"Billie Jean" is a 1983 hit single from Michael Jackson's Thriller album. A number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100, the song was also the number-one R&B single for nine weeks in the United States and is widely acknowledged as one of Jackson's most critically acclaimed songs. It was voted best single of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics' poll, and received two Grammy Awards in 1984 in the categories Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best New Rhythm & Blues Song. It was nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, along with "Beat It", at the Grammy Awards of 1984. In 2005, Blender magazine recognized "Billie Jean" as the greatest song since 1980. It's also his best-selling single worldwide, with 5.25 million copies sold.
On March 6, 2006, "Billie Jean" was re-released as a single as part of Visionary - The Video Singles box set. It went on to become the highest charting UK Visionary single, reaching #11 on the UK Top 40.
Largely because of the impact of the video, and the live performance in which Jackson dressed in a black fedora, a sparkly black jacket and a single white sequin glove while performing his most famous dance step the moonwalk, and the overall haunting nature of the song itself, "Billie Jean" is regarded by some as his signature song.
