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🎙️ The British 150 Podcast – Episode 4: “Moving On Up” by M People

KIPT.UK 27/11/2025 0 Comments

If you’re following along with the podcast, this post accompanies Episode 4, where we explore one of Britain’s most uplifting and culturally significant 90s anthems: “Moving on Up”, by M People.

Welcome back to The British 150 Blog – thank you for finding your way here!

Each episode of The British 150 Podcast unpacks a track from the playlist: a curated journey through British music, culture and language. All playlists, podcasts and resources are freely available through the KIPT Learning Page.

If you’re curious about my one-to-one English lessons via Zoom, you can learn more on the KIPT Homepage — though as always, this project exists first and foremost to help you learn independently.

📝 Transcript & Learning Cards

You can download the full transcript and learning cards for Episode 4 here:
British 150_EP4_Transcript (Episode 4)

For this particular episode, the lyrics are already available on both Spotify and YouTube. They’re well worth reading while listening — especially if you’re interested in how assertive language and phrasal verbs work in real songs.

🎧 At the Crossroads of House, Soul and Pop

In the early 1990s, British music was undergoing a quiet revolution. Electronic dance music had begun to influence mainstream pop; house music emerged from club culture; soul found new expression through powerful vocalists; and pop became both danceable and sophisticated.

Here are the quick learning-card definitions expanded for the blog:

House

A genre of electronic dance music built on steady, repetitive beats and synthesised patterns. Originating in Chicago, house became a defining sound of British clubs in the late 80s and early 90s.

Soul

A genre rooted in Black American musical traditions — expressive vocals, emotional storytelling and rich harmonies. When mixed with British dance production, it creates the distinct “house-soul” blend M People mastered.

Pop

Short for “popular music”, pop focuses on memorable hooks, accessible lyrics and strong melodic lines. In the 90s, British pop experimented fearlessly across genres.

M People brought all three elements together: electronic rhythm, soulful vocals and polished pop song writing. Their blend became a familiar soundtrack to British optimism — the sense that a new chapter was opening.

🎤 About the Band & Song

Episode 4 highlights “Moving On Up”, written by Mike Pickering and Paul Heard, released in September 1993 and rising quickly through the charts. It reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart and helped cement the success of the album Elegant Slumming, which went on to win the 1994 Mercury Prize against giants such as Blur, Paul Weller, Take That, The Prodigy and Primal Scream.

But the soul of M People — quite literally — is Heather Small.

Heather Small: Voice, Identity and Independence

Heather Small’s voice is one of the most unmistakable in British music. Distinctive, resonant, confident and warm — she stands out even among the richly varied pop soundscape of the 1990s.

A few insights from her interviews give us a deeper cultural picture:

She once said that if she could have just “one song everyone knew”, she’d consider herself lucky. Instead, she ended up with several.
She recalls a group of refuse collectors seeing her in the street and spontaneously singing “Moving On Up” to her — a moment she described as “brilliant” and “warm”.
She has spoken openly about owning her Britishness later in life, after navigating racism and the pressures of the industry as a young Black woman.
She entered the 90s pop scene on her own terms: not easily pushed, not easily coerced and not motivated by money. She simply wanted to keep singing — and to keep her voice.

Heather’s impact didn’t end with M People. Her solo hit “Proud” became an international anthem, appearing at major cultural moments — from the Rugby World Cup to VE Day celebrations and the London Olympics bid.

M People’s Influence on Later British Pop

M People’s blend of empowerment, house grooves and soulful power arguably paved the way for the “girl power” explosion later in the decade.

The phrase “Who do you think you are?” appears in their 1993 single years before the Spice Girls’ version — and the assertive tone of self-definition feels remarkably similar.

While the influences may not be direct, the cultural overlap is clear: a rising confidence among British women, expressed through pop.

💬 Language, Phrasal Verbs and Assertive British English

“Moving On Up” is packed with excellent English-learning moments:

Phrasal Verbs

A phrasal verb is a combination of a verb and a preposition (or adverb) that creates a figurative meaning — not always predictable from its parts.

Literal Meaning

The straightforward, surface meaning of a word or phrase — what it looks like or does in the real world.

Figurative Meaning

An imaginative or symbolic meaning — ideas expressed metaphorically.

Idiomatic Meaning

A meaning understood through cultural use rather than logic. Idioms cannot be translated word for word.

Examples from the lyrics:

Moving on up — progressing in life; becoming stronger or more independent.
Moving on out — leaving a situation decisively.
Time is up — the end of something; a firm boundary.
Break free — escape restriction; become independent.
You’ve gone too far — you’ve crossed a known line.

Heather Small uses these phrases with clarity and calm confidence — classic features of assertive British English.

🧥 Cultural Context: Women’s Rights in the Early 1990s

It’s impossible to understand the power of this song without remembering women’s experiences in Britain at the time. Some key moments around the early 90s:

1989: The first major research into domestic violence against Black women was published.
1991: The House of Lords formally confirmed that marital rape was a crime — a shockingly late development.
Workplace equality policies were slowly emerging, yet office culture remained heavy with sexism and dismissive attitudes.

Against this backdrop, Heather Small’s voice felt nothing short of radical.

“Moving On Up” wasn’t just a breakup song. It was an assertion of identity, autonomy, dignity and momentum — a declaration that a woman could leave what didn’t serve her and rise anyway. Before the Spice Girls’ platform shoes and slogans, Heather Small had already done the heavy lifting!

🎓 Learn More & Dig Deeper

If this episode sparked your curiosity, these links take you deeper:

Heather Small’s musical influences: NME Interview
For further articles and interviews with Heather Small, see bibliography below for links
Learn about the Hacienda Club
The British 150 Playlist — for more songs where British identity and language intertwine

👋 About Me

Hello, I’m Kirsty — an online English teacher based in the UK.
I teach one-to-one lessons on Zoom, focusing on clear communication and the practical English you actually need.

If you’d like a free 1-hour consultation (Intermediate to Advanced level only), feel free to email me at Kirsty@kipt.uk or use the contact form on the KIPT Contact page.

Not sure about your level? Try the British Council’s free English test.

The British 150 is my passion project — my way of combining culture, music and language into something useful, enjoyable and free.