Pop royalty — Michael, Madonna, Prince and Whitney
The 80s pop charts were ruled by a handful of megastars. These ten questions look easy until you have to name the producer, the year or the song with no bass line.
Q1.Which 1982 Michael Jackson album became the best-selling album of all time?Tap to reveal
Answer: Thriller
Thriller has sold an estimated 70 million copies worldwide and won a record eight Grammys in 1984.
Q2.Which legendary producer worked with Michael Jackson on Thriller?Tap to reveal
Answer: Quincy Jones
Jones produced the trilogy of Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad with Jackson.
Q3.Which horror-movie legend performs the spoken-word rap at the end of the song "Thriller"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Vincent Price
Price recorded his famous verse and cackling laugh in just a couple of takes.
Q4.During which song did Michael Jackson debut the moonwalk on TV in 1983?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Billie Jean"
It happened on the Motown 25 TV special, and the move became his signature overnight.
Q5.What was Madonna's first No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Like a Virgin"
The 1984 single spent six weeks at No. 1 — "Material Girl" from the same album peaked at No. 2.
Q6.Which 1984 Prince album and movie share the same name?Tap to reveal
Answer: Purple Rain
The film won Prince an Oscar for Best Original Song Score, and the album topped charts for 24 weeks.
Q7.Which 1984 Prince No. 1 famously has no bass line at all?Tap to reveal
Answer: "When Doves Cry"
Prince deleted the bass track at the last minute — and it became the best-selling single of 1984 in the US.
Q8.Which 1987 Whitney Houston hit invites somebody who loves her to dance?Tap to reveal
Answer: "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
It won Houston the 1988 Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
Q9.George Michael rose to fame in the 80s as one half of which duo?Tap to reveal
Answer: Wham!
The other half was Andrew Ridgeley; the duo split in 1986 and George Michael went solo with Faith.
Q10.Which 1984 George Michael ballad opens with one of the most famous saxophone riffs of the decade?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Careless Whisper"
Michael co-wrote it with Andrew Ridgeley as a teenager, years before it topped charts worldwide.
Rock anthems and hair metal
Stadium choruses, guitar solos and at least one drummer who refused to quit. This round rewards anyone who wore out a cassette of Appetite for Destruction or Slippery When Wet.
Q1."Sweet Child o' Mine" appears on which band's 1987 debut album Appetite for Destruction?Tap to reveal
Answer: Guns N' Roses
Appetite for Destruction became the best-selling debut studio album in US history.
Q2.Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer" tells the story of which working-class couple?Tap to reveal
Answer: Tommy and Gina
Tommy works on the docks and Gina works the diner all day in the 1986 anthem.
Q3.Which band's drummer, Rick Allen, kept playing on 1987's Hysteria after losing his left arm in a car crash?Tap to reveal
Answer: Def Leppard
Allen relearned drumming on a custom electronic kit that let his feet cover the missing arm.
Q4.What was Van Halen's only No. 1 hit in the United States?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Jump"
The 1984 single was driven by a synthesizer riff — controversial for a band famous for guitar.
Q5.Who played the blistering guitar solo on Michael Jackson's "Beat It"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Eddie Van Halen
Van Halen recorded the solo as a favor and reportedly refused payment for it.
Q6.Which Survivor song was written at Sylvester Stallone's request for Rocky III?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Eye of the Tiger"
Stallone asked for it after Queen declined to let him use "Another One Bites the Dust".
Q7."Under Pressure" (1981) was a collaboration between Queen and which solo superstar?Tap to reveal
Answer: David Bowie
Its bass line was later sampled by Vanilla Ice for "Ice Ice Baby".
Q8.Which 1984 Bruce Springsteen title track is often mistaken for a patriotic anthem?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Born in the U.S.A."
The lyrics actually tell the bitter story of a Vietnam veteran coming home to nothing.
Q9.Which future Friends star gets pulled on stage in Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" video?Tap to reveal
Answer: Courteney Cox
The video was directed by Brian De Palma, years before Cox played Monica Geller.
Q10.What was U2's first No. 1 single in the United States?Tap to reveal
Answer: "With or Without You"
It came from 1987's The Joshua Tree, which also won the Grammy for Album of the Year.
New wave and one-hit wonders
Synthesizers, strange haircuts and songs everyone knows by bands almost nobody can name. This is the round that decides the winner.
Q1.Which Norwegian band's "Take On Me" featured a groundbreaking pencil-sketch animation video?Tap to reveal
Answer: a-ha
The 1985 video mixed live action with rotoscoped animation and won six MTV Video Music Awards.
Q2.Soft Cell's 1981 hit "Tainted Love" is a cover of a 1964 song by which soul singer?Tap to reveal
Answer: Gloria Jones
Jones's original was a Northern Soul favorite; Soft Cell's synth version topped charts in 17 countries.
