1. “Thriller” by Michael Jackson
From that instantly recognizable intro note to the eerie Vincent Price interlude—and that’s not even considering the epic and groundbreaking accompanying mini-movie music video—“Thriller” was an instant classic and remains as popular today as it was in 1982. The moonwalk never goes out of style.
2. “Like a Prayer” by Madonna
The queen of pop’s 1984 hit and album of the same name were hugely popular and gave the singer serious credit as a music icon. It reached the Billboard Hot 100’s coveted No. 1 spot and has been covered countless times, though Madonna’s vocals still rock the radio and dance floor today.
Prince raged against music copyright infringement his whole illustrious career, so no YouTube knock-off will do. This 1984 track returned to the chart following Prince’s death in 2016, cracking the top 10 and reminding everyone of the legend whose light will never truly fade.
4. “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” by Whitney Houston
This club-shaker led the string of hits that came off Houston’s sophomore album, Whitney, and landed at the top of the Billboard chart, making it the singer’s fourth song to do so. Despite critics’ dismissal of the tune as too safe and similar to her previous “How Will I Know,” the song won Whitney a Grammy and an American Music Award.
5. “Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears
The 1998 song that launched a thousand teenage girls’ makeovers, “Baby One More Time” catapulted the 16-year-old former Mousketeer to stardom, and she hasn’t quit since. It remains one of the best-selling records of all time at over 10 million copies, and its accompanying music video continues to inspire everything from copycat artists to Halloween costumes to relevant cultural satire.
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