"Move On Up" is a song by

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

from his 1970 debut album '' Curtis''. Nearly nine minutes long on the album version, it was released as a single in the United States (Curtom 1974), but failed to chart. An edited version of the song spent 10 weeks in the top 50 of the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in 1971, peaking at number 12, and it has become a soul classic over the years. In 2021, it was listed at No. 474 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time". A slowed sample of the music was used for the 2005 hip hop song " Touch the Sky" by

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

Destination version

In 1979, Destination recorded a

medley Medley or Medleys may refer to: Sports *Medley swimming, races requiring multiple swimming styles * Medley relay races at track meets Music *Medley (music), multiple pieces strung together People *Medley (surname), list of people with this nam ...

, incorporating "Keep on Pushing", a 1964 hit by

the Impressions The Impressions were an American music group originally formed in 1958. Their repertoire includes gospel, doo-wop, R&B, and soul. The group was founded as the Roosters by Chattanooga, Tennessee natives Sam Gooden, Richard Brooks and Arthur B ...

, also written by Mayfield. Along with the tracks "Up Up Up" and "Destination's Theme", "Move On Up" hit number one on the disco chart for four weeks. It peaked at number 68 on the soul singles chart.

Other cover versions and sampling

In 1979, disco trio Destination recorded a

, incorporating "Keep on Pushing", a 1964 hit by

, also written by Mayfield. Along with the tracks "Up Up Up" and "Destination's Theme", "Move On Up" hit number one on the disco chart for four weeks. It peaked at number sixty-eight on the soul singles chart.

The Jam The Jam were an English mod revival/ punk rock band formed in 1972 at Sheerwater Secondary School in Woking, Surrey. They released 18 consecutive Top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December ...

, an English rock band active in the late 1970s to the early 1980s, released a version of the song on an

extended play record An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

in 1982.

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

-based jam-band

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Koster. The ...

frequently covers the song in their live shows.

Just Blaze Justin Gregory Smith (born January 8, 1978), known professionally as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop record producer and DJ. Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Blaze attended Rutgers University for three years before dropping out to pursue his mu ...

heavily sampled the song for

's 2006 single " Touch the Sky", using a slowed-down version of the horns. Argentine ska and rock band

Los Fabulosos Cadillacs Los Fabulosos Cadillacs is an Argentine ska band from Buenos Aires. Background and style Formed in 1985, they released their first album, ''Bares y Fondas'' (Bars and Boardinghouses), in 1986 and have since released fourteen more albums. Th ...

covered "Move On Up" in their sixteenth album, '' El Arte de la Elegancia de LFC'' (The Art of Elegance of LFC), released in 2009. The song was retitled as "Vamos Ya! (Move on Up)"; "¡Vamos ya!" means "Let's Go Now!" in

Castilian Spanish In English, Castilian Spanish can mean the variety of Peninsular Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, the standard form of Spanish, or Spanish from Spain in general. In Spanish, the term (Castilian) can either refer to the Spanish langua ...

In popular culture

English football club

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

adopted the song as a popular post-game anthem at their

Emirates Stadium The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. It has a current seated capacit ...

. The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2002 British film ''

Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' (also known as ''Kick It Like Beckham'') is a 2002 sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Kni ...

'' with Parminder Nagra and

Keira Knightley Keira Christina Righton (; née Knightley, born 26 March 1985) is an English actress. Known for her work in both independent films and blockbusters, particularly period dramas, she has received several accolades, including nominations for ...

. It has been used by Joe Biden following the end of his speeches during his 2020 presidential campaign.

References

1971 songs 1979 singles Curtis Mayfield songs Songs written by Curtis Mayfield 1971 singles Song recordings produced by Curtis Mayfield {{1970s-R&B-song-stub