Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now
Encyclopedia
"Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" is a disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...

 song performed by R&B duo McFadden & Whitehead
McFadden & Whitehead
McFadden and Whitehead were an American songwriting, production, and recording duo, best known for their signature tune "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now"...

 from their debut album, McFadden & Whitehead
McFadden & Whitehead (album)
McFadden & Whitehead is the debut album of the R&B duo of the same name. The album peaked at #5 on the R&B charts and #23 on the Billboard 200. The lead single Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now peaked topped the R&B charts, was 310 on the disco charts, and peaked at #13 on the Hot 100....

. They wrote and produced this along with keyboard player Jerry Cohen. Released from their self-titled debut album in 1979, the song spent a week at number one on the R&B singles chart. It also proved to be a successful crossover hit, peaking at number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

, and reached number 5 in the UK. The single also made it to number ten on the disco charts. The bass hook was played by Philadelphia International Records house musician Jimmy Williams. The song eventually sold over 2 million copies and went platinum.

Covers

Luther Vandross
Luther Vandross
Luther Ronzoni Vandross was an American singer-songwriter and record producer. During his career, Vandross sold over twenty-five million albums and won eight Grammy Awards including Best Male R&B Vocal Performance four times...

 did a cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of this song for his 1994 cover album Songs
Songs (Luther Vandross album)
-Charts:...

. His version of the song was also performed as a duet with British girl group the Spice Girls
Spice Girls
The Spice Girls were a British pop girl group formed in 1994. The group consisted of Victoria Beckham , Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm and Geri Halliwell. They were signed to Virgin Records and released their debut single, "Wannabe" in 1996, which hit number-one in more than 30...

 for their An Audience With...
An Audience with...
An Audience with... is a British entertainment television show produced by ITV Studios, in which a host, usually a singer or comedian, performs for an invited audience of celebrity guests, interspersed with questions from the audience, in a light hearted revue/tribute style.The show began as An...

special on the UK's ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...

 in 1997, and later appeared as a B-Side to their single Stop
Stop (Spice Girls song)
"Stop" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the group members with Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins—the songwriters and production duo known as Absolute—at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World...

. In 1996, the jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...

\contemporary jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....

 group, The Rippingtons
The Rippingtons
The Rippingtons are a contemporary group mainly relating to the genres Smooth jazz, Jazz pop, and Crossover jazz. Formed in 1986 by guitarist and band leader Russ Freeman , their career has spanned two decades...

 recorded a cover version for their album Brave New World
Brave New World (Rippingtons album)
Brave New World is The Rippingtons' ninth album which was released in 1996. It was their final album for GRP Records.-Track listing:#"Brave New World" - 4:14#"Urban Wanderer" - 4:41#"Key to the Forbidden City" - 4:46#"Hideaway" - 5:10...

, and also Kate Pierson
Kate Pierson
Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Pierson is an American vocalist and one of the lead singers and founding members of The B-52's. One of the multi-instrumentalists in the band, Pierson played guitar, bass and various keyboard instruments...

 and Cindy Wilson
Cindy Wilson
Cynthia Leigh Wilson is a vocalist and a founding member of new wave rock band The B-52s.- Career :...

, both of The B-52s, recorded the song for the 96's soundtrack The Associate
The Associate (soundtrack)
The Associate is the original motion picture soundtrack of the self-titled movie from 1996, starring Whoopi Goldberg, the winner of a Grammy, seven Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes, a Tony, as well as an Oscar....

. Additionally, in 2005, urban jazz
Urban jazz
Urban jazz is the fusion of smooth jazz and R&B/hip-hop music. Urban jazz usually contains strong R&B percussion and bass lines. A few of the better known urban jazz artists are Boney James, Ronny Jordan, Nick Colionne, Wayman Tisdale, Najee, and Paul Jackson, Jr.Some of the more successful...

\contemporary jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....

 artist Ben Tankard
Ben Tankard
Ben Tankard is a former professional basketball player and an American gospel, jazz keyboardist producer, songwriter and motivational speaker. Ben dropped out of college after one year to play minor league pro basketball in Canada. He was invited to an NBA camp but was injured and cut...

 did a gospel/jazz rendition of the song on his "Piano Prophet" CD as well as Wayman Tisdale
Wayman Tisdale
Wayman Lawrence Tisdale was an American professional basketball player in the NBA and a smooth jazz bass guitarist. A three-time All American at the University of Oklahoma, he was elected to the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.-Early life:Tisdale was born in Fort Worth, Texas...

