“You Can’t Stop the Beat” is an upbeat song in the musical Hairspray, and is the sixteenth song on the movie’s soundtrack. Hairspray tells the story of Tracy Turnblad, an overweight girl in the 60’s. Her dream is to dance on her favorite TV show, the Corny Collins show, with her crush, Link. Due to her weight, she faces troubles reaching her dreams. Along the way, she befriends and becomes an activist with a group of black people, who show her the trouble they face everyday due to the color of their skin. The musical follows Tracy’s journey, and the roll she ends up playing in the Civil Rights movement, all while trying to reach her own goal of dancing on television.

This song, performed at the height of the movie’s resolution, is filled with many of the movie’s lead characters coming to terms with theirselves and their circumstances. One of the most popular songs in the musical, “You Can’t Stop the Beat” is a symbol of following dreams, self-confidence, and, at the very core of the music, overcoming systematic oppression on all levels.