Two of Prince’s most iconic recordings have surged to new streaming highs following their powerful placement in the series finale of Netflix’s Stranger Things, once again demonstrating the enduring cultural force of the Purple One’s music more than four decades after its release.
According to newly released Spotify data, Purple Rain has experienced a 243 per cent increase in global streams, while When Doves Cry has risen by 200 per cent since the final episode debuted. The renewed interest is particularly strong among Gen Z listeners, defined as those born between 1997 and 2012, underscoring how Prince’s catalogue continues to resonate far beyond its original era.
Both songs were originally released in 1984 on Purple Rain, the landmark album that accompanied Prince’s semi autobiographical film of the same name. The album not only defined Prince’s commercial peak but also reshaped the sound and ambition of mainstream pop, funk and rock in the 1980s. Four decades later, Stranger Things has introduced that work to a new generation in one of the most high profile television moments of recent years.
Music has always played a central role in the storytelling of Stranger Things, grounding its supernatural narrative in the emotional reality of 1980s youth culture. The series finale leaned heavily into that tradition, using side two of Purple Rain as a narrative device during the climactic battle to destroy the Upside Down. The sequence opens with the stark, urgent pulse of When Doves Cry before transitioning into the expansive emotional weight of Purple Rain as the episode reaches its final moments.
Series creators Matt and Ross Duffer have spoken openly about how deliberate the choice was. The brothers searched for an album that could move from celebration to gravity without losing coherence. Purple Rain emerged as the rare work that could do both, beginning with tension and release and ending in reflection and emotional consequence. In the context of the finale, the album became more than a soundtrack choice, it functioned as a structural element of the story itself.
Securing permission to use Purple Rain was far from guaranteed. Prince was famously protective of his music during his lifetime, and his estate has generally maintained strict controls over licensing, particularly for songs so closely tied to the original 1984 film. The fact that the song had rarely, if ever, appeared in television outside that context made its inclusion in Stranger Things all the more significant.
The Duffer Brothers have acknowledged that previous music moments in the series helped open doors. Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) experienced a dramatic resurgence after appearing in an earlier season, eventually becoming a major global hit decades after its release. That moment demonstrated how respectfully placed music could enhance storytelling while also revitalising an artist’s catalogue. It set a precedent that clearly influenced discussions around Prince’s work.
The streaming response suggests that history has repeated itself. Beyond the individual increases for Purple Rain and When Doves Cry, Prince’s broader catalogue has seen a substantial lift since the finale aired, indicating that listeners are exploring his work beyond the two featured tracks. For younger audiences, the songs are not nostalgic artefacts but emotionally charged discoveries framed by a contemporary narrative.
The timing has also reinforced Prince’s continued presence in popular culture. In recent years, his legacy has been celebrated through reissues, archival projects and stage productions centred on Purple Rain. The Stranger Things finale effectively placed an exclamation point on that ongoing reassessment, positioning Prince not as a legacy artist but as a timeless one.
Stranger Things has repeatedly demonstrated how music can transcend its original context when paired with strong visual storytelling. From earlier uses of songs by Metallica, The Clash and Kate Bush, the series has shown a consistent ability to reframe familiar recordings in ways that feel urgent and relevant. The response to Prince’s music in the finale confirms that his work sits comfortably alongside the most impactful moments in the show’s history.
More than forty years after its release, Purple Rain continues to function as both a cultural artefact and a living, evolving work. Its renewed streaming success following Stranger Things is less a revival than a reminder, Prince’s music never truly left the conversation, it simply found another generation ready to listen.
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