Michael Jackson's Thriller returns to No. 1 on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop chart after nearly 40 years, fueled by biopic streaming surge.
- May 13, 2026
AceShowbiz - Michael Jackson has reclaimed the No. 1 position on Billboard’s Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, as his iconic album Thriller returns to the summit dated May 16.
This marks the first time in nearly four decades that Thriller has led the chart again, fueled by a surge in streaming following the release of the Michael biopic. The album earned 62,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. during the tracking week of May 1-7, according to Luminate, a 36% increase from the previous week’s 45,000 units.
Of these 62,000 units, streaming accounted for 48,000, driven by 50.3 million on-demand audio and video streams. Traditional album sales contributed 13,000 units, with the remaining 1,000 units coming from track-equivalent albums.
Originally released in November 1982, Thriller is recognized by Guinness World Records as the best-selling album globally and holds the title for the highest-certified studio album in the United States by the Recording Industry Association of America.
During its first run, Thriller dominated the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, spending an unprecedented 37 weeks at No. 1 between 1983 and 1984. It set the record for the most weeks atop the chart since its inception in 1965, a mark that stood for 41 years until surpassed by SZA’s SOS in June 2025.
With this latest week at No. 1, Thriller now totals 38 weeks leading the chart, extending its record for albums by a male artist and ranking second overall behind SOS’s 46 weeks.
Thriller’s resurgence also coincides with another of Michael Jackson’s albums climbing the chart: his 2003 greatest hits compilation Number Ones rose from No. 5 to No. 2, also earning 62,000 equivalent album units.
This remarkable achievement makes Michael Jackson the first artist since Future and Metro Boomin in 2024 to occupy the top two spots simultaneously on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Prior to that, the last non-rap act to do so was The Temptations on February 22, 1969, when they held No. 1 with TCB and No. 2 with Live at the Copa.
The combined success of Thriller and Number Ones underlines the enduring legacy and continued popularity of Michael Jackson’s music decades after its original release.
