Billie Jean Lyrics: The Story Behind Michael Jackson's Iconic Song

Liputan6.com, Jakarta Billie Jean is one of Michael Jackson's most famous and loved songs. He wrote the Billie Jean lyrics himself, and from the beginning he believed the song would be a big success. On his official website, Jackson once said, “A musician knows hit material. It has to feel right. Everything has to feel in place. It fulfills you and it makes you feel good. You know it when you hear it. That’s how I felt about ‘Billie Jean.’” His feeling was right, because the song became a worldwide hit.

The song was released on January 3, 1983, as the second single from Jackson's sixth album, Thriller. Its funky bass line, together with Jackson's special singing style and famous “hiccups,” made people want to dance along. Over time, Billie Jean became more than just a popular song—it became one of the key tracks that showed the world why Michael Jackson was called the King of Pop.

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Billie Jean Lyrics

Verse 1

She was more like a beauty queen from a movie scene

I said, "Don't mind, but what do you mean, I am the one

Who will dance on the floor in the round?"

She said I am the one

Who will dance on the floor in the round

She told me her name was Billie Jean as she caused a scene

Then every head turned with eyes that dreamed of bein' the one

Who will dance on the floor in the round

Pre-Chorus

People always told me, "Be careful of what you do

Don't go around breakin' young girls' hearts" (Hee-hee)

And mother always told me, "Be careful of who you love

And be careful of what you do (Oh-oh)

'Cause the lie becomes the truth" (Oh-oh), hey-ey

Chorus

Billie Jean is not my lover, uh

She's just a girl who claims that I am the one (Oh, baby)

But the kid is not my son (Hoo)

She says I am the one (Oh, baby)

But the kid is not my son (Hee-hee-hee, no-no, hee-hee-hee, hoo)

Verse 2

For forty days and for forty nights, the law was on her side

But who can stand when she's in demand? Her schemes and plans

'Cause we danced on the floor in the round (Hee)

So take my strong advice

Just remember to always think twice

(Don't think twice) Do think twice! (A-hoo!)

She told my baby we'd danced 'til three, then she looked at me

Then showed a photo of a baby cryin', his eyes were like mine (Oh, no)

'Cause we danced on the floor in the round, baby (Ooh, hee-hee-hee)

Pre-Chorus

People always told me, "Be careful of what you do

And don't go around breakin' young girls' hearts" (Don't break no hearts; hee-hee)

But she came and stood right by me

Just the smell of sweet perfume (Ha-oh)

This happened much too soon (Ha-oh, ha-ooh)

She called me to her room (Ha-oh, hoo), hey-ey

Chorus

Billie Jean is not my lover (Hoo)

She's just a girl who claims that I am the one

But the kid is not my son

No-no-no, no-no-no-no-no-no (Hoo)

Billie Jean is not my lover, uh

She's just a girl who claims that I am the one (Oh, baby)

But the kid is not my son (Oh, no, no)

She says I am the one (Oh, baby)

But the kid is not my son (No, hee-hee-hee, ah, hee-hee-hee)

Break

Hee, hoo

Chorus

She says I am the one, uh

But the kid is not my son (No-no-no, hoo, ohh)

Billie Jean is not my lover, uh

She's just a girl who claims that I am the one (You know what you did to me, baby)

But the kid is not my son

No-no-no (No-no-no, ah), no-no-no-no (No-no-no)

She says I am the one (No)

But the kid is not my son (No-no-no-no)

[Outro]

She says I am the one (You know what you did)

She says he is my son (Breakin' my heart, babe)

She says I am the one

Yeah, yeah, Billie Jean is not my lover, uh

Yeah, Billie Jean is not my lover, uh

Yeah, Billie Jean is not my lover, uh (She is just a girl)

Yeah, Billie Jean is not my lover, uh (She is just a girl; don't call me Billie Jean, hoo)

Billie Jean is not my lover, uh (She is just a girl; she's not at the scene)

Billie Jean is not (Hee), aaow, ooh

Yeah, Billie Jean is

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The Story Behind Billie Jean

Michael Jackson got the idea for Billie Jean because he wanted to write a song with a strong and catchy bass line. In an interview with Martin Bashir, he said the idea suddenly came to him while driving on Ventura Boulevard.

Many people wonder, “Who is Billie Jean?” Jackson explained that she was not a real person. Instead, she was a character he created, based on the groupies who often followed and bothered his brothers. In his book Moonwalk, he wrote, “There never was a real Billie Jean. The girl in the song is a composite of people my brothers have been plagued with over the years. I could never understand how these girls could say they were carrying someone’s child when it wasn’t true.”

At first, producer Quincy Jones did not like the song. He didn’t enjoy the bass line and even tried to leave it out of the Thriller album. He also suggested changing the title to Not My Lover, because he worried people might confuse it with the tennis player Billie Jean King. But Jackson refused, keeping both the bass line and the title the way he wanted.

In the end, Billie Jean became one of the most important songs in Jackson’s career. In 1983, during the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever show, he performed the song on stage and gave the world something it had never seen before. That night, Jackson introduced the moonwalk, a dance move that make him an Icon.