Michael Jackson performs live circa 1986

Photo: Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com

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Michael Jackson's "Thriller": For The Record

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Find out how the seventh and final hit from 'Thriller' helped earn the King of Pop a place in the GRAMMY history book
Tim McPhate
GRAMMYs
Nov 2, 2017 - 5:36 pm

"Your body starts to shiver for no mere mortal can resist the evil of the thriller." — Vincent Price, "Thriller" voiceover

For The Record: Michael Jackson

By the time "Thriller" was released as a single on Nov. 2, 1983, few mortals had resisted the juggernaut that was Michael Jackson's album of the same name.

The sprawling title track was the seventh — yes, seventh — and final single from the LP, following (in reverse order of release) "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)," "Human Nature," "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin,'" "Beat It," "Billie Jean," and "The Girl Is Mine" featuring Paul McCartney.

Each single reached the Top 10, an unprecedented feat, with "Beat It" and "Billie Jean" topping the Billboard Hot 100 and "The Girl Is Mine" stopping just short at No. 2.

Though "Thriller" stalled at No. 4, it made the most lasting impression of all of the album's hits, thanks to its accompanying video. Clocking in at nearly 14 minutes, the elaborate production was truly a watershed moment for MTV. The "Thriller" video featured direction by John Landis, a screenplay, choreography, make-up and costumes, and special effects — resulting in a work that hinted at the boundless possibilities of merging filmmaking and music.

When it came time for the 26th GRAMMY Awards in 1984, Jackson savored arguably the biggest night of his music career. The King of Pop went to the podium at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles to accept eight GRAMMYs, including Record and Album Of The Year and Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical. "Thriller" would be responsible for two GRAMMYs: Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male and Best Video Album for Making Michael Jackson's Thriller, a captivating story behind the scenes document of the iconic video.

Michael Jackson Wins Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male

Jackson's haul set a record for the most GRAMMYs won in one night, a feat that has only since been equaled by Carlos Santana.

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

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Revisit Michael Jackson's Pop Star Breakthrough, 'Off The Wall' | For The Record

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Jackson and producer Quincy Jones' pop dominance began with the GRAMMY-winning, record-breaking 'Off the Wall,' released Aug. 10, 1979
GRAMMYs
Aug 26, 2020 - 5:30 pm

In 1978, a 20-year-old Michael Jackson, alongside Diana Ross, comedian Richard Pryor and other major Black stars, starred in Universal/Motown's feature film The Wiz. It was there he would first connect with super-producer Quincy Jones, who led the GRAMMY-winning music for the cult classic. Together, they would craft three legendary albums (Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad) that broke records, won multiple GRAMMYs and earned Jackson King of Pop status.

Their pop dominance began with Off the Wall, released Aug. 10, 1979. It was Jackson's fifth solo album and the first after leaving Motown (where he and brothers found fame as the Jackson 5) for Epic.

Michael Jackson's 'Off The Wall' | For The Record

Flashback To Whitney Houston's 1985 Hit "Saving All My Love For You" | For The Record

The 10-track dancefloor-ready, disco-tinged album was produced by Jones, with Jackson co-producing three tracks, including the smash-hit opening track and lead single, "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough," which the singer/dancer wrote himself. It also features songwriting from Stevie Wonder (on "I Can't Help It"), Paul McCartney (on "Girlfriend) and British songwriter Rod Temperton (on "Rock with You," "Off the Wall and "Burn This Disco Out"), the latter two who return on Thriller.

The LP made history by becoming the first album by a solo artist to spawn four Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 hits. "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough," earned Jackson his first GRAMMY win—for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 22nd GRAMMY Awards.

GRAMMY Rewind: Watch Lionel Richie & Michael Jackson Win Song Of The Year For "We Are The World"

"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" was also nominated for Best Disco Recording—an award that unfortunately only lasted one year, and was won by Gloria Gaynor and her eternal disco gem, "I Will Survive."

His following album, 1982's Thriller, would see Jackson sweeping the 26th GRAMMY Awards with eight total wins, including Album Of The Year and Record Of The Year. Jones shared four of these wins for his stellar production on it.

Off the Wall and Thriller were both inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame in 2008. Jackson also received the GRAMMY Legend Award in 1993 and, posthumously, the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. Jones also earned the GRAMMY Legend Award (in 1991), as well as the Trustees Awards in 1989, which is the equivalent of the Lifetime Achievement Award for producers and other technical roles in music.

Get To Know GRAMMY-Winning Rapper Cardi B | For The Record

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Artwork for For The Record episode on Sylvester's 'Step II'

Sylvester

Photo: Eric Blum/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

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For The Record: Explore The Colorful, Inclusive World Of Sylvester's 'Step II'

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In the latest episode of For The Record, learn how disco maverick Sylvester crafted 'Step II,' a touchstone of the genre and a clarion call for LGBTQ+ culture
Morgan Enos
GRAMMYs
Jun 13, 2021 - 1:50 pm

Let's face it: "Disco Sucks" sucks. The late-'70s backlash against the popularity of disco music and films like Saturday Night Fever, which crescendoed with the infamous Disco Demolition Night on a Chicago ballfield in 1979, is now generally understood as wrongheaded, if not bigoted.

