Michael Jackson’s Thriller remains USA’s most certified album

Despite Michael Jackson’s death in June 2009, his music continues to be consumed at an incredible rate. Just as The Eagles were sneaking on Jackson for the biggest selling album of all time in the US, the late self-proclaimed King of Pop has taken off again.

Jackson’s iconic Thriller released in 1982 has been certified 33x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for US sales of at least 33 million. Globally, it’s done 105 million, according to Sony Music Entertainment.

This extends its crown as America’s most certified record after it hit 32 certifications in February 2016. In 2015, the record became the first album to exceed the 30 million sales mark.

The Eagles’ Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 is officially at 29 million sales, although it has not been certified since January 2006.

A few years ago, the RIAA updated its certification methodology by adding singles sales and streams when determining if an album had reached Gold, Platinum and Multi-Platinum status. (One album sale = one unit. Ten singles = one album sale. 1500 audio and visual streams = one album sale).

Thriller has inevitably been breaking sales records since its release.

Distraught at having his Off The Wall overlooked by the Grammys for Album of the Year (shades of Kanye West and Beyonce these days), the next morning, Jackson decided on a record that would have all the elements of black R&B and funk and white guitar rock and pop, combined with visual achievement.

Thriller started life with the working titles Starlight and Midnight Man, until the name Thriller was proposed, which appealed more to Jackson’s horror fantasies.

Released in November 1982, Thriller was 37 weeks at #1 in America. It was the first album to spin seven of its singles into the Top 10. Two of these, Billie Jean and Beat It reached #1. Globally, it sold 65 million copies in 12 months and remains the world’s biggest selling record of all time.

Much to Jackson’s satisfaction, Thriller won seven Grammys, including Album of the Year. In 2015, it was officially the biggest album of all time in America by a solo male artist. The 14-minute Thriller video has had 149 million views on YouTube. Costing half a million dollars to make, it was, at that time, the most expensive video ever produced.

The current tax case embroiled around the Jackson estate is undoubtedly fueling consumption of late. Before his former lawyer John Branca began his testimony, Judge Mark Holmes interrupted to ask him something that had been puzzling him for years from the Vincent Price rap at the end of the title track – “What exactly does ’the funk of 40,000 years’ mean?” Branca replied, “Karma.”

The Internal Revenue Service claims that Jackson’s estate owes it more than $500 million in taxes and $200 million in penalties. This would obviously eat into Jackson’s estimated fortune of $1 billion.

The estate is playing things down by saying he was $400 million in debt and that his family had to stop his houses from being possessed. There’s also disagreement in the value of Jackson’s stake in Sony-ATV and the catalogue of his MIJAC company.

According to Branca, Jackson’s reputation was toxic in light of abuse claims and stories of drug addiction and strange behaviour. He was unable to score endorsement deals and all brands refused to sponsor his last tour.

However, as Forbes says, the key argument in the tax case is how much the Jackson brand was worth at the time of his death. The IRS claims $161 million, which is lower than the $434 million value estimated in 2013.