Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' Passes Unique Sales Milestone

Michael Jackson’s most famous album Thriller has passed a unique chart milestone, becoming the first record ever to be certified 30 times multi-platinum having passed sales of 30 million in the United States.

An announcement was made on Wednesday (December 16th) by the Recording Industry Association
of America (RIAA), alongside the Estate of Michael Jackson, Epic Records and Legacy Recordings, to commemorate the achievement, according to Billboard.

It’s yet another massive sales milestone for Jackson, who died in 2009 but was recently confirmed as the highest earning deceased celebrity for the fifth year in a row. Thriller has sold more than 100 million copies around the world in the 33 years since its release, and Jackson is the highest-selling pop star in history with global sales of more than 1 billion.

“RIAA has awarded Gold & Platinum records on behalf of the music business for nearly 60 years, but this is the first time an artist has crossed the 30X multi-Platinum plateau,” RIAA chairman and CEO Cary Sherman said in a statement. “We are honored to celebrate the unique status of Thriller in Gold & Platinum history. What an exceptional achievement and testament to Thriller's enduring spot in our hearts and musical history.”

Thriller was released on November 30th 1982, the second album of his solo career post-departure from the Motown label. It spent 37 weeks at the top of the Billboard Top 200, and nearly two and a half years in the charts.

“It is crystal clear that Michael Jackson is simply the greatest and biggest artist of all time,” Epic Records chairman and CEO LA Reid added in a separate statement. “Not only are his charts hits and sales stats staggering, but his pure musicality was other-worldly.”