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\n Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Courtesy of Netflix, Gus Stewart\/Redferns\/Getty Images\n <\/p>\n
When the Duffer brothers teased<\/a> at the end of 2025 that the Stranger Things finale featured a never-before-licensed television needle drop made possible by Kate Bush, two main theories emerged: The song was either from her old friend Prince or Pink Floyd\u2019s David Gilmour, who was Bush\u2019s early career mentor. The former ended up being correct<\/a> with the one-two gut punch of \u201cWhen Doves Cry\u201d and \u201cPurple Rain\u201d soundtracking the group blowing up the Upside Down and Eleven, seemingly, sacrificing herself in it. Speaking to Variety<\/a> about the lengthy process of getting Prince\u2019s estate to clear the songs \u2014 one of which had already been used in Black-ish a decade ago, so, not a first \u2014 music supervisor Nora Felder admitted that the dream shortlist also included the greatest song in rock history. \u201cI\u2019m not going to say Led Zeppelin didn\u2019t come up. I tried Led Zeppelin, but it didn\u2019t work because I was thinking \u2018Stairway to Heaven\u2019 and it wasn\u2019t a first and a last situation,\u201d she explained. \u201cAnd I thought maybe Pink Floyd with The Wall.\u201d<\/p>\n Led Zeppelin, famously strict and exacting about the use of their catalogue, has never allowed \u201cStairway to Heaven\u201d to be used in any capacity in the film and television industries. Robert Plant previously told us<\/a> that \u201cthere are two Capricorns and one Leo\u201d to contend with in the band and \u201cwe have to go through the whole thing together\u201d to approve needle drops. They believe the majority of the offers they receive aren\u2019t worthy of their music, and those that are \u2014 including The Bear and The Big Short and, perhaps the very best one, School of Rock<\/a> \u2014 are exceedingly rare. \u201cThe music is dynamic. There it is, sitting there, and happily waiting for romance or nuance or drive that should link to a film with substance,\u201d Plant added. \u201cBut those are hard to come by. It\u2019s not easy to find that. A lot of stuff is completely tasteless.\u201d So, do you really think those three would\u2019ve said \u201cyes\u201d to the CGI Mind Flayer?<\/p>\n Related<\/p>\n