While the likes of Beyonce, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran have cracked the code on musical dominations, not every artist can be successful.
However, some are able to crack the charts on just one occasion, and the 1980s brought us some classic songs that still get played now, even though the original artists were never able to replicate the success.
From the likes of The Weather Girls to Toni Basil and even the Sugarhill Gang, the 'decade of decadence' brought us some absolute bangers.
Scroll down to discover where the artists of eight of the biggest one-hit wonders of the decade are now…
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© Alamy Stock PhotoThe Weather Girls had a major hit on their hands
The Weather Girls - It's Raining Men
Released in 1982, It's Raining Men dominated the 1980s, and it's still regularly referred to as one of the decade's biggest hits. However, the track nearly didn't even reach the airwaves, with Donna Summer, Cher, Diana Ross and Barbra Streisand all turning it down, and even The Weather Girls initially weren't keen.
It's hard to imagine the song, which has now been adopted as a gay anthem, never being released, and it has certainly stood the test of time, still being played across radio stations and in clubs and Pride parades every year.
At the time, The Weather Girls consisted of Izora Armstead and Martha Wash, with the pair first forming a band known as Tons O' Fun back in 1976. The pair remained together until 1988 when they disbanded, and although Izora reformed in 1991, line-up changes meant that the original duo are no longer part of the group, which is currently made up of Dynelle Rhodes, Dorrey Lin Lyles, Darnita Williams and Dawn Tallman.
After the band initially disbanded, Izora had a brief solo career, before reforming the Weather Girls with her daughter, Dynelle. The singer was a mother to seven children, raising them all as a single parent and finding work as a nurse assistant and bartender to cover the bills. Izora died at the age of 62 on 16 September 2004 from heart failure.
Meanwhile, Martha has had an incredible career, and changed music history when she pursued a legal challenge against C+C Music Factory and Black Box for not crediting her vocals on her songs and using models to lip-sync to her tones. Her success in court meant that vocal credits are now mandatory on all albums and music videos. Since the band disbanded, Martha, now aged 72, has released three studio albums and collaborated on tracks including Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) and Strike It Up.
The singer is also known for her philanthropy, campaigning for LGBTQ+ rights, HIV/AIDS awareness and she serves as a spokeswoman for the Quality Services for the Autism Community.
Reflecting on It's Raining Men's legacy in 2011, Martha said: "It's definitely stood the test of time. Now you have the grandparents who love the song, the parents who love the song and the grandkids who love the song. They all get up and dance."
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© Alamy Stock PhotoToni still performs at the moment
Toni Basil - Mickey
'Oh, Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine, you blow my mind. Hey, Mickey!' Admit it, you've now got this 1982 classic stuck in your head, and it will likely be there for the rest of the day.
The song has received countless plays since it was released, with Toni's cheerleader look on the album cover making it the anthem of almost every school sporting event, fitting given that Toni was once a head cheerleader.
Toni, now aged 82, released a few other songs during the decade, she later swapped to continue her acting career, while also serving as a choreographer on the likes of Legally Blonde. She still continues to dance, even a surprise guest appearance on Dancing with the Stars, and amazingly, she still owns and wears the cheerleading outfit she wore for the video.
Speaking to The Guardian in 2025 about her music career, she said: "I never thought of it as anything but a time period. It was just a train ride. I was able to earn a living, I had fabulous, talented friends that were all doing something similar, but like Bowie, we all evolved. Dance styles change, music changes, so if you keep up with the trend, you change."
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© Getty ImagesWe would love to live in Funkytown
Lipps Inc. - Funkytown
Want to head down to Funkytown? The members of Lipps Inc. did back in 1980, with the song becoming the band's only No. 1 hit, with previous singles failing to chart at all. Sadly, despite the disco anthem still being popular until this day, the band didn't last, disbanding in 1985, five years after the release of their hit.
Lead singer Cynthia Johnson, now aged 70, has continued to perform, with her debut album, All That I Am, being released back in 2013. Meanwhile, Steven Greenberg's son, Nile, previously competed on Made as a rapper, while the star's nephew John Fields is a successful songwriter and producer.
Members Margie Cox and David Rivkin later collaborated with Prince, with Margie providing vocals, while David served as a producer on Purple Rain.
