How Kate Bush Cleared The Way For Stranger Things To Add Prince To Its Soundtrack

The "Stranger Things" series finale included several notable needle drops, but Prince was the star of the show. "When Doves Cry" and "Purple Rain" both featured in the final episode, and it turns out another 1980s icon, Kate Bush, helped paved the way for those two classics to become part of the final chapter of "Stranger Things." Bush's 1985 synth pop banger "Running Up That Hill" was included in season 4 and saw a major resurgence in pop culture as a result. This also helped to convince Prince's estate to let "Stranger Things" creators Matt and Ross Duffer use his songs in the finale.

In "Stranger Things" season 4, episode 4, "Dear Billy," Sadie Sink's Max Mayfield is possessed by Jamie Campbell Bower's Vecna in a graveyard. Trapped in the villain's mind, Max is seemingly lost as Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), and Steve (Joe Keery) try their best to revive her. It's only after Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Robin (Maya Hawke) suggest playing music that the trio put headphones on Max and play her favorite song, "Running Up That Hill," allowing her to escape from Vecna and return to the real world.

After that, the world caught Kate Bush fever. The artist re-entered the music charts in multiple countries, with "Running Up That Hill" hitting No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July 2022. Meanwhile, Bush's catalog saw a massive increase in streaming numbers across the board. Likewise, Metallica allowed their music to be used in "Stranger Things" season 4 and saw a similarly impressive bump in popularity among younger listeners. After that, it seems the Prince estate didn't require much convincing to follow suit for season 5.

The much-discussed "Stranger Things" finale features a host of bangers, from "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac to "Heroes" by David Bowie. But a couple of songs from Prince and the Revolution's 1984 album, "Purple Rain," score two of the most significant moments. "When Doves Cry" accompanies the heroes' triumphant exit from the Upside Down after defeating Vecna and the Mind Flayer, while "Purple Rain" plays during the tearful goodbye between Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and Mike (Finn Wolfhard) and Eleven's controversial death, which infuriated fans despite having a killer soundtrack.

Speaking to Variety, Picture Music Company president and veteran "Stranger Things" music supervisor Nora Felder explained how the episode's script didn't specify which songs should play during either of those two major moments. The only requirement was to find songs from the same artist where the first song started side A or B of an album and the second song ended that same side. Prince's "Purple Rain" side B was the answer, but as Felder recalled, "I had not heard of ['Purple Rain'] clearing before."

As she went on to explain, pretty much everyone she spoke to felt similarly apprehensive. Multiple people in the industry told her to temper her expectations, including Joy Murphy at Universal Music Publishing, who said, "Nora, let's give it a try, we'll do everything we can to position this in the right way." Warner Records controlled the master recording for "Purple Rain," and Felder reached out to Thuy Lam at the company, who had previously been involved in clearing Kate Bush's song. Luckily, she and Warners backed the decision to use Prince. The last step was Prince's estate itself, which, according to Felder, was likely won over by the show's previous use of "Running Up That Hill."

"Stranger Things" fans are a devoted bunch, and if the finale botched the needle drops, it would have been yet another criticism leveled at the show. The Duffer Brothers have been the target of an onslaught of fury and disappointment in the wake of the episode's arrival, and so far, they haven't provided satisfactory answers for the biggest unanswered questions following the "Stranger Things" finale. But hey, at least the music was good, and a big part of that was Kate Bush's indirect influence.

In her Variety interview, Nora Felder explained that it took several weeks to hear back from Prince's estate. Fortunately, when it did respond, it was good news. "Now, I know the Duffers feel that Prince's estate cleared the songs because of Kate Bush," Felder explained, "and I'm sure that had something to do with it, as the parties reminded them of the impact the show had with 'Running Up That Hill.'"

Aside from the prior success of Bush's hit in "Stranger Things," Felder felt that her explanation of how the Prince songs would be used helped sway the estate. "I did tell them I thought this was going to be one of the most significant moments in the season," she recalled. "[...]For the rights owners, it's not just about the money, it's about what lines up with what Prince would have wanted."

The Duffers shared their own experience of securing the songs in an interview with Tudum, in which Ross Duffer admitted they'd "never talked about a song choice as much as [they] did for that moment." As Matt Duffer added, "Thanks to Kate Bush, we were able to acquire the rights" — though it seems Felder is surely owed some of the credit here.