Michael Jackson makes chart history (again) as ‘Thriller’ returns to Billboard’s Top 10

Over 16 years after his passing, the King of Pop just became the first artist in history to hit the Hot 100 Top 10 in 6 separate decades.

Sixteen years after his passing, Michael Jackson is still proving why society crowned him the King of Pop.

Jackson’s 1982 hit song turned spooky season anthem, “Thriller,” moonwalked back into the Billboard Hot 100’s Top 10, climbing from 31st place to the #10 slot.

According to Billboard, the late icon is now the first artist ever to chart a Top 10 hit in six different decades, starting with the 1970s. With “Thriller” leading the charge, Jackson continues a streak that no other artist, dead or alive, has managed to touch.

This year, “Thriller” reportedly racked up 14 million streams, 9.3 million radio impressions, and 3,000 pure sales between Oct. 31 and Nov. 6. The track has now spent 26 total weeks on the Hot 100, outpacing his other signature hits like “Billie Jean” and “Beat It.” Before this record-breaking moment, Jackson shared the milestone with Andy Williams, who sang timeless holiday hit “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” a song that kept him in the top 10 for 5 decades. 

This is not the only record Jackson recently broke posthumously. The teaser trailer for “Michael,” the highly anticipated biopic starring MJ’s nephew Jaafar Jackson, shattered viewership records of its own. Racking up 116.2 million views in 24 hours, it became the most-watched music biopic trailer ever. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, the film is slated to premiere in theaters on April 24, 2026.