Kate Bush has shared a rare public statement following ‘Running Up That Hill’ re-entering the charts after featuring in Stranger Things 4.
The track forms a prominent part of the new series’ storyline as the kids of Hawkins, Indiana battle against a terrifying new monster.
Since the new episodes were released by Netflix last month (May 27), the 1985 single has seen a 153 percent increase in streams and this week re-entered the Top 10 of the Official UK Singles Chart. To celebrate the resurgence of the track, Bush has now posted a statement on her official website.
“You might’ve heard that the first part of the fantastic, gripping new series of Stranger Things has recently been released on Netflix,” she wrote. “It features the song, ‘Running Up That Hill’ which is being given a whole new lease of life by the young fans who love the show – I love it too!”
She continued: “Because of this, ‘Running Up That Hill’ is charting around the world and has entered the UK chart at No. 8. It’s all really exciting! Thanks very much to everyone who has supported the song. I wait with bated breath for the rest of the series in July. Best wishes, Kate.”
Last week (June 2), it was reported that Bush had given permission to Stranger Things to use the track because she’s a fan of the series. The show’s music supervisor Nora Felder explained in a recent interview that she had chosen the song for the soundtrack because it had “immediately struck me with its deep chords of the possible connection to Max [Mayfield]’s emotional struggles”.
Bush’s publisher Wendy Crowley added: “Kate Bush is selective when it comes to licensing her music and because of that, we made sure to get script pages and footage for her to review so she could see exactly how the song would be used.”
Meanwhile, Kim Petras has covered ‘Running Up That Hill’ to celebrate the start of Pride Month. “I have always been obsessed with ‘Running Up That Hill’,” Petras said in a statement at the time of release. “It means so much and it’s so elusive. You can definitely decide what you want it to mean. For me, it’s about equality. And my timing for this was strangely perfect!”