If Boyz II Men are portrayed as a clean-cut, wholesome R&B vocal group, then Jodeci's wild, sexual, bad-boy image represents the other side of the coin. Made up of two sets of brothers, the group's name is a consolidation of three members' aliases: "JoJo" Hailey, Donald "DeVante Swing" DeGrate, and Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey; the group also includes Dalvin DeGrate. Natives of Charlotte, NC, all four members toured the South as young boys singing gospel music, even recording albums; both families belonged to the Pentecostal church, and the DeGrates' father was a minister. The boys were able to hear each other's gospel songs played on the radio, and eventually were introduced through girlfriends as teenagers. However, when they did meet, K-Ci was with a girl Dalvin had been dating, and a fight nearly broke out. The Hailey brothers and DeVante started hanging out together, partying and talking about making R&B records together, coming up with the name Jodeci at this time.
At age 16, DeVante ran away to Minneapolis to get a job in Prince's organization, but was refused. He returned to Charlotte, where he wrote a song and recorded JoJo singing it. The two planned on going to New York to shop the demo around by themselves, but both K-Ci and Dalvin decided to tag along at the last minute. By the time they got to New York, they had demo recordings of 29 songs, which they brought to the offices of Uptown Entertainment. They were almost rejected, but rapper Heavy D overheard the tape and talked Uptown president Andre Harrell into hearing the group. Harrell was impressed, and just like that, Jodeci signed a recording contract. In 1991, they recorded Forever My Lady, which featured the gold single "Come and Talk to Me" and went on to sell over three million copies. A minor feud resulted over the band's follow-up album, Diary of a Mad Band; Jodeci, unhappy with their treatment by Uptown, flirted with the idea of leaving for Dr. Dre's Death Row Records, which resulted in almost zero promotion for their new album. It didn't matter much, as Diary went platinum. The group's troubles got worse in 1993; DeVante and K-Ci were involved in an incident with a woman K-Ci met at a club and brought back to DeVante's apartment. The woman filed charges against the two, saying that K-Ci had threatened her and fondled her breast, while DeVante pointed a gun at her. Both pleaded guilty, but that wasn't all; shortly afterwards, DeVante's house was robbed of over 160,000 dollars in jewelry and clothes as the singer was held with guns in his mouth and at the back of his head.
Jodeci's third album, The Show, the After Party, the Hotel, was released in the summer of 1995. DeVante also was afforded the opportunity to work with Al Green, one of his idols, writing and producing the song "Could This Be the Love." ~ Steve Huey, Rovi
Jodeci Albums:
* 1991: Forever My Lady #18 US (3x platinum)
* 1993: Diary of a Mad Band #3 US (2x platinum)
* 1995: The Show, The After Party, The Hotel #2 US (platinum)
* 2005: Back to The Future: The Very Best of Jodeci (300,000)
Jodeci Singles:
* 1991: "Gotta Love"
* 1991: "Stay" (US #41, R&B #1)
* 1991: "Forever My Lady" (US #25, R&B #1)
* 1991: "Come and Talk to Me" (US #11, R&B #1)
* 1993: "Cry For You" (US #15, R&B #1)
* 1993: "Feenin'" (US #25, R&B #2)
* 1993: "Lately" (US #4, R&B #1)
* 1993: "Let's Go Through the Motions" (US #65)
* 1994: "What About Us" (R&B #14)
* 1995: "Freek'n You" (US #14, R&B #3)
* 1995: "Love U 4 Life"
* 1996: "Get on Up" (US #22, R&B #4)
Jodeci Side-Projects:
(K-Ci & JoJo)
* 1997: Love Always
* 1999: It's Real
* 2000: X
* 2002: Emotional
* 2005: All My Life "Their Greatest Hits"
(Dalvin Degrate)
* 2000: Met.A.Mor.Phic
(K-Ci Solo)
* 2006: My Book
Give It Up
Jodeci Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let a nigga know where you wanna go
Is it Acapulco? I got the money dough
You got my body and them lines be on the highway
So I say what up, we may get to hook up on Friday
I heard you got the bomb to make his actin' dumb
I kinda think I wanna hit it like a snare drum
Thinkin' about you, Jodeci help me sing it now
I was just sitting right here
Waiting for you, my dear
I was just chillin', are you willin'
To give up that feelin'?
I was just sitting right here
Waiting for you, my dear
I was just chillin', are you willin'
To give up that feelin'?
Oh, it's ten in the morning
And baby I'm yawning
Didn't get no sleep last night
Thinking about your love, it's so tight
Oh, I'm mesmerized by your face
Wanna see your panty lace
And you know I'm on the real
And I wanna give you some sexual healing
I was just sitting right here
Waiting for you, my dear
I was just chillin', are you willin'
To give up that feelin'?
I was just sitting right here
Waiting for you, my dear
I was just chillin', are you willin'
To give up that feelin'?
Baby, do you have the time
To hear what's on my mind?
