Walk the Moon, Shut Up and Dance | 1 Hit WONDERful

In the 8^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful , we highlight “Shut Up and Dance” performed by Walk the Moon.

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 8^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful , we dive into “Shut Up and Dance”,  the one hit wonder by Walk the Moon.

“Oh, don’t you dare look back / Just keep your eyes on me / I said, ‘You’re holding back’ / She said, ‘Shut up and dance with me’.” That chorus was one of the most memorable choruses of 2014, hands down.  Ohio alternative collective Walk the Moon, fronted by Nicholas Petricca, earned a breakout pop hit with the hella infectious “Shut Up and Dance”, which appears on their 2014, platinum-certified album, TALKING IS HARD. Take one listen to this utterly song and it’s easy to understand why it totally blew up. “Shut Up and Dance” gave Walk the Moon their sole top-10 hit on the pop charts, peaking at no. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2015.  In fact, the multiplatinum single is also their sole top-40 hit.  The only other entry from Walk the Moon is the gold-certified single, “One Foot”, which peaked modestly at no. 65 – not truly a pop hit. Perhaps the ‘one-hit wonder’ tag feels harsh, but, what better one hit to have than “Shut Up and Dance”?  

“Shut Up and Dance” thrives because it is bright, energetic, exuberant, and, well, danceable AF.  Set in a major key – the happy key – this joint simply makes you feel good while listening. “Helpless to the bass and the fading light / Oh, we were bound to get together,” Petricca sings in the first verse.  In the second, he describes her “backless dress and some beat-up sneaks / My discotheque Juliet, teenage dream.” Woo! Petricca is on fire vocally, infusing ample personality.  What more can you say of “Shut Up and Dance” than “Ooh-ooh, shut up and dance with me!” That shit still hits hard approaching a decade later!  

Appears in :

• 11 Songs Fueled by ‘Dance’ (2018)
• 11 Songs Where You Should Shut Up & Listen (2020)

Walk the Moon • TALKING IS HARD • RCA • 2014 

Walk the Moon, Shut Up and Dance: 1 Hit WONDERful No. 8 (2023) [: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Julia Larsen, Kurchakto, RDNE Stock project, Victor Terrell from Pexels; Andrew Martin from Pixabay]