Stranger Things powers a Kate Bush renaissance
The Future. After the new season of Stranger Things featured Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” in the jaw-dropping climax of its fourth episode, the song skyrocketed in popularity — topping charts for the first time and minting a lot of money for Bush. As with other popular needle drops in entertainment — “Stuck in the Middle with You” in Reservoir Dogs, “Tiny Dancer” in Almost Famous, “Come and Get Your Love” in Guardians of the Galaxy — “Running Up That Hill” may be inseparable from the show for a certain generation.
Running up those chartsThanks to Stranger Things Vol. 4, “Running Up That Hill” is becoming a cultural anthem… 37 years after its release.
According to Billboard, the single became the artist’s first-ever top-5 song in the U.S., charting 26 places higher than when it was first released in 1985.
In her home country of the U.K., the song reached #1 on the charts — her first time in 44 years.
In just one week, it streamed 57 million times on Spotify alone.
Also, the album that the song is featured on, Hounds of Love, jumped to #12 on the album charts. It looks like everyone wants a little more of Bush.
All the success has led Bush to break a handful of records — the oldest female to top the charts in the U.K., the longest gap between #1 singles, and the longest time it’s taken a song to hit #1.
Running to the bankThe deal only gets sweeter for Bush — she owns all the publishing and licensing rights for her music (which goes through Warner Music Group via her label Noble & Brite), and the money just keeps pouring in.
Before the new season of Stranger Things was released, Bush’s music brought roughly $12,000 per week between streaming, album sales, and song downloads.
After the season dropped, the music generated $156,000 in sales. The following week, it was $258,000.
And don’t expect that popularity to wane anytime soon. The last two episodes of Stranger Things Vol. 4 are set to drop this Friday… and Netflix recently released a new trailer featuring a remix of “Running Up That Hill,” of course.
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