Bad (Michael Jackson song)

"Bad"
"Bad"
Single by Michael Jackson
from the album Bad
B-side	"I Can't Help It"
Released	September 7, 1987
Recorded	October 1986
Genre	Dance-pop; funk;
Length	4:07 (album version); 8:22 (extended dance mix);
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Michael Jackson
Producer(s)	Quincy Jones; Michael Jackson (co.);
Michael Jackson singles chronology
Music videos
	"Bad" (short version) on YouTube
	"Bad" (long version) on YouTube

"Bad" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was released by Epic Records on September 7, 1987, as the second single from his seventh studio album, Bad. The song was written and composed by Jackson, and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. It was influenced by a true story Jackson read about a young man who tried to escape poverty by attending private school but was killed upon returning home.

"Bad" received positive reviews, with some critics noting that "Bad" helped give Jackson an edgier image. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, and remained there for two weeks, becoming the album's second number-one single, and Jackson's eighth number one entry on the chart. It also charted on the Hot R&B Singles, Hot Dance Club Play and Rhythmic chart at number one. "Bad" is certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It reached number one in Ireland, Norway, Spain and the Netherlands, and the top ten in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and several European countries.

The music video for "Bad" premiered in a TV special, Michael Jackson: The Magic Returns, on CBS during prime time on August 31, 1987. It was directed by Martin Scorsese and co-starred Wesley Snipes in one of his first appearances. The video, inspired in part by the film West Side Story, shows Jackson and a group of gangsters portraying a street gang dancing in a subway station, set at the Hoyt–Schermerhorn Streets station. It has been praised by critics as an iconic and one of the greatest videos of all time; Jackson's outfit has been recognized as an influence on fashion.

^ Lecocq, Richard; Allard, François (2018). "Bad". Michael Jackson All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track. London, England: Cassell. pp. 438–40. ISBN 9781788400572. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2020.

[All_Songs-1] Lecocq, Richard; Allard, François (2018). "Bad". Michael Jackson All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track. London, England: Cassell. pp. 438–40. ISBN 9781788400572. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2020.

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