McFadden & Whitehead Discography | Discogs

About the Song

McFadden & Whitehead’s “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now” is more than just a song; it’s a pulsating celebration of life and optimism. Released in 1979, this disco masterpiece quickly became an anthem of joy and empowerment.

The duo’s infectious energy is palpable from the song’s opening notes. With its driving beat, shimmering instrumentation, and the pair’s soulful vocals, “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now” is a quintessential example of the disco genre at its finest. The lyrics, filled with positive affirmations and a refusal to be deterred by obstacles, perfectly captured the spirit of the era.

One of the song’s greatest strengths lies in its ability to transcend musical genres. While undeniably a disco classic, its uplifting message and catchy melody have resonated with audiences of all ages and tastes. It’s a track that never fails to get people moving and feeling good.

Beyond its commercial success, “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now” has become a cultural touchstone. It’s been featured in countless films, television shows, and commercials, ensuring its place in popular culture. The song continues to inspire and uplift listeners, serving as a reminder that even in the face of challenges, there’s always hope and the possibility for triumph.  

Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now - Song Download from McFadden & Whitehead @ JioSaavn

Video

Lyrics: Ain’t No Stopping Us Now

[Intro: Barbara Ingram, Carla Benson & Evette Benton]
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’re on the move
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’ve got the groove
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’re on the move
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’ve got the groove

[Verse 1: John Whitehead]
There’s been so many things that’s held us down
But now it looks like things are finally comin’ around
I know we’ve got a long, long way to go
And where we’ll end up
I don’t know
But we won’t let nothing hold us back
We’re puttin’ ourselves together
We’re polishing up our act, well
And if you’ve ever been held down before
I know you refuse to be held down any more, well

[Pre-Chorus: Gene McFadden, Barbara Ingram, Carla Benson & Evette Benton]
Don’t you let nothing, nothing
Nothing stand in your way
I want you to listen, listen
To every word I say
Every word I say

[Hook: All]
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now (No)
We’re on the move (Huh)
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’ve got the groove (Huh)
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’re on the move (I know, I know)
Ain’t no stoppin’ us now
We’ve got the groove (We got it)

[Verse 2: John Whitehead]
I know you know someone that has a negative vibe
And if you tryin’ to make it, they only push you aside
They really don’t have nowhere to go
Ask ’em where they’re going
They don’t know
But we won’t let nothing hold us back
We gonna get ourselves together, come on
We gonna polish up our act, well
And if you’ve ever been held down before
I know you refuse to be held down any more, well

[Pre-Chorus: Gene McFadden, Barbara Ingram, Carla Benson & Evette Benton]
Don’t you let nothing, nothing
Stand in your way
I want y’all to listen, listen
To every word I say
Every word I say

You Missed

SHE HAD BEEN SINGING MOUNTAIN MUSIC SINCE BEFORE BLUEGRASS EVEN HAD A NAME. THEN, AT 80, WILMA LEE COOPER COLLAPSED ON THE OPRY STAGE WITH THE SONG STILL IN HER THROAT. Wilma Lee Cooper came out of Valley Head, West Virginia, where music was not something you studied in a conservatory. It was family. Church. Radio. Coal-country evenings. Her father worked in the mines. Her mother played pump organ. Wilma started singing when she was five, then sang with her family gospel group before she ever became part of country music history. She met Stoney Cooper in the early 1940s. He played fiddle. She sang and played guitar. Together they built a sound that sat between mountain gospel, old-time string band music, and the country music that had not yet decided how polished it wanted to become. They did not wait for genre labels. They drove. They broadcast. They played wherever people would listen. The roads were part of the act. Their daughter Carol Lee sometimes slept in the car under the upright bass while Wilma and Stoney went from show to show. They raised a family while keeping a band alive. They recorded songs like “Big Midnight Special,” “There’s a Big Wheel,” and “Wreck on the Highway.” By 1957, they had joined the Grand Ole Opry. The Smithsonian later called Wilma Lee the “First Lady of Bluegrass.” But that title came after decades of work. It came after she and Stoney had already spent years carrying the mountain sound through a country business that was moving toward smoother voices and cleaner suits. Then Stoney died in 1977. Wilma Lee did not leave with him. She stayed with the Opry. She kept leading the Clinch Mountain Clan. The old mountain voice remained onstage, older now but still carrying the same hard edge. She had already sung for more than sixty years by the time she walked onto the Ryman Auditorium stage on February 24, 2001. She was eighty. During that performance, Wilma Lee suffered a stroke. The career ended there. Not in a retirement announcement. Not in a farewell special. Onstage, in the place where she had kept the old sound alive for generations. The illness affected her speech and voice, and doctors doubted she would walk again. But Wilma Lee did return once more. In 2010, at the reopening of the Opry House after the Nashville flood, she came back for a group sing-along. Not to reclaim the old career. Not to prove anything. Just to stand in the room one more time and thank the people who had carried her. For most of her life, Wilma Lee Cooper sang as if the mountain had come down from West Virginia and entered the microphone. Her last great silence came on the same stage where she had spent decades refusing to let that mountain disappear.