McFadden & Whitehead, Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now | 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏

In the 15^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏, we highlight “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” performed by McFadden & Whitehead.

It only takes ONE hit to solidify a musical legacy 💯! On 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏, we highlight songs that were the SOLE hit by a given musician.  To be fair, it is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, it’s that ONE hit that earned them recognition. So, in the 15^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏, we dive into 🎵 “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now”,  the one hit wonder by 🎙 McFadden & Whitehead.

“Ain’t no stoppin’ us now / We’re on the move / Ain’t no stoppin’ us now / We’ve got the groove.” Indeed, 🎙 McFadden & Whitehead, indeed! The duo comprised of late singers/songwriters/producers 🎙 Gene McFadden (1949 – 2006) and 🎙 John Whitehead (1948 – 2004) struck gold with their 1979 song, 🎵 “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now”.  “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” appeared on their debut album, 💿 McFadden & Whitehead.  This groovy, infectious R&B/funk/disco cut experienced its fair share of pop success.  It peaked at no. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100.  It performed even better on the R&B songs chart, reaching no. 1.  Furthermore, the gem 💎 was nominated for a 🏆 Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance By A Duo, Group, or Chorus 💪. Despite the success of “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now,” they’d never chart another entry on the pop charts.  They did, however, earn additional entries on the R&B charts.

What makes “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” the beloved hit that it is? Well, it’s a continued flex 💪 of the Philadelphia soul movement, which was one of soul’s best and most vibrant.  The production is fire 🔥, which is idiomatic of R&B generally, and more specifically, idiomatic of Philly soul. The musicians are top-notch with a talented rhythm section, utterly sublime strings 🎻, and awesome background vocalists 🎙 Evette Benton, 🎙 Carla Benson, and 🎙 Barbara Ingram, who graced many Philly soul records 💪. McFadden and Whitehead penned and produced the opening track from their self-titled album alongside 🎼 ✍ 🎛 Jerry Cohen, who plays keyboard 🎹 . Whitehead handles the lead vocals in the verses, with McFadden and background vocalists performing in the pre-chorus, and all join forces on the unstoppable chorus.  “We’re puttin’ ourselves together / We’re polishing up our act,” Whitehead asserts in the first verse, adding, “And if you’ve ever been held down before / I know you refuse to be held down any more.” MIC 🎤 DROP 💧 moment!  All told, 🎵 “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” is seven minutes of glorious music which still packs a mean punch more than 40 years after its arrival.

🎙 McFadden & Whitehead • 💿 McFadden & Whitehead • 🏷 Sony Music Entertainment • 🗓 1979

McFadden & Whitehead, Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now: 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏 No. 15 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Sony Music Entertainment; Julia Larsen, Kurchakto, RDNE Stock project, Victor Terrell from Pexels; Andrew Martin from Pixabay]