Q3.Which band topped charts in 1982 with "Come On Eileen"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Dexys Midnight Runners
The fiddle-driven single hit No. 1 in both the UK and the US.
Q4.Which German singer had a worldwide hit with "99 Luftballons"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Nena
The Cold War protest song reached No. 2 on the US Hot 100 in 1984 — sung entirely in German.
Q5."The Final Countdown" was a 1986 hit for which Swedish band?Tap to reveal
Answer: Europe
Keyboardist Mic Michaeli's synth fanfare made it a No. 1 hit in 25 countries.
Q6.Who sings lead vocals on Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Annie Lennox
Lennox formed Eurythmics with Dave Stewart after their band The Tourists broke up.
Q7.Which band wore red "energy dome" hats in the video for their 1980 hit "Whip It"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Devo
The Ohio art-rockers claimed the plastic domes recycled a person's lost "orgone energy".
Q8."Should I Stay or Should I Go" was a 1982 single by which British punk band?Tap to reveal
Answer: The Clash
It finally hit UK No. 1 in 1991 after appearing in a Levi's jeans commercial.
Q9.Which band recorded both "Africa" and "Rosanna" on their 1982 album Toto IV?Tap to reveal
Answer: Toto
Toto IV won the Grammy for Album of the Year, and "Africa" became a streaming-era phenomenon decades later.
Q10.Who sang the 1983 power ballad "Total Eclipse of the Heart"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Bonnie Tyler
It was written by Jim Steinman, the same songwriter behind Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell.
MTV moments and 80s milestones
MTV launched in August 1981 and rewired the entire music industry within five years. This round covers the videos, the charity singles and the business moves that made headlines.
Q1.What was the first music video ever played on MTV?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles
It aired at 12:01 a.m. on August 1, 1981 — a title almost too on-the-nose for the occasion.
Q2.Which Dire Straits hit features Sting singing the line "I want my MTV"?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Money for Nothing"
Sting's cameo earned him a co-writing credit because the melody echoed The Police's "Don't Stand So Close to Me".
Q3.Which Peter Gabriel song had a famous 1986 stop-motion video featuring dancing chickens and claymation?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Sledgehammer"
The video, made with Aardman Animations, still holds the record for most MTV Video Music Awards won by a single video (nine).
Q4.Which two cities hosted the twin Live Aid concerts in July 1985?Tap to reveal
Answer: London and Philadelphia
Wembley Stadium and JFK Stadium hosted an estimated 1.9 billion TV viewers across the globe.
Q5.Which Boomtown Rats frontman organized Live Aid and Band Aid?Tap to reveal
Answer: Bob Geldof
Geldof co-organized both with Midge Ure of Ultravox and was later knighted for his charity work.
Q6.Which two superstars co-wrote the 1985 charity single "We Are the World"?Tap to reveal
Answer: Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie
The USA for Africa single, produced by Quincy Jones, sold over 20 million copies.
Q7.What was the title of Band Aid's 1984 charity single for Ethiopian famine relief?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Do They Know It's Christmas?"
It was recorded in a single day and became the fastest-selling single in UK history at the time.
Q8.Which 1987 Rick Astley hit later became the internet's favorite bait-and-switch prank?Tap to reveal
Answer: "Never Gonna Give You Up"
"Rickrolling" turned the No. 1 single into a meme two decades after its release.
Q9.Run-DMC's 1986 rap-rock crossover "Walk This Way" featured which rock band on the track?Tap to reveal
Answer: Aerosmith
The collaboration revived Aerosmith's career and pushed rap into MTV's mainstream rotation.
Q10.In 1985, Michael Jackson outbid Paul McCartney to buy the publishing rights to whose song catalog?Tap to reveal
Answer: The Beatles
Jackson paid $47.5 million for ATV Music — after McCartney himself had tipped him off that catalogs were a good investment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best 80s music trivia categories for a quiz night?
Split rounds by style: pop icons, rock and hair metal, new wave one-hit wonders, and MTV history. It keeps every age group competitive in at least one round.
What is a good tiebreaker for 80s music trivia?
Ask for a year: "In what year did MTV launch?" (1981) or "What year was Live Aid?" (1985). Closest answer wins — no ties possible.
Are these 80s music trivia questions hard?
They're mixed. The pop royalty round is approachable; the one-hit wonders and MTV milestone rounds are where scores usually drop.
Can I play this 80s music quiz online?
Yes — this page has a free interactive quiz widget, and the Trivio.NET app serves a fresh daily quiz plus real-time trivia battles with friends.
What was the biggest-selling album of the 1980s?
Michael Jackson's Thriller (1982), which is also the best-selling album of all time with an estimated 70 million copies sold.
