"Shut Up and Dance" (stylized as "SHUT UP + DANCE") is a song by Americanpop rock bandWalk the Moon from their third studio albumTalking Is Hard (2014).[1] It was written by the band members and songwritersBen Berger andRyan McMahon. The song is based on an experience lead singerNicholas Petricca had at aLos Angeles nightclub. His girlfriend invited him to dance, inspiring the title. Petricca envisioned the song as ananthem for letting go of frustration and having fun. The song wasdigitally released as thelead single fromTalking Is Hard on September 10, 2014.
The song became the band's biggesthit single to date, peaking at number four on theBillboard Hot 100 and becoming a number-one hit on the magazine'sAlternative Songs chart and the Hot Adult Contemporary chart.[2] Outside of the United States, "Shut Up and Dance" topped the charts in Poland, peaked within the top ten of the charts in Australia, Canada, Germany, Israel, the Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom, the top 20 of the charts in New Zealand and Sweden, and the top 30 of the charts in the Netherlands. The band has performed "Shut Up and Dance" onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,Late Night with Seth Meyers,Jimmy Kimmel Live!,The Ellen DeGeneres Show andGood Morning America.
The song originated between vocalist Nicholas Petricca and guitarist Eli Maiman, who first developed the verse and found something infectious about it.[3] The following weekend, Petricca went to a party named Funky Soul Saturday atThe Echo inEcho Park,Los Angeles, while feeling frustrated with the writing process.[4] Petricca recalled, "We were at the bar, and it was taking forever to get a drink. I was frustrated because there was great music playing and I wanted to be out there."[5] His girlfriend, in "a backless dress and beat up redChucks", abruptly invited him to dance with her, inspiring the song's title.[3][6] Petricca later went home to work on the song and incorporated his experiences into the song's lyrics. After creating the song's main refrain, he began picturing himself inhigh school: an "incredibly uncomfortable, awkward adolescent dude"; he imagined the song as an "anthem for the dork who is 100 percent me".[3] In an interview withAmerican Songwriter, he summarized the song's theme as: "Encouraging people to let go of whatever it is that’s bothering you and get into your body and out of your head."[3]
In terms of the song's music, Petricca highlighted three songs that were instrumental in its creation: "Just What I Needed" (1978) byThe Cars, "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" (1980) byPat Benatar, and "Jessie's Girl" (1981) byRick Springfield, which he deemed "simple and beautiful and in-your-face rock songs" that captured the sound the band desired. The song is inspired bythe music of the 1980s, which the group felt was a time in which "weird" was celebrated, in both music and fashion.[7][8]
"Shut Up and Dance" premiered on the radio station101 WKQX inChicago on June 22, 2014.[9] It was releaseddigitally as thelead single fromTalking Is Hard on September 10, 2014.[10] On November 11, 2014, the song was made available in the United States as a free single oniTunes.[11]
The song is composed incommon time and written in the key ofD♭ major with a fasttempo of 128beats per minute.[24] Ryan Reed ofBillboard described Petricca's vocal performance as "flaunt[ing] his emotive yelp" over the track.[17][24] The song makes use of jangling guitars, thunderous pounds, and retro synths that play over a grumblingdisco bass.[16][17][23] It additionally includes an open and closedhi-hat pattern, handclaps, and a synthsolo.[25] The intro is constructed by two guitar parts, with the first one "playing the arpeggio of the mainriff", while the other "play[s] 16th notes on muted strings". According to Maiman, the combination of the two guitars resulted in a"'helicopter' sound", which "is thickened with a dotted eighth note delay set".[26] The main riff itself, also processed with digital delay, was seen as having been influenced bythe Edge ofU2.[27]
