What Made Michael Jackson So Famous in the 80s?
- Jackson was already an established star when the decade began. He had been a child star as the lead singer of the Jackson 5, and as a teen led the Jacksons. His first solo record with Epic Records, "Off the Wall" from 1979 propelled him to individual fame. "Off the Wall" was produced by multi-Grammy award winner Quincy Jones. Jones put Jackson's emotional voice over a jazz, dance and R&B beat that helped distance Jackson from old childhood days. "Off the Wall" produced four No. 1 singles in the United States.
- By the time "Thriller" was released in late 1982, MTV had become the fastest way for any artist to get attention. Jones and Jackson had filled "Thriller" with melodic, catchy and easy-to-remember songs like "Billie Jean" and "Beat It." Those songs were backed up with flashy, well-received video productions. Jackson still appealed to his longtime R&B fans, but the MTV exposure made rock fans and kids pay attention too. "Beat It," in fact, included a guitar solo from Eddie Van Halen. "Thriller" took off and sold more than 50 million copies. Jackson also toured with his brothers in 1984, then did a massively successful solo tour in 1987 to support "Bad," the follow-up to "Thriller."
- Jackson made it a point to work with the best directors and use the latest in visual effects to create what he called "short films." None of his videos captured that notion better than "Thriller." The 13-minute film began with Jackson taking a date on a walk, only to be interrupted by dancing ghouls. The "Thriller" zombie dance took on a life of its own, and the red and black suit Jackson wore in it became iconic in its own right. "Thriller" was ranked No 1 on VH1's list of "100 Greatest Videos of All Time."
- "Rolling Stone" described Jackson's dancing as a mixture of Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and James Brown. He put it on display in March of 1983 on a television special celebrating Motown's 25th anniversary. After performing a medley of Jackson 5 hits with his brothers, Jackson unveiled a version of his backsliding "moonwalk" dance during a rendition of "Billie Jean." "The entire audience was caught in a spell," executive producer Suzanne de Passe told "Entertainment Weekly." So was a TV audience of nearly 50 million. Jackson and the "moonwalk" never looked back.