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© Getty ImagesThe band did find moderate success with other songs
Sugarhill Gang - Rapper's Delight
'Said a hip-hop, the hippie to the hippie' is all you need to hear before you're going through one of the most iconic choruses of the decades. Rapper's Delight was released by The Sugarhill Gang in 1979, but it was in January 1980 that it took over the airwaves.
Although the group disbanded in 1985, they reformed in 1994, and have been performing ever since, with their song Apache attracting plenty of attention, although nothing like what Rapper's Delight was able to achieve.
Singer Wonder Mike's daughter, Carmen Delgina competed on the 13th season of American Idol, although she was eliminated during Hollywood Week. Speaking in 2024 about the song, Wonder Mike, now aged 69, said: "It was the simplest thing ever done.
"We listened to the song until 3:00 a.m. until everybody went home. I had a pretty good ear for music. The entire globe hadn’t heard anything like this before and the lyrics were catchy. We are here 45 years later and still get bombarded with calls for us to perform."
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© Michael Ochs ArchivesBerlin's biggest hit drove them apart
Berlin - Take My Breath Away
One of the most defining films of the 1980s was Top Gun, and its signature romantic song, Take My Breath Away, followed in the film's global success, becoming a giant hit for Berlin, which at the time featured Terri Nunn, John Crawford, David Diamond and Rob Brill.
However, despite the song's success, it actually led to the group breaking up. Lead singer Terri thought it would help the group achieve worldwide success, while John wasn't happy with the song becoming their biggest hit, due to no one from the group being involved in its writing process. In 1997, the group left the tensions behind as they reformed, and continue to do so.
During their split, Terri released her own album, Moment of Truth, but she attracted controversy in 2020 when she performed at a New Year's Eve event at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago. She has since distanced herself from the event.
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© United Archives via Getty ImagesThe song was a worldwide hit
Nena - 99 Red Balloons
While Nena might be a major star in her home country of Germany, audiences in the UK and US only know the singer thanks to her global hit, 99 Red Balloons, also known as 99 Luftballons. The upbeat pop anthem became one of 1983's biggest songs, with audiences enjoying both the English version and the native German.
At the time, Nena was the lead singer of the group of the same name, but she kept going by her mononym when they disbanded in 1987. As a solo artist, Nena, now aged 66, has released 13 studio albums, with plenty of success during the 00s.
The singer is a mother to seven children, although one of them sadly died at the age of 11 months. Her late child was born disabled, and during his birth, Nena suffered a cardiac arrest. Three of her children have followed her into music, with her twins, Sakias and Larissa, being her backing singers, while her son, Simeon, is a keyboardist for his mum.
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© Gentle Look via Getty ImagesThe band's biggest song came from an EP
Bow Wow Wow - I Want Candy
Do you want candy? New wave band Bow Wow Wow knew the answer in 1982 when they released their highly popular cover of the classic 1965 song, initially sung by The Strangeloves. The song was part of their 1982 EP, The Last of the Mohicans, and would prove to be the band's only hit.
Bow Wow Wow still perform, although the only original member left is the bassist Leigh Gorman. The lead singer at the time was Annabella Lwin, although she was sacked from the group in 1983, with the artist reportedly only finding out the news when she read it in NME. Annabella returned to the band in 1989, but she has also had a successful solo career, with three studio albums, including one released in 1986, three years after her sacking.
Speaking in 2025, Annabella said of her career: "I definitely experienced bullying, both personally and professionally. It was in undercurrents, really, a lack of respect from how people treated me, as a teenager and as a female. Put it this way, it was obvious there was a difference between how men and women were treated in the music business. I never want to go through bullying again – and I never want anyone else to, either."
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© Gentle Look via Getty ImagesThe song is popular on social media
Matthew Wilder - Break my Stride
It is the soundtrack to dozens of cute videos of animals marching, but Matthew Wilder's seminal hit was originally released back in 1983. The song has been covered countless times, including by Unique II and Aaron Carter.
Matthew, now aged 73, might not have had a major musical career, but he did write the songs for the Disney film Mulan, even providing the singing voice for Ling in the film. He has also worked on music for stage productions like Princesses and Stiletto.
