Despite its worldwide acclaim, Michael Jackson's Bad has few Grammys to its name. His seventh studio album ranks among Michael Jackson's best albums. At the 30th Annual Grammy Awards in 1988, Jackson was tied with rock band U2 and country singer Emmylou Harris for the most nominations of the night, all sprouting four nods. To the shock of critics and viewers, Michael Jackson walked away from the Grammys virtually empty-handed.

Out of his four nominations, Michael Jackson was nominated for Album of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Performance – Male, Best R&B Vocal Performance – Male, and Best Engineered Recording – Non-Classical. Instead, Michael Jackson only won one of these awards, and it was Best Engineered Recording for Bad's eighth single and 11th track, "Leave Me Alone," the last track on the album.

What's most surprising about "Leave Me Alone's" win is that the song wasn't yet released in the United States at the time. As a result, the song was eligible for another Grammy two years later.

Michael Jackson's "Leave Me Alone" Wasn't Released in the United States

Releasing Singles Outside of North America Was a Common Practice for Michael Jackson

"Leave Me Alone" was written by Michael Jackson, with the legendary Quincy Jones assisting him on production. While Michael Jackson's Bad released on August 31, 1987, the original issue of the project did not include "Leave Me Alone," at least not on vinyl editions. "Leave Me Alone" was released exclusively on CD editions of Bad before being released as a single outside the U.S. on February 13, 1989, 532 days after Bad dropped and 348 days since the 1988 Grammys. "Leave Me Alone" still achieved immense, chart-topping success in Greece, Ireland, Spain, Belgium, New Zealand, and the U.K.

Although his album won Best Engineered Recording, Michael Jackson technically didn't "win" the Grammy. The award went to the album's engineers, Bruce Swedien and Humberto Gatica. Also, while Michael Jackson, U2, and Emmylou Harris were all tied as pop performers with the most Grammy non-classical nominations, Soprano Kathleen Battle from the classical field had the most nominations that night.

It was actually common for Michael Jackson to release songs exclusively to international markets. Some of Michael Jackson's most underrated records, like "Give In to Me" featuring Slash, carry this distinction. The same honor is carried by "Liberian Girl," "Who Is It," and "Earth Song," the latter of which was only released to radio in the United States, not as a single. "You Rock My World" was released in a similar release. The oft-forgotten "Do the Bartman" for The Simpsons wasn't released in North America either.

"Leave Me Alone" by Michael Jackson Won For Best Music Video At The 1989 Grammys

The Delayed Win Helped Extend and Expand Bad's Legacy as an Album

There isn't a cited reason as to why some of Michael Jackson's singles only reached other countries. To his credit, the unanimous King of Pop toured so heavily overseas and sold so many records overseas (some of which sold better outside the U.S. than in it) that it can be argued MJ was a bigger commodity outside of America than he was in it, which would explain why some of his singles never reached the States. That being said, before releasing "Leave Me Alone" as a single, Jackson released the music video for the song on January 2, 1989.

It took two years for it to happen, but Michael Jackson was able to redeem getting snubbed at the 1988 Grammys.

Due to the later release of "Leave Me Alone as both a single and the Jim Blashfield-directed music video, "Leave Me Alone" was eligible for contention at the 1990 Grammy Awards, receiving a nomination for and winning Best Short Form Music Video. It took two years for it to happen, but Michael Jackson was able to redeem getting snubbed at the 1988 Grammys. By finally winning a Grammy statue for himself for his Bad album, the continued exposure helped further prolong the enduring legacy of Michael Jackson's album, helping it reach classic status.