Sixteen years after his death, Michael Jackson continues to break barriers, setting a new, unprecedented record for career longevity. On the Billboard Hot 100 chart dated November 15, 2025, Jackson’s monumental 1982 hit “Thriller” surged to the No. 10 spot, making him the first—and only—artist in history to score a Top 10 single in six consecutive decades.
The achievement, confirmed by Billboard and industry data tracker Luminate, is a testament to an artist whose cultural relevance has transcended time, technology, and even his own mortality.
While the annual resurrection of “Thriller” during the Halloween season has become a reliable industry phenomenon, this year’s spike was strong enough to push the song from No. 32 into the coveted Top 10. This resurgence cements a legacy that began in 1971, when a teenage Jackson first entered the Top 10 as a solo artist with “Got to Be There,” and now stretches, unbroken, into the 2020s.
The Unprecedented Milestone: Six Decades of Hits
To understand the scale of this achievement, one must look at the timeline. Michael Jackson’s reign in the Top 10 is not a series of isolated events, but a continuous cultural presence.
- The 1970s: As the lead singer of the Jackson 5, he was a chart staple. As a solo artist, he established his voice with hits like “Got to Be There” (No. 4, 1971) and “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough” (No. 1, 1979).
- The 1980s: This was the decade of undisputed global dominance. Thriller and Bad produced a relentless stream of 12 Top 10 hits, including nine No. 1 singles like “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” “Man in the Mirror,” and “Bad.”
- The 1990s: Jackson adapted to the new jack swing and R&B sounds, securing hits like “Black or White” (No. 1, 1991) and the ballad “You Are Not Alone” (No. 1, 1995), the latter being the first song ever to debut at No. 1 on the Hot 100.
- The 2000s: Even in a quieter decade for the artist, “You Rock My World” peaked at No. 10 in 2001, securing his fifth decade on the chart.
- The 2010s: Posthumously, Jackson’s unreleased material and collaborations kept his streak alive. In 2014, “Love Never Felt So Good” (with Justin Timberlake) hit No. 9. In 2018, he was featured on Drake’s “Don’t Matter to Me,” which peaked at No. 9.
- The 2020s: The 2025 re-entry of “Thriller” (No. 10) completes the six-decade span, setting a benchmark that even his closest peers—like Madonna, Cher, or Elton John—have not reached.
By the Numbers: The 2025 “Thriller” Resurgence
This new record wasn’t just a technicality; it was driven by massive, modern consumption. According to Luminate, the data provider for Billboard’s charts, the song “Thriller” (for the tracking week ending November 6) earned:
- 14 million official U.S. streams.
- 9.3 million radio airplay audience impressions.
This combination of streaming—the dominant consumption method of the 2020s—and traditional radio play demonstrates a cross-generational appeal. It is not merely a nostalgic artifact; it is an active part of the modern music landscape.
The Mechanics of Immortality: Why “Thriller” Endures
While the “King of Pop” title was self-proclaimed, the data confirms it. The Thriller album is not just a release; it is a permanent piece of global culture. But its endurance, especially in the 2020s, is a perfect storm of groundbreaking artistry and modern economics.
The 1982 Revolution
When Thriller was released in November 1982, it was an inflection point. It didn’t just sell records; it changed how records were sold, perceived, and consumed.
- Genre-Busting: Producer Quincy Jones and Jackson meticulously crafted an album that defied categorization. It had rock (“Beat It,” featuring Eddie Van Halen), R&B (“Billie Jean”), pop (“Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin'”), and funk (“P.Y.T.”). It was designed to play on every radio station, not just “Black” or “Top 40” stations.
- The Visual Album: Thriller pioneered the music video as a high-art “short film.” The 14-minute, John Landis-directed “Thriller” video, with its $900,000 budget (unheard of at the time), created an event. It forced MTV, then a fledgling rock-focused network, to break its color barrier. As former MTV executive Carolyn Baker noted in later interviews, “We had to play it. The pressure was enormous.”
- Unmatched Sales: The result was a commercial juggernaut that has never been equaled. Thriller is the only album to be certified 34x Platinum in the United States by the RIAA (denoting 34 million units sold) and holds the record for 70 million certified units worldwide.
The 2025 Streaming Engine
In the 21st century, that 1982 foundation is amplified by new technology. The “Thriller” song is, functionally, a utility—as essential to Halloween as “Auld Lang Syne” is to New Year’s Eve.
Modern chart rules, which factor in streams and digital sales, heavily favor this kind of perennial catalog hit. Every Spotify Halloween playlist, every TikTok dance, and every stream in the month of October now counts toward the Billboard charts in a way that radio play in the 1990s did not.
This seasonal lock-in guarantees an annual chart appearance, but the fervor in 2025—likely buoyed by growing anticipation for his biopic—was enough to breach the Top 10, a feat that requires overcoming the dominance of new releases from modern titans like Taylor Swift and Morgan Wallen.
The Future of the Estate: Biopics and Billion-Dollar Valuations
This chart milestone does not happen in a vacuum. It lands as the value and strategic management of the Michael Jackson estate reach new heights.
Two major financial and cultural forces are ensuring this legacy continues:
- The “Michael” Biopic: The chart buzz coincides directly with mounting anticipation for the official, estate-backed biopic, “Michael.” Directed by Antoine Fuqua (“Training Day”) and starring Jackson’s own nephew, Jaafar Jackson, the film is a massive industry event. Originally slated for 2025, its release date has been pushed to April 24, 2026.. Promotional materials, as cited by ANI, state the film “will explore the superstar’s journey into becoming the King of Pop, offering fans with an intimate look into his life and his musical legacy.”
- The Catalog Sale: In 2024, the estate executed one of the largest music deals in history. Sony purchased approximately half of Michael Jackson’s music catalog for $600 million.This valuation, among the highest ever for a single artist, was a bet on exactly what the 2025 charts just proved: that Jackson’s work is not a depreciating asset, but an appreciating piece of cultural infrastructure.
Conclusion: A Record Redefined
The music industry is defined by “long tails” and “short spikes.” Most artists experience a short spike of fame. A few legends—The Beatles, Elvis, Queen—achieve a long tail, remaining popular decades later.
Michael Jackson, however, has proven to be something else entirely. He is a “perpetual spike.” His 1982 music is not just “remembered”; it is actively competing with, and in many weeks, beating, brand-new music from today’s biggest stars.
This six-decade record is not just a piece of trivia. It is a new definition of artistic success, one so dominant it’s hard to imagine who—if anyone—could ever break it.
