Jodeci

Released: February 24, 1991

Songwriter: K-Ci Hailey DeVante Swing

Producer: DeVante Swing

[Intro]
I gotta love I wanna give you
Much, tell me
Bass
Love I wanna give (Drop it on 'em)
Bass (Drop it on 'em)
Come get it, gal
You know you want it (Drop it on 'em)
Do do do do do do do do...
(Drop it on 'em)

[Verse 1: K-Ci]
Your place or mine, tell me what will it be
I've got something I would like for you to see
Trust me now, it won't take much time
I've got something I wanna leave on your mind
(I gotta love)
When you walk through that door, kick off your shoes
Take off that dress I got a treat for you
Don't be afraid, baby, don't be scared
Can I touch your body? Ooh, can I touch you there?

[Refrain: Jodeci + (K-Ci)]
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
(I've got love on my mind)
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby just tell me
(Check it out, girlfriend) Drop it on 'em
(Yeah yeah yeah)

[Verse 2: K-Ci]
Your sexy voice really turns me on
You've given me no choice, it's got to be done
How do you want it, simple or complex?
Gimme all you got, I just wanna be sexed

[Chorus]
I gotta love I wanna give you
Much, tell me
Love I wanna give you
Much, tell me
(Yeah yeah yeah) (Drop it on 'em)

[Refrain: Jodeci + (K-Ci)]
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
(DeVante, let's break it down now)

[Rap]
Mary Jane's cool, I guess I'll pay you a visit
I guess I'll bring you dinner while I kick you ballistics
Yeah, I diz and it is that'll get you hot and wet
Yes, I do, 'cause I gotta get wreck
Mrs. Sarah, oh, I can't forget about Pam
In case you really don't know who I am
I'm the J-to the O-to the D-E-to the C-I
I got a love that you can't deny

[Verse 3: K-Ci]
I take that it was fun 'cause I didn't hear any complaints
I hope it was so good 'til it made you insane
(I gotta love)
If you should ever get bored, and you need some more
Come see me any time, you're always welcome through my door

[Chorus]
I gotta love I wanna give you
Much, tell me
Love I wanna give you
Much, tell me

(Drop it on 'em...drop it on 'em...)

[Refrain: Jodeci + (K-Ci)]
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
(Break it down one time for me, baby)

[Bridge: K-Ci]
(Bass...bass)
(Drop it on 'em)
Do you want it, baby? Do you want it, baby?

[Refrain: Jodeci + (K-Ci)]
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
I gotta love I wanna give
If it's too much, baby, just tell me
(Drop it on 'em...)

Started in 1983, Jodeci is comprised of two sets of brothers—Cedric and Joel Hailey (also known as K-Ci and JoJo) and Donald and Dalvin Degrate (also known as DeVante Swing and Mr. Dalvin). Jodeci were once known as the “bad boys of R&B,” notable particularly because they were actually boys at the time, breaking out as teenagers in 1991 with their debut album and its title ballad, “Forever My Lady.” Natives of North Carolina, they were discovered by Heavy D, who overheard their demo when an A&R at Uptown was in the process of passing on them. Heavy D introduced Jodeci to Uptown founder Andre Harrell, who signed them after they sang in his office, and handed them off to his then-protégé Puff Daddy, who outfitted the group in dark shades and coordinating leather ensembles. The look, along with the streetwise soul found in songs like “Cry 4 U” and “Feenin” (as well as a few run-ins with the law) made them the antithesis to good-guy personas of then-peaking R&B superstars Boyz II Men. Devante, who along with Mr. Dalvin held down production duties for the group, founded the Swing Mob, a collective responsible for the discovery of musical geniuses like Timbaland, Missy Elliott, and Static Major. As a group, Jodeci would go on to release three critically-acclaimed album in the ‘90s, before disappearing from the limelight. K-Ci and JoJo splintered off as a duo in 1997, producing hit single “All My Life” and, eventually, five albums, but adoring fans never let go of their Jodeci obsession. In March, the group released The Past, The Present, The Future, the first Jodeci album in two decades. Jodeci, if y'all reading this, where’d you go?

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Forever My Lady

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Forever My Lady (1991)

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Forever My Lady