Try and understand
Sexin' you is the master plan
Baby, don't be shy
Please don't try and fight
Baby, give me half a chance
Let me show you romance
I was just sitting right here
Waiting for you, my dear
I was just chillin', are you willin'
To give up that feelin'?
I was just sitting right here
Waiting for you, my dear
I was just chillin', are you willin'
To give up that feelin'?
Say it again, say it again
Did it right here
And I'm waiting, waiting, waiting
I was just chillin'
Are you willin', baby?
Tell me, wanna know
Got to know
Give it up, give it up
Give it up, show me love
Give it up, give it up
Give it up, show me love
Give it up, give it up
Give it up, show me love
Give it up, give it up
Give it up, show me love
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
No doubt
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
?
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
Oh fuck
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
No doubt
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
To give it up that feelin'
?
(Oh fuck)
Waiting for you, my dear
(No doubt)
?
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
(No doubt)
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
?
(Give it up, give it up, give it up)
To give it up that feelin'
The lyrics to Jodeci's "Give It Up" seem to be an invitation for intimacy and sexual exploration. The artist makes suggestive comments, including offering to take his partner on a vacation to Acapulco and commenting on how their connection leaves him feeling like he's flying down a highway. He also compliments his partner's physical appearance, expressing a desire to see her in lingerie. The chorus repeats a plea for his partner to "give it up," suggesting that they have been flirting for some time and now he wants to take their relationship to the next level.
The verses express the artist's longing for intimacy and his hope that his partner will be receptive to his advances. He tells his partner that he has been waiting for her, and encourages her to be open to passion and sensuality, suggesting that sex is the "master plan" which will bring them together. The song has a slow, sultry beat that matches the sexual undertones of the lyrics, suggesting that the artist is confident, but also patient and willing to wait for his partner to be ready for intimacy.
Overall, the lyrics to "Give It Up" suggest that the artist is smooth, confident, and highly skilled when it comes to seduction, but also respectful of his partner's boundaries and desires.
Line by Line Meaning
What's up, yeah
Hey, what's going on?
Let a nigga know where you wanna go
Tell me where you want to go
Is it Acapulco? I got the money dough
Is Acapulco where you want to go? I have the money to pay for it
You got my body and them lines be on the highway
You have my attention and my heart is racing
So I say what up, we may get to hook up on Friday
So I'm saying hey, we might be able to meet up on Friday
I heard you got the bomb to make his actin' dumb
I heard you have sexual skills that make men feel foolish
I kinda think I wanna hit it like a snare drum
I think I might want to have sex with you
What I do is what I do, yeah, no doubt
I am who I am and I'm not ashamed of it
Thinkin' about you, Jodeci help me sing it now
I'm thinking about you and Jodeci's music is helping me express my feelings
Oh, it's ten in the morning
It's ten o'clock in the morning
And baby I'm yawning
And I'm yawning because I didn't get much sleep last night
Didn't get no sleep last night
I didn't get any sleep last night
Thinking about your love, it's so tight
I'm thinking about how amazing your love is
Oh, I'm mesmerized by your face
I'm fascinated by your face
Wanna see your panty lace
I want to see your underwear
And you know I'm on the real
And you know I'm being honest
And I wanna give you some sexual healing
And I want to have sex with you
Baby, do you have the time
Do you have time to talk?
To hear what's on my mind?
To listen to what I have to say?
Try and understand
Please try to understand
Sexin' you is the master plan
Having sex with you is my ultimate goal
Baby, don't be shy
Don't be afraid or embarrassed
Please don't try and fight
Please don't resist
Baby, give me half a chance
Please give me a chance
Let me show you romance
Let me show you how romantic I can be
Say it again, say it again
Repeat what you just said
Did it right here
We had sex here
And I'm waiting, waiting, waiting
And now I'm waiting for more
Baby, do you have the time?
Can you spare some time for me?
Tell me, wanna know
Please let me know
Give it up, give it up
Give me what I want
Show me love, give it up
Show me love and give me what I want
No doubt
For sure
To give it up that feeling
To succumb to the feeling and do what I want
Waiting for you, my dear
I'm waiting here for you
Lyrics Β© Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, KIONGAZI MUSIC AMARI MUSIC, INC.
Written by: DALVIN DEGRATE, JOEL M HAILEY, RICHARD CEDRIC HAILEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Akeem Cooper
I swear on my life the 90s was the best era of music, hands down
Rudolph Manor
@mayena True. π―
mayena
Every generation say that about there decade.
Megan Erbaugh
It really was!!
Sweetz
70s & 90s
Jim Jones
I would say 80βs & 90βs
Bamboo
Great song, bittersweet since it was one of Jodeci's last. But I still think DeVante is best producer and really knows how to maximize the group's vocal abilities through the way he arranged the vocals.
Mykyron5! Mykyron5!
This song was produced by dalvin
Spontainiouz 1000
I love this whole GOT DAMN soundtrack... Classic!!!!!!