In a delightful turn of events, Kate Bush’s immaculate “Running Up That Hill” has returned to mainstream consciousness after being used in a pivotal scene from a recent episode of Stranger Things. No sooner after the episode aired, did the song climb to the the No. 1 spot of the iTunes charts, because kids just needed to know, “What was that song?!” It must be a surreal feeling to discover Kate Bush in 2022. But I digress… because here come the covers!
Never mind that Chromatics already made the perfect cover of “Running Up That Hill” 15 years ago, Kim Petras’ new version is in a far different vein — and probably a little truer to the original than the sultry Chromatics spin. Petras manages to make the song feel even more overtly ’80s (it was released in 1985) by overlaying a decidedly dancefloor pastiche on the tune.
The release is actually part of Amazon Music’s “Proud” playlist that the service just released for Pride Month in June and also includes tracks with Pablo Vittar, Angel Olsen and others. Petras — a trans icon — shared a statement on why the song matters to her: “I have always been obsessed with ‘Running Up That Hill.’ 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!”
Listen to Kim Petras’ cover of Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” below on Amazon Music’s Proud playlist.