed the music industry forever. "Billie Jean" was the first video to be played in heavy rotation on MTV which rarely played black artists.
The title track of the album, "Thriller", was released and Jackson's album and his career became a pop culture sensation. Over the next couple of years, "Thriller" stayed on the charts for 80 weeks, holding the number one spot for 37. "Thriller" earned 12 Grammy nominations and won 8 of those awards. He won Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for the song "Beat It", Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B song for "Billie Jean', and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance to name a few. He and Quincy Jones both won for Album of the Year. It was not long before the album hit number one worldwide. Each time a single was released from "Thriller" the album sales soared. In the first year it sold 22 million copies and by 1984 the Guiness Book of World Records declared Jackson's "Thriller" to be the world's best selling album of all time. And, according to the Recording Industry Association of America "Thriller" remains the best selling studio album in the United States, 27 years after its release.
During the "Thriller" era, Jackson became legendary for many things besides his music. He become know worldwide for the moonwalk. He also became famous for his single, sequined, white glove, red leather jacket, fedora, white socks with black shoes, high pitched voice, the crotch grab and his stunning choreographed dances. Jackson was also know as an artist whose lyrics reflected his social concerns and hopes for a better world.
Jackson's "Thriller" also became know for breaking down racial barriers. Jackson fans were all across the board, male and female, different races, cultures and economic backgrounds. His music no longer considered just R&B and was played on many different stations, including rock much due to the song "Beat It." The world had embraced Michael Jackson and his music fully.
The release of Jackson's "Thriller" videos are more ways in which Jackson broke through barriers. Jackson's first video to be released off this album was "Billie Jean." It is reported that MTV boycotted the video by Jackson, claiming that they only played rock music. However, it is widely known that MTV rarely played black artists at that time. Jackson's video did show on MTV and soon was in "heavy rotation" due to the popularity with fans. Jackson wanted to tell a story with his videos and he did and the audience loved it and music video was changed forever. The next video to be released was "Beat It" and later the revolutionary "Thriller" video. "Thriller" was released as a late-night premiere on Channel 4. The video was highly controversial and considered to be suitable for late night viewing only. It was the first of it's kind, filmed more like a feature film (fourteen minutes), and copied again by Jackson five years later when he released "Bad", and copied over and over again by future artists and reinacted in movies like "Thirteen Going on Thirty."
Since Jackson's famous video, many artists have copied his method, making videos an event, from the Beastie Boys, to Lady Gaga and Kayne West. The "Thriller" video is considered by many to be an art form that forever changed the industry, including lifting the ban on black video by MTV. It has been reported that Michael Jackson singlehandedly integrated MTV. In 1984, the "Thriller" video won Best Performance Video, Best Choreography, and Viewer's Choice at the MTV Video Music Awards. In 1999, VH1 named "Thriller" the greatest pop video of all time, based on a viewer survey.
For those still unaware of Jackson and the "Thriller" phenomenon, he won over that audience with his magical performance at the "Motown 25 Anniversay Special which was televised on May 16, 1983. A reported fifty million viewers watched as Jackson performed many of his songs from the "Thriller" album. Jackson's performance, which is most famous for debuting his moonwalk, won over even more fans and once again inspired an increase in "Thriller" sales.
Jackson is a music legend who changed music history in more ways than one. He is truly a legend and he has left behind a legacy like no other. Jackson, his music, particularly "Thriller", changed pop history. This is the reason Jackson is called the "King of Pop." He is a legend.