, who recorded a cover version of this song for his album "Hang Time." The song was supposedly a declaration on how far African Americans had come from the past. The song has served as a celebration of black achievements. However, in an interview conducted by Philadelphia video producer Bob Lott, John and Gene revealed that the song was actually about their frustration with Philadelphia International Records owners Gamble and Huff, who for many years preferred that they remain as house songwriters and not performers. Their first hit song for Gamble and Huff was Back Stabbers
Back Stabbers
Back Stabbers is a studio album by Philadelphia soul group The O'Jays, released in August 1972 on Philadelphia International Records. Recording sessions for the album took place at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1972.-Reception:...

 recorded by the O'Jays. George Michael covered the song during his Cover to Cover tour in 1991. He also released a demo version under the name "Trojan Souls".

The Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks
Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...

 and The Chipettes
The Chipettes
The Chipettes are a fictional group of anthropomorphic chipmunk singers first appearing on the cartoon series Alvin and the Chipmunks in 1983. In this and related materials, the Chipettes served as female featured characters in their own right, starring in numerous episodes...

 covered this song for the Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked: Music from the Motion Picture
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked: Music from the Motion Picture
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked: Music from the Motion Picture is the licensed soundtrack based on the 2011 film Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked...

 album and for the upcoming "Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked is an upcoming 2011 American comedy film. The film stars Jason Lee. It is to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, and produced by Regency Enterprises and Bagdasarian Productions...

" film. This version is mashed with Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...

's "Born This Way
Born This Way (song)
"Born This Way" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga, from her second studio album, Born This Way. Written and produced by Gaga, Fernando Garibay, Jeppe Laursen and DJ White Shadow, "Born This Way" was developed while Gaga was on the road with The Monster Ball Tour...

" and Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...

's "Firework
Firework (song)
"Firework" is a song by American recording artist Katy Perry. The song was written by Katy Perry, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilhelm, Ester Dean, and produced by Stargate and Sandy Vee for Perry's third studio album, Teenage Dream...

".

Popular usage

The song is frequently played at sporting and political events, and TV shows often use it.
  • "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" was played at the 2008 Democratic National Convention
    2008 Democratic National Convention
    The United States 2008 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention of the Democratic Party where it adopted its national platform and officially nominated its candidates for President and Vice President of the United States. The convention was held in Denver,...

     on the night Illinois
    Illinois
    Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

     Senator Barack Obama
    Barack Obama
    Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

     accepted the Democratic Party (United States)
    Democratic Party (United States)
    The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

     nomination for President of the United States
    President of the United States
    The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

    .
  • "Ain’t No Stoppin' Us Now" is the Theme Song for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Marching Band, Known As "The Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South also known as "M4". The UAPB Marching Band,under the direction of Professor John R.Graham,Jr. performed the song as they marched by the viewing stand for the 56th Inaugural Parade for President Barack Obama..
  • The song served as the 1980 theme song for the Philadelphia Phillies
    Philadelphia Phillies
    The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...

    , 1980-81 Philadelphia Eagles
    Philadelphia Eagles
    The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...

     and 2000-2001 Philadelphia 76ers
    Philadelphia 76ers
    The Philadelphia 76ers are a professional basketball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . Originally known as the Syracuse Nationals, they are one of the oldest franchises in the NBA...

    . (McFadden and Whitehead sung a Phillies, Eagles and Sixers version of Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now. For example, "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now, the Phillies got the groove").
  • The song served as the theme song for former heavyweight champion of the world and boxing
    Boxing
    Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

     hall-of-famer
    International Boxing Hall of Fame
    The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...

     Larry Holmes
    Larry Holmes
    Larry Holmes is a former professional boxer. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which gave birth to his boxing nickname, The Easton Assassin....

    .
  • Davidson samples this song in his song "All I Wanna Do", heard on the Grand Theft Auto 2 soundtrack
    Grand Theft Auto 2 soundtrack
    The Grand Theft Auto 2 soundtrack is provided by each area featuring five radio stations from a pool of eleven, in which one of them would be played as the player drives most vehicles in the game...

    .
  • This song is also the ring walk song of the former WBA Heavyweight title holder and former The Ring WBA,WBC & WBO Cruiserweight champion of the world, David Haye
    David Haye
    David Deron Haye is a retired English professional boxer,Haye is the former WBA heavyweight champion. He is also the former unified world cruiserweight champion, holding the WBA, WBC, WBO, and The Ring cruiserweight titles, and also the former European cruiserweight champion.- Amateur :Haye...

  • This song was also featured in the movie Boogie Nights
    Boogie Nights
    Boogie Nights is a 1997 drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Set in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley, the script focuses on a young nightclub dishwasher who becomes a popular star of pornographic films, and chronicles his rise and fall from the Golden Age of Porn of the 1970s...

    .
  • Colson Whitehead
    Colson Whitehead
    Colson Whitehead is a New York-based novelist. He is best known as the author of the 2001 novel John Henry Days. In 2002, he received a MacArthur Fellowship.-Early life:...

     refers to the song in his novel Sag Harbor as "the black national anthem" during the 1980s.
  • Diddy-Dirty Money references the song in his song "Coming Home"
  • Jocko Henderson samples this song in his 1979 single "Rhythm Talk"
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