Even 16 years after his passing, Michael Jackson is still making chart history. The late King of Pop just notched a Billboard Hot 100 top ten hit in an unprecedented six different decades – a feat achieved thanks to the post-Halloween resurgence of his iconic song “Thriller.” The 1983 classic spiked in streams after Halloween this year and jumped from No. 32 to No. 10 on the latest chart, dated Nov. 15. By returning to the top ten, “Thriller” gives Jackson Top 10 hits in the 1970s, ’80s, ’90s, 2000s, 2010s and now the 2020s – making him the first artist ever to span six separate decades on the Hot 100’s upper ranks.
Jackson breaks a record previously held by crooner Andy Williams, who logged Top 10s in five decades (helped by the perennial holiday hit “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” in recent years). Jackson’s own Hot 100 story began in 1971 with his first solo Top 10, “Got to Be There.” Over his career he amassed 30 Top 10 entries (13 of them No. 1 hits). “Thriller,” which originally peaked at No. 4 in 1984, now extends its legacy as Jackson’s longest-charting Hot 100 song – 26 total weeks on the chart to date, edging out “Billie Jean” and “Beat It.”
Fueled by a 57% jump in streams during the Halloween tracking week, “Thriller”’s return proves Jackson’s enduring appeal. It also marks his first Top 10 since a Drake collaboration in 2018, underlining that across generations and even beyond his lifetime, Jackson’s music continues to thrill new audiences.
