I Wanna Sex You Up


"I Wanna Sex You Up" is a song recorded by American group Color Me Badd. The song was released in March 1991 as the lead single from their debut album C.M.B.. The song was produced by Dr. Freeze and was also featured on the soundtrack to the 1991 film New Jack City.
The single achieved commercial success in the United States, spending four weeks at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping both the Billboard Hot R&B Singles and Hot Dance Singles Sales charts. It also enjoyed international success, peaking atop the charts of New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Charts and rankings

The song spent three weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart and reached number two for four consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, behind "More Than Words" by Extreme, and "Rush Rush" by Paula Abdul. It was the 10th best-selling single of 1991 in the UK and the Number 2 song of the year in the US, and in 1992 the song won the group a Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B/Soul Single, Group, Band or Duo and Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B/Soul Song of the Year. It was ranked #40 on Blender's list of the "50 Worst Songs Ever" and VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of the 90s".

Samples

The "to the tick tock ya don't stop" soundbite is sampled from Doug E. Fresh's "La Di Da Di." The bassline, chord structure and the "I know you not gonna sing that song!" soundbite are sampled from Betty Wright's "Tonight is the Night." The chorus melody is from the Shuggie Otis song "Strawberry Letter 23".
A sample of "I Wanna Sex You Up" has been used in the Kardinal Beats remix of "Tick Tock" by Lemar.

Track listings

; 7" single
  1. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:05
  2. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 3:38
; 12" maxi
  1. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 3:38
  2. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 5:13
  3. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:04
  4. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:05
  5. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:06

; CD maxi
  1. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 3:39
  2. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 5:14
  3. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:04
  4. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:05
  5. "I Wanna Sex You Up" — 4:07
; Cassette
  1. "I Wanna Sex You Up"
  2. "I Wanna Sex You Up"
  3. "I Wanna Sex You Up"
  4. "I Wanna Sex You Up"

    Official Versions

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

Appearances in other media

Television

The song has been used in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place, and a 1991 episode of the daytime soap opera Days of Our Lives.
The music video played on an episode of Beavis & Butt-Head, in which Beavis calls Color Me Badd a "Super Suck Group", referring to group members Sam Watters, Mark Calderon, and Bryan Abrams as Kenny G, George Michael, and Snow respectively. Butt-Head also commented that if he "sang like a wuss" that he would get chicks.
It was performed by members of the Glee cast in the episode "Acafellas", and subsequently released as a bonus track on, which was sold at Target.
Jimmy Fallon's The Ragtime Gals did a barbershop quarter rendition of the song for Late Night.
Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias did the song during an episode of Lip Sync Battle.

Films

The alternate hit version also appeared on the New Jack City soundtrack.