Nov 1984 - Wham! break through in the US with their second album Make It Big which tops both the UK and US album charts. The single "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" also tops the charts in both countries. The band had previously scored four Top Ten hits in the UK.
From Prince to Madonna to Michael Jackson to Bruce Springsteen to Cyndi Lauper, 1984 was the year that pop stood tallest. New Wave, R&B, hip-hop, mascara'd hard rock and “Weird Al” Yankovic all crossed paths on the charts while a post-“Billie Jean” MTV brought them into your living room.
As the decade's best-selling artist, it may come as a surprise to note that Michael Jackson only released two albums. However, it certainly helps out when one is the best-selling album of all time as his 1982 record Thriller has sold an astonishing 70 million copies worldwide.
Michael Jackson's Thriller, which spent twenty-two weeks in 1983 at number one, stayed an additional fifteen weeks at the top in 1984 and was the best-selling album of the year. Thriller was the only album to be the best-seller of two years (1983–1984) in the United States until 21 by Adele in 2011 and 2012.
"Every Breath You Take" Wins Song Of The Year. Bob Dylan and Stevie Wonder accept the GRAMMY for Song Of The Year on behalf of Sting at the 26th GRAMMY Awards on Feb. 28, 1984, in Los Angeles.
Newspeak: a purposefully ambiguous and confusing language with restricted grammar and limited vocabulary used in Oceania, according or Orwell, “to diminish the range of thought.” For example, in newspeak, the term plusgood had replaced words better and great.
The year of Band Aid, the UK Miners strike and numerous scientific discoveries, 1984 events will forever be remembered. The winter and summer Olympics saw record numbers of nations gather together to compete, despite political tensions around the globe.
However, in 1984, a gallon of milk cost $1.89, a loaf of bread was 66 cents and the average new car cost about $6,300.
A decade ago, Rolling Stone magazine called 1984 “Pop's Greatest Year.” A bold statement…but a lot of critics agree. A confluence of factors—the comeback of dance music, the peak of MTV, the Second British Invasion, and the emergence of metal and hip-hop—made the radio a great place to be.
Overall, Prince spent the most weeks at number one in 1984, reigning for seven weeks at the top with "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy" (with the Revolution). However, "Like a Virgin" by Madonna had the longest run at number one of any song which rose into the top position during 1984.
Nineteen Eighty-four, novel by English author George Orwell published in 1949 as a warning against totalitarianism. The novel's chilling dystopia made a deep impression on readers, and Orwell's ideas entered mainstream culture in a way achieved by very few books.
The best-selling album released in 1984 is BORN IN THE U.S.A. by BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN which sold 30,000,000 copies.
Van Halen enjoyed the most consistent commercial dominance of any '80s rock band, releasing no less than six different multi-platinum albums between 1980 and 1988.
Best-selling artists worldwide as of 2022
Perhaps unsurprisingly, British rock band The Beatles are top of the list for best-selling artists worldwide, with 183 million units certified sales. Second is Garth Brooks with over 157 million units sales, followed by Elvis Presley with 139 million units.
As of 2024, five music artists have reached the billionaire status on Forbes reports: Jay-Z leading the list with US$2.5 billion, and becoming the first billionaire music artist, followed by Rihanna, the first female artist to become a billionaire.