"Shut Up and Dance" is largely based on Petricca's experience that night at The Echo, containing specific lyrical references that refer back to it.[3][5] The song finds the singer taking to the dance floor with a female friend who wears "[a] backless dress and some beat up sneaks", referring to her as his "discotheque, Juliet teenage dream".[28][29] Thechorus, consisting of two "shut up and dance with me"hook-lines, is accentuated bykick drum hits and accompanied bygang vocals.[20][30] Jeff Miers ofThe Buffalo News said that the lyrics "boast the sort of everyman relatability that is required of a pop hit".[25]
Upon the song's release, Mike Wass ofIdolator said "Shut Up and Dance" is "pretty irresistible" with its "monstrous chorus and a plethora of hooks".[23]Billboard's Ryan Reed gave the song a four and a half stars out of five, mentioning how Petricca's vocal runs are "catchier than most bands' choruses".[17]AbsolutePunk's Anthony Sorendino wrote that the track is not "a cookie cutter chorus rigged to a cheap set of verses" and that the chord progression is what sells it.[18]AllMusic's James Christopher Monger described the song as a "pulsing, closing credits-ready anthem that oozes upbeat millennial enthusiasm" while having "just enough angst to evoke a Breakfast Club post-lunch therapy session".[31] Mitchell Bozzetto ofRenowned for Sound felt it is one of the better tracks offTalking Is Hard, saying "its catchy chorus and overall refreshing atmosphere is quite enjoyable".[32]
The staff ofAlternative Addiction picked "Shut Up and Dance" as the top song of 2014, writing that "there isn't a song that's been as catchy or as good released in a long time".[33] Chris DeVille ofStereogum placed it at number 43 on his "50 Best Pop Songs of 2015" list, saying the song is "proof positive" that one does not "have to innovate or [be] trendy to score a hit, [they] just have towrite a hit".[34]Consequence of Sound ranked it as the 235th best number oneBillboard alternative rock hit in 2017. Killian Young, writing for the publication, viewed the song as "[i]nsipid pop", but complimented its catchiness and called the chorus "crowd-pleasing".[35]
"Shut Up and Dance" began topping streaming serviceSpotify's viral top 50 chart in November 2014.[38] The song peaked at number one onBillboard'sAlternative Songs chart (it is the band's second top-ten hit on the chart after "Anna Sun") in the issue dated February 18, 2015, where it made RCA Records only the second label to receive three consecutive number-one hits on the chart (and first in two decades). It also concurrently hit number one on theRock Airplay chart.[39] The song debuted on the all-genreHot 100 on November 22, 2014, at position 98,[40] where it stayed there for two weeks before leaving the chart. It re-entered the charts the following week at number 88.[41] It eventually peaked at number 4 on the chart in theBillboard issue of May 30, 2015, becoming Walk the Moon's first top-ten single in the United States.[42] As of January 21, 2016, it has sold 3,231,080 copies domestically.[43] The song broke the record for the longest reign atopBillboard'sHot Rock Songs chart at 27 consecutive weeks,[44] now held byPanic! at the Disco's "High Hopes".[45] "Shut Up and Dance" also entered theCanadian Hot 100 at position 99 for the week ending February 28, 2015.[46] The song peaked at number four and remained in that position for seven consecutive weeks from May 30, 2015, to July 11, 2015.[47] As of August 11, 2015, "Shut Up and Dance" has been certified triple platinum byMusic Canada and has sold over 321,000 copies.[48]
"Shut Up and Dance" made its first chart appearance internationally in the Netherlands on theSingles Top 100 chart at number sixty-five. The song peaked at number 28 on January 7, 2015, and remained there for two non-consecutive weeks.[49] "Shut Up and Dance" proved to be a bigger success in Sweden, entering at position 58 on theSwedish Singles Chart on January 16, 2015. The song reached number 24 on February 27, 2015, before beginning to descend down the chart for the next few weeks. The song began to gain in performance again and entered the top 20 at number 18 on April 27, 2015. "Shut Up and Dance" peaked at number 12 on May 8, 2015, a position it held for two non-consecutive weeks,[50] and has been certified quadruple platinum by theInternational Federation of the Phonographic Industry of Sweden as of September 23, 2015.
