When Stranger Things season 4 came out, literally no one saw it coming that a 1985 song would completely take over. Like, out of nowhere, Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” became THE song of that whole Max scene. It just hit different and suddenly everyone was obsessed.
The music supervisors didn’t just slap it in randomly either, they actually reached out to Kate’s team and explained exactly how they wanted to use it in that super emotional moment. And Kate Bush? She’s famously picky about where her music goes, but she said yes herself. Apparently she really connected with the story and the feelings in that episode, so it wasn’t just some quick license deal, it felt respectful, like they truly got it.
Since she owns both the writing and the master rights to the track (smart move from way back), pretty much all the money came straight to her. Streams went absolutely insane, the song shot back up the charts all over the world (even hit #1 in places decades later), and millions of people heard it for the first time. We’re talking an estimated couple million bucks just from streaming in the first month or so after the episode dropped.
But it wasn’t only about the cash. TikTok and everywhere else blew up, kids who weren’t even alive in the 80s were making edits, dancing to it, lip-syncing the lyrics. It was wild seeing something that old suddenly feel so fresh and huge again.
Honestly, it’s one of those perfect reminders that real music doesn’t have an expiration date. Sometimes a song just sits there quietly for years, then bam, the right moment comes along and it explodes bigger than anyone could’ve guessed.
For Kate Bush, “Running Up That Hill” didn’t just climb the charts again, it proved why she’s still one of the most special artists out there. Art’s got its own timing, you know? It waits, chills in the background, and then one day it just takes over the whole damn world.
That was one of those moments.