Michael Jackson albums discography (certifications and sales)
Encyclopedia
This article includes the certifications of the Michael Jackson
albums discography. Listed in order of their release are all the albums certified by RIAA, ARIA
, IFPI Austria
, Music Canada
, IFPI Finland
, SNEP
, IFPI Germany
, IFPI Hong Kong
, FIMI, AMPROFON
, NVPI
, RIANZ, ZPAV
, NFPP, IFPI Sweden
, IFPI Switzerland
, BPI
, with relative and worldwide sales figures. No official tracking system exists to track worldwide sales. Not all the certifications of the associations were launched in 1958 like RIAA (ARIA launched Gold & Platinum Awards in 1983, ZPAV in 1995, etc.), so some albums published before the launch of such awards in a country do not have certifications. Other associations like RIAJ and BPI certify only the albums that were published after the launch of the Awards.
There are also IFPI Platinum Europe Awards certifications
. Only albums that were published from 1 January 1994 on are eligible. The albums released prior to 1 January 1994 are eligible only if they are re-released on or after 1 January 1994, but the sales won't include the original edition and refer to actual retail sales and not shipments to trade. These awards include: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
There are also IFPI Middle East Awards certifications
, that count only the physical sales of an album of an artist that signed with a record company outside Middle East, but must be released on or after 1 July 2008. These awards are divided into Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE) and Lebanon.
Note that in some countries such as Germany and Mexico, the value of the awards is changed with the time and the criteria of the certifications depends by year of the release of the album. Furthermore, in the United States the double-discs released after the vinyl era with a length of at least 100 minutes are counted double (or more, if there are more CDs in the package). Also Poland counts each copy of a set as a copy and without time limit.
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
albums discography. Listed in order of their release are all the albums certified by RIAA, ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
, IFPI Austria
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, Music Canada
Music Canada
Music Canada was a Canadian music television miniseries which aired approximately monthly on CBC Television from 1966 to 1967.-Premise:This series featured various special productions of music and dance, from classical to modern styles.-Scheduling:...
, IFPI Finland
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, SNEP
Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique
The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...
, IFPI Germany
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, IFPI Hong Kong
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, FIMI, AMPROFON
AMPROFON
Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas is a non-profit organization integrated by multinational and national record companies in Mexico. Established on April 3, 1963, it groups phonographic companies that represent more than 70 percent of the market in Mexico...
, NVPI
NVPI
The NVPI is the Dutch tradeassociation of the entertainment industry...
, RIANZ, ZPAV
Polish Music Charts
The Polish Music Charts are two official album charts and seven singles charts in Poland, provided by ZPAV, the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . The first, the Top 100, is a monthly chart based on data received from the album companies...
, NFPP, IFPI Sweden
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, IFPI Switzerland
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, BPI
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
, with relative and worldwide sales figures. No official tracking system exists to track worldwide sales. Not all the certifications of the associations were launched in 1958 like RIAA (ARIA launched Gold & Platinum Awards in 1983, ZPAV in 1995, etc.), so some albums published before the launch of such awards in a country do not have certifications. Other associations like RIAJ and BPI certify only the albums that were published after the launch of the Awards.
There are also IFPI Platinum Europe Awards certifications
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
. Only albums that were published from 1 January 1994 on are eligible. The albums released prior to 1 January 1994 are eligible only if they are re-released on or after 1 January 1994, but the sales won't include the original edition and refer to actual retail sales and not shipments to trade. These awards include: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
There are also IFPI Middle East Awards certifications
IFPI
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland...
, that count only the physical sales of an album of an artist that signed with a record company outside Middle East, but must be released on or after 1 July 2008. These awards are divided into Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE) and Lebanon.
Note that in some countries such as Germany and Mexico, the value of the awards is changed with the time and the criteria of the certifications depends by year of the release of the album. Furthermore, in the United States the double-discs released after the vinyl era with a length of at least 100 minutes are counted double (or more, if there are more CDs in the package). Also Poland counts each copy of a set as a copy and without time limit.
