I Ain't Supposed To
Impressions Lyrics
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And hold you tight
I know it's wrong, but girl,
It feels alright
You are promised, to another
And I am too
Then why do we keep on doin'
Your perfume ain't supposed to smell
Quite so sweet,
And our hands shouldn't tremble like this
Every time we meet
When you're not around I'm not supposed to feel so blue,
Then why do we keep on doing
What we ain't supposed to do
We must be in love (we ain't supposed to)
Heaven up above knows (we ain't supposed to)
While we're hoping (we ain't supposed to)
That we are eloping (we ain't supposed to)
When you're not around I'm not supposed to be so blue
Then why do we keep on doing
What we ain't supposed to do, yeah
(We ain't supposed to)
You are promised to another
And I am too,
Then why do we keep on doing
What we ain't supposed to do
We must be in love (but we ain't supposed to)
Heaven up above knows (we ain't supposed to)
While we're hoping (we ain't supposed to)
Someday we're eloping (we ain't supposed to)
The lyrics of Impressions’ song “I Ain’t Supposed To” are a confession of forbidden love between two individuals who are already promised to others. The opening lines of the song, “I ain't supposed to want to squeeze and hold you tight, I know it's wrong, but girl, it feels alright,” sets the tone for the entire song. The singer acknowledges that the desire and the act of embracing another person’s partner are wrong, but he cannot help but give into his feelings.
The chorus, “We must be in love (we ain't supposed to), heaven up above knows (we ain't supposed to), while we're hoping (we ain't supposed to), that we are eloping (we ain't supposed to)” presents a conflict between the morals and societal expectations of the time versus people's desires and love. They know they should not be in love, and at the same time, they cannot control their emotions. The desire to elope represents their wish to be together despite the obstacles in their way.
The verses of the song describe the physical and emotional sensations that the two feel when they are together, like the intensity of their perfume, the shakiness of their hands when they meet, and the blues they experience when apart. The use of sensory and emotional language creates a vivid image of their forbidden love. The lyrics of the song are thematically and emotionally heavy and resonate with anyone who has had to fight for love or any lover determined to surmount any barrier.
Line by Line Meaning
I ain't supposed to want to squeeze
And hold you tight
I know it's wrong, but girl,
It feels alright
I know we shouldn't be physically close because we're both committed to other people, but it's hard to resist how good it feels to hold you.
You are promised, to another
And I am too
Then why do we keep on doin'
What we ain't supposed to do
Even though we both promised ourselves to someone else, why can't we stop ourselves from breaking those promises by being together?
Your perfume ain't supposed to smell
Quite so sweet,
And our hands shouldn't tremble like this
Every time we meet
The way you smell and the way our bodies react to each other shouldn't feel this intense, but we can't help it.
When you're not around I'm not supposed to feel so blue,
Then why do we keep on doing
What we ain't supposed to do
I know I shouldn't feel so unhappy and alone when you're not with me, but we keep making choices that only make things harder.
We must be in love (we ain't supposed to)
Heaven up above knows (we ain't supposed to)
While we're hoping (we ain't supposed to)
That we are eloping (we ain't supposed to)
It's wrong for us to fall in love because we're both in relationships, but we can't shake the feeling that we're meant to be together and runaway someday.
You are promised to another
And I am too,
Then why do we keep on doing
What we ain't supposed to do
Even though we both promised ourselves to someone else, why can't we stop ourselves from breaking those promises by being together?
We must be in love (but we ain't supposed to)
Heaven up above knows (we ain't supposed to)
While we're hoping (we ain't supposed to)
Someday we're eloping (we ain't supposed to)
It's hard to admit that we're in love because it's wrong, but we keep hoping that we can find a way to be together permanently by running away and starting a new life.
Contributed by Avery J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.