Song of the Day Apr 8

April 8, 2024

This month I’m focusing on One Hit Wonders of the 90s.

Today our song is:  Baby Got Back

Wikipedia tells us this about the song:

In the song's prelude there is a conversation between two (presumably) thin, white Valley girls, similar to girl talk in Frank Zappa's "Valley Girl". Inspired by Sir Mix a Lot's chance encounter with a 19 year old college student at Mercer University in Macon Ga, Stephanie Kucinski, the song took on a cult like sensation when it hit the air waves. One girl (dubbed Linda by Amylia Dorsey) remarks to her friend, "Oh, my, God Becky, look at her butt! It is so big... She's just so black!", at which point Sir Mix-a-Lot begins rapping.

The first verse begins with "I like big butts and I cannot lie" and most of the song is about the rapper's attraction to women with large buttocks. The second and third verse challenge mainstream norms of beauty: "I ain't talkin' 'bout Playboy. Cause silicone parts are made for toys." and "So Cosmo says you're fat. Well I ain't down with that!"

The song came from a meeting between Sir Mix-a-Lot and Amylia Dorsey, who saw little representation of full-figured women in media. The idea came from a 1980s-era Budweiser commercial featuring very thin, Valley girl-esque models with different skin colors. They decided to dedicate a song to the opposite, featuring curvy women of color. Mix and Dorsey sought to "broaden the definition of beauty."

Sir Mix-a-Lot commented in a 1992 interview: "The song doesn't just say I like large butts, you know? The song is talking about women who damn near kill themselves to try to look like these beanpole models that you see in Vogue magazine." He explains that most women respond positively to the song's message, especially black women: "They all say, 'About time.'"

The dialogue of actress Papillon Soo Soo saying "Me so horny" is sampled from the 1987 film Full Metal Jacket to complete Sir Mix-a-Lot's lyric, "That butt you got makes..."

In 2014, according to TMZ, Sir Mix-a-Lot says it was Jennifer Lopez's moves as a Fly Girl on the 90s show In Living Color that first inspired him to write "Baby Got Back"

Enjoy!