Studio albums
| Year | Album details | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
Certifications sales/(Sales) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Got to Be There
|
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| Ben Ben (album) Ben is the second studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. The album was released on August 4, 1972, while Jackson was still a member of The Jackson 5. The album received mixed reviews from contemporary music critics. Ben was more successful on music charts than Jackson's previous... |
British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... : Silver |
|
|
| 1973 | Music & Me Music & Me -Compilation album:Music & Me is sometimes confused with a Michael Jackson compilation album of the same name that Motown Records released in 1993... |
||
| 1975 | Forever, Michael Forever, Michael -Personnel:*Michael Jackson – lead and background vocals*David Blumberg - arranger*Jim Britt – photography*Hal Davis – producer*L.T. Horn – engineer, mixing*Eddy Manson – arranger, producer*Freddie Perren – arranger, producer... |
||
| 1979 | Off the Wall Off the Wall (album) Off the Wall is the fifth studio album by the American recording artist Michael Jackson, released August 10, 1979 on Epic Records, after Jackson's critically well received film performance in The Wiz. While working on that project, Jackson and Quincy Jones had become friends, and Jones agreed to... Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A... (EK #35745) |
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... : 8× Multi-Platinum Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... : 5× Platinum Music Canada Music Canada was a Canadian music television miniseries which aired approximately monthly on CBC Television from 1966 to 1967.-Premise:This series featured various special productions of music and dance, from classical to modern styles.-Scheduling:... : Platinum Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... : Platinum IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : Gold NVPI The NVPI is the Dutch tradeassociation of the entertainment industry... : Platinum Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... : 6× Platinum |
|
| 1982 | Thriller Thriller (album) Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall... |
IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : 8× Multi-Platinum IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : Platinum IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : 3× Platinum AMPROFON Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas is a non-profit organization integrated by multinational and national record companies in Mexico. Established on April 3, 1963, it groups phonographic companies that represent more than 70 percent of the market in Mexico... : Diamond+2× Platinum+Gold IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : 4× Platinum IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : 6× Platinum |
(3,825,857) |
| 1987 | Bad Bad (album) Bad is the seventh studio album by American songwriter and recording artist Michael Jackson. The album was released on August 31, 1987 by Epic/CBS Records, nearly five years after Jackson's previous studio album, Thriller, which went on to become the world's best-selling album...
|
|
(10,000,000)
|
| 1991 | Dangerous
|
|
(8,000,000)
(2,000,000) |
| 1995 | HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I
|
IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : 6× Platinum Polish Music Charts The Polish Music Charts are two official album charts and seven singles charts in Poland, provided by ZPAV, the Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry . The first, the Top 100, is a monthly chart based on data received from the album companies... : Platinum |
(4,000,000)
(1,500,000) |
| 2001 | Invincible
|
|
(2,138,000)
|
- There is no consensus in the media on the sales of ThrillerThriller (album)Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall...
. The two most commonly used figures are shown.
- HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I is a double disc album, with the first disc containing previously released hits (titled HIStory Begins) and the second containing all new songs (titled HIStory Continues).
Compilations
| Year | Album details | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
Certifications sales/(Sales) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | The Best of Michael Jackson The Best of Michael Jackson The Best of Michael Jackson is a compilation of Michael Jackson's greatest hits and was released in 1975 by his former record company Motown. It sold 2.4 million copies worldwide and peaked at number forty-four on the U.S. R&B albums chart. A Collection of Michael Jackson's Oldies is a first...