Because the discotheque wasn't simply some hedonistic phenomenon: It was often the last place where marginalized people, like Black, gay singer/songwriter Sylvester, could be themselves.

Inside The Colorful World Of Sylvester's 'Step II'

"You've come out of the closet. It's been difficult," Sylvester's biographer, Rick Karr, told NPR in 2018. "Many people [at the time] have moved out of their homes of origin, their families of origin, with great pain, and moved to a more liberated place, like San Francisco. And then ... this person comes out into public life that sounds like what you were feeling when you made yourself free."

Granted, by 1979, Sylvester had already been around for six years and had released five albums. But it was his 1978 album, Step II, that genuinely delivered his message of liberation to the world. Step II, which included his chart-topping signature song "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)," hit the Billboard charts hard and received gold certification by the RIAA in the late '70s.

Both the album and the song left a profound mark on disco and are today considered touchstones of the genre and clarion calls for LGBTQ+ culture. Hailed as one of the definitive LGBTQ+ Pride anthems of all time, "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" was inducted to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2019.

The world lost Sylvester too soon; he died in 1988, at 41, of AIDS. But when considering the strides the LGBTQ+ community has made in music, art and all other media, we can partly thank this fearless, out-and-proud musical dynamo.

In the latest episode of For The Record, GRAMMY.com takes you into the colorful, inclusive world of Step II, the classic album from disco maverick Sylvester that still sounds like it could have been recorded this morning.

For The Record: The Liberating Joy Of Lady Gaga's Born This Way At 10

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Photo: Ron Galella/WireImage.com

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Michael Jackson: 'Thriller' Reaches Billboard Chart Milestone

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Classic GRAMMY-winning album has been on the Billboard 200 for how many weeks?
Tim McPhate
GRAMMYs
Aug 11, 2017 - 9:23 am

As the saying goes, classic never goes out of style. In the case of Michael Jackson's Thriller, it never goes off the charts either.

Michael Jackson Wins Album Of The Year

Billboard has reported that the King of Pop's timeless LP has notched its 300th week on the Billboard 200, marking the 16th album to attain the feat. Thriller originally bowed on the chart at No. 11 in December 1982, rising to No. 1 in February 1983. It then proceeded on an unprecedented 37 weeks in the top spot.

Though Thriller is Jackson's longest-charting album by a mile, it still has a way to go to catch the album with the most weeks on the Billboard 200: Pink Floyd's The Dark Side Of The Moon, which has been on the chart for the dark side of an eternity at 931 weeks. Both albums have been inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame.

On the strength of Thriller and hits such as "Billie Jean," "Beat It" and the title track, Jackson cleaned up at the 26th GRAMMY Awards in 1984. The King of Pop won eight awards, including Album and Record Of The Year. 

More Michael Jackson: Enhanced "Thriller" Video To Get 3-D Premiere

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For The Record: Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato

Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for iHeartMedia

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For The Record: How Demi Lovato Gazed Into The Mirror On 'Dancing With The Devil...The Art Of Starting Over'

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In the latest episode of For The Record, learn how Demi Lovato's courageous new album, 'Dancing with the Devil… the Art of Starting Over,' offers an inside look into the singer's personal health, addiction struggles and recovery
Morgan Enos
GRAMMYs
Aug 17, 2021 - 5:50 pm

Since their 2008 debut pop/rock album, Don't Forget, Demi Lovato has sung to those in flux regarding who they are. 

Across their discography, they've continually reassured their fans and listeners they are not alone. It's an ongoing theme they continue to explore on their newest album Dancing with the Devil … the Art of Starting Over, released this past April in the wake of Lovato's much-publicized struggles with an eating disorder, substance abuse, and other internal battles.

On Dancing with the Devil, Lovato offers an inside look into their personal health, addiction struggles and recovery. Lead single "Anyone," which they recorded four days before they suffered an overdose in July 2018, is brutally vulnerable: "Anyone, please send me anyone / Lord, is there anyone? / I need someone, oh / Anyone, please send me anyone," Lovato sings.

Inside Demi Lovato's 'Dancing With The Devil'

"At the time when I was recording it, I almost listen back and hear these lyrics as a cry for help," Lovato said of "Anyone" in a 2020 interview with Apple Music's Zane Lowe. "And you kind of listen back to it and you kind of think, how did nobody listen to this song and think, 'Let's help this girl.'" (Lovato delivered an equally vulnerable performance of "Anyone" at the 62nd GRAMMY Awards in 2020, their first televised performance since their 2018 overdose.)

The album's title track goes one step deeper: On "Dancing with the Devil," Lovato chronicles their relapse that led to their overdose in 2018, singing how "a little red wine" turns into "a little white line" and eventually "a little glass pipe." "Almost made it to Heaven / It was closer than you know," Lovato sings in the chorus. "It's so hard to say no / When you're dancing with the devil."

In the latest episode of For The Record, experience a crash course in the making and intent of Demi Lovato's Dancing with the Devil … the Art of Starting Over. Freshly out as nonbinary and with a new lease on life, it's anybody's guess where Lovato will go next—both as an artist and a champion for the marginalized.

Billie Eilish's Road To Happier Than Ever: How The Superstar Continues To Break Pop's Status Quo

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