In Ireland, "Shut Up and Dance" debuted at number 91 on theIrish Singles Chart.[51] On July 24, 2015, the song peaked at number two and stayed there for four non-consecutive weeks. In Poland, the song reached number one on thePolish Airplay Chart for one week on August 7, 2015.[52] According to thePolish Society of the Phonographic Industry, "Shut Up and Dance" was the most played song in Poland.[53]
In Australia, "Shut Up and Dance" made its first appearance on the Australian Hitseekers chart at number eight on March 30, 2015.[54] The song made its official debut on theAustralian Singles Chart a week later at number 58 on April 6, 2015.[55] On its second week, "Shut Up and Dance" rose to number 41 on April 13, 2015.[56] On April 20, 2015, the song entered the top 20, moving up 24 positions to number 17.[57] "Shut Up and Dance" leaped 12 positions to number five on April 27, 2015, its highest charted position in any region at the time.[58] On May 11, 2015, the song peaked at number three for two consecutive weeks.[59][60] The song dropped to number 11 on August 3, 2015, after spending three months within the top 10.[61] As of August 22, 2015, "Shut Up and Dance" has been certified quadruple platinum by theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipments of over 210,000 copies.[62]
In the United Kingdom, the single debuted at number seventy-five on theUK Singles Chart for the week ending June 13, 2015. The following week, it flew 67 places to number eight. The next week, it climbed three places to number five. On its fourth week on the chart, it climbed to number four, where it peaked and remained for two weeks. It spent thirteen weeks in the top ten of the UK Singles Chart, which were all consecutive. It fell out of the top ten on the week ending September 17, 2015, having spent just under three months in the top ten. It re-entered the top 40 at number twenty seven for the week ending January 7, 2016. It fell to number thirty one the following week, before dropping out again. It has re-entered on five different occasions since, spending 73 total weeks in the top 100.[63]
Lead singer Nicholas Petricca presented in front of visuals reminiscent of the opening credits ofSaved by the Bell.
Themusic video for "Shut Up and Dance", directed by Josh Forbes and co-directed by the band members, was shot in Los Angeles in September 2014.[64] It first premiered on theinternet radio network8tracks on October 22, 2014, before it went live on Walk the Moon'sVevo account a day later.[65][66] Petricca described the video as "a trippy story of dork victory" that was "[i]nfluenced by the plot- driven music videos of the 80s and nerdy visuals of 90s television".[64] In an interview withMashable, he said that the band intended for it "to be kooky, but also stylish [with] a story you could follow" like the video forMichael Jackson's "Beat It" (1983).[65]
The clip features graphics similar to those used in the opening ofSaved by the Bell (1989–93) that take over the screen.[67]Vulture's Lauretta Charlton wrote that the video's plot "is a retelling of th[e] events" at The Echo, with the exception of "look[ing] like it was filmed in a laser-tag arena instead of a nightclub".[68] Lauren Taft stars alongside Petricca as the "woman of his dreams" that he meets on the dance floor, mouthing the lyrics to the song as they dance together.[69][70]Idolator's Mike Wass called it a "hilarious visual" where "things get really weird thanks to a serious case of dance floor concussion".[71]Stereogum's Chris DeVille said the video is "an excellent sendup" that pointedly embraces its '80s influences as "a knowing pastiche of side ponytails, neon, and references to earlyMTV".[72][73] MTV's Gil Kaufman remarked that the video is "so retro it might giveSimon LeBon whiplash".[74] It received a nomination at the2015 MTV Video Music Awards for Best Rock Video, but lost toFall Out Boy's "Uma Thurman" (2015).[75]
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select 32. týden 2015 in the date selector. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select 33. týden 2015 in the date selector. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: insert 201535 into search. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201535 into search. Retrieved September 2015.
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