The Jacksons had left Motown in 1975 and released three albums on Epic, the most recent of which, "Destiny," peaked at No. Jackson made a name for himself in the early '70s as the young frontman of Motown's Jackson 5 and a solo artist. The " Flashdance" soundtrack and the Police's "Synchronicity" also helped lure fans back into stores. After that, the label had major hits with Cyndi Lauper, Culture Club and REO Speedwagon. "There is no question that 'Thriller' was the driving force behind what became the hottest span in Epic's history," Beck says. It was very upsetting because nothing like that had ever happened before." "Half of the marketing department was let go at Epic. 13, 1982, as "Black Friday." "We had a major layoff that day," remembers Epic/Portrait/CBS Associated Labels VP of merchandising Dan Beck. It was a bleak time, and CBS staffers referred to Aug. At the time, Billboard reported that record shipments had declined by 50 million units between 19. All three albums eventually sold more than 10 million copies each in the United States alone.īefore all that, "Thriller" gave a much-needed boost to the music business, then suffering from its second slump in three years. sent to radio five singles from Prince's "Purple Rain." Mercury found seven singles on Def Leppard's "Hysteria," all of which went to the pop chart. Starting in 1984, Columbia released seven singles from Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A.," all of which landed in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. The label made "Thriller" the first major release to debut worldwide simultaneously, the first album to be worked for close to two years instead of the usual six or eight months and the first album to spin off seven singles to radio-more than double the normal number.Īlong the way, "Thriller" redefined the expectations for blockbuster releases. It also changed MTV, breaking down the cable network's racial barriers and raising the bar for video quality.įrom the beginning, Epic intended to live up to its name. As Jackson moonwalked his way into music history, "Thriller" set a new benchmark for blockbusters that changed how the music business promoted and marketed superstar releases. More than 50 million copies have been sold internationally, according to estimates.īut the album's success can't be measured by sales alone. Michael apparently told her he couldn’t continue their relationship, because of a promise he had made to a friend, who was interested in Ray.Nearly 27 years after its release, "Thriller" still stands as the best-selling studio album in the United States, according to the RIAA, which has certified it 28-times platinum. She also described Michael as a “sweet” and very nice person, as well as being a “gentle soul”.Īfter shooting had finished, she saw the singer one more time at Westlake Studios, when Quincy Jones was producing his Bad album. “It was a very passionate kiss and, you know, we also did a little something else, but that's all I'm gonna say.” “I kissed him for the first time on the set, I kissed him on the cheek, then he asked me to come into his dressing room one day and I went in there and we sat down and had a conversation and we got really close and that's when he kissed me the second time. Read more: Is this the greatest Michael Jackson impersonator in the world? I went to his trailer one day and that's where I had my second kiss with him. Ray told DailyMailTV: “Michael and I did get intimate on 'Thriller', yes. In her book, she also claimed that they had a passionate fling on set, but it didn't go any further than a couple of kisses. Ola Ray has often spoken of her brief time spent with Michael, and claims that they grew "very close" during their two weeks filming the famous music video.