Billie Jean was released by Michael Jackson in 1983 as a single from his 1982 album Thriller, and it became one of the defining pop records of the decade. Its stripped-back drum groove helped the song stand out on radio and in its famous music video, which brought Jackson's dancing to a huge television audience. The beat has since been sampled, covered and reused across dance routines, DJ sets and online edits, and its clean rhythm still works as shorthand for confident, classic pop energy in short-form video.