|
|
|
| 1983 | 18 Greatest Hits
|
|
|
| 1984 | Farewell My Summer Love Farewell My Summer Love Farewell My Summer Love is a compilation of archived Michael Jackson recordings in January and September 1973. The album was released by Motown Records in the U.S... |
|
|
| 1987 | Love Songs (with Diana Ross)
|
|
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| 1997 | The Best of Michael Jackson & The Jackson 5ive
|
|
|
| 2000 | 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of Michael Jackson
|
|
|
| 2001 | Greatest Hits: HIStory, Volume I
|
|
(986,000)
|
| 2003 | Number Ones
|
|
(4,615,000)
|
| 2004 | The Ultimate Collection
|
|
|
| 2005 | The Essential Michael Jackson The Essential Michael Jackson -U.S. version:-Limited Edition 3.0 bonus disc:-Charts:-Year-end charts:-Certifications:-See also:* List of number-one albums of 2009 * List of number-one albums of 2009 * List of number-one albums from the 2000s... |
|
(1,793,000)
|
| 2007 | Les 50 plus belles chansons
|
|
|
| 2008 | King of Pop King of Pop (album) -Austria:On July 20, the Austrian version of the double disc compilation was announced; it was released on Jackson's birthday. The pool list fans got to choose from contained 100 tracks... |
IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... : Platinum |
|
| 2009 | The Collection The Collection (Michael Jackson album) The Collection is a compilation box set by Michael Jackson released four days after his death, though its release was already scheduled before Jackson's passing. With the exception of HIStory, it contains all of Jackson's Epic studio albums. It has peaked at number one in several countries... |
|
|
| 2010 | Michael Michael (album) Michael is a posthumous album of previously unreleased tracks by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released from December 10, 2010 - January 14, 2011 by Epic Records and Sony Music Entertainment and features guest performances by Akon, 50 Cent, Lenny Kravitz and Dave Grohl... |
|
(30,000)
|
Other albums (remix, soundtracks, etc.)
| Year | Album details | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
Certifications sales/(Sales) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | The Michael Jackson Mix
|
|
|
| 1997 | Blood on the Dance Floor: HIStory in the Mix
|
|
(445,000)
(250,000) |
| 2001 | |||
| Off the Wall - Special Edition Off the Wall (album) Off the Wall is the fifth studio album by the American recording artist Michael Jackson, released August 10, 1979 on Epic Records, after Jackson's critically well received film performance in The Wiz. While working on that project, Jackson and Quincy Jones had become friends, and Jones agreed to...
|
|
|
|
| Thriller - Special Edition Thriller (album) Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall... |
|
|
|
| Bad - Special Edition Bad (album) Bad is the seventh studio album by American songwriter and recording artist Michael Jackson. The album was released on August 31, 1987 by Epic/CBS Records, nearly five years after Jackson's previous studio album, Thriller, which went on to become the world's best-selling album... |
|
|
|
| 2008 | Thriller - 25th Anniversary Edition Thriller 25 Thriller 25 is a 25th anniversary special edition reissue of the Michael Jackson album Thriller, the world's best selling album. The prospect of a "second chapter" to Thriller was first publicly discussed on Access Hollywood in late 2006. Jackson said he would discuss the idea with collaborator... |
|
|
| 2009 | Michael Jackson's This Is It
|
|
(500,000) |
- In some countries, Thriller - 25th Anniversary EditionThriller 25Thriller 25 is a 25th anniversary special edition reissue of the Michael Jackson album Thriller, the world's best selling album. The prospect of a "second chapter" to Thriller was first publicly discussed on Access Hollywood in late 2006. Jackson said he would discuss the idea with collaborator...
is considered a new album, so the reissue has received certifications apart from the original ThrillerThriller (album)Thriller is the sixth studio album by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was released on November 30, 1982, by Epic Records as the follow-up to Jackson's critically and commercially successful 1979 album Off the Wall...
.
See also
- Michael Jackson albums discography
- Michael Jackson albums discography (peak chart positions)Michael Jackson albums discography (peak chart positions)This article includes the peak chart positions of the Michael Jackson albums discography. Listed are all the albums in order of their release , not including re-issues, unless they charted...
- Michael Jackson singles discographyMichael Jackson singles discographyThis article page lists the Michael Jackson singles discography, with a partial list of singles released physically and other singles...
- Michael Jackson videography
- Jackson 5 discographyJackson 5 discographyThis article presents the discography of American R&B/soul band The Jackson 5 , later known as The Jacksons, is an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana...
- List of best-selling albums worldwide
External links
- Discography from michaeljackson.com
- Discography from SwissCharts.com
- Discography from AboutMichaelJackson.com
- Discography from RollingStone.com