“Into the Groove” is a song by American singer Madonna, featured in the 1985 film Desperately Seeking Susan. Written and produced with Stephen Bray, it was inspired by the dance floor and Madonna’s attraction to a Puerto Rican man. Built around synthesizers, drum machines, and double-tracked vocals, the song features sexual innuendos and functions as an invitation to dance. Originally written for producer Mark Kamins, Madonna later decided to use the track in a scene from the film that required a dance number—though it was not included on the official soundtrack. Instead, it appeared on the international 1985 reissue of her second studio album Like a Virgin (1984), and later on her compilations You Can Dance (1987), The Immaculate Collection (1990), Celebration (2009), and Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones (2022).
In the United States, “Into the Groove” was not released as a commercial single, making it ineligible for the Billboard Hot 100. Instead, it was issued as the B-side to the 12-inch maxi-single of “Angel”, the third official single from Like a Virgin. This release —billed as “Angel/Into the Groove”— topped Billboard’s Dance Singles Sales chart. Internationally, the song achieved major commercial success. It was released in the United Kingdom on July 15, 1985, and became Madonna’s first number-one single there —where it remains her best-selling to date. It also topped the charts in Ireland, Italy, and the Netherlands.
Critics responded positively to the track, with Billboard naming it the best dance single of the 1980s in a readers’ poll. Although no official music video was produced, a montage of scenes from Desperately Seeking Susan received regular rotation on MTV. Madonna has performed “Into the Groove” on seven of her concert tours, the most recent being the Celebration Tour (2023―2024). It has been covered and sampled by numerous artists, including Dannii Minogue, whose 2003 single “Don’t Wanna Lose This Feeling” marked the first time Madonna officially approved a sample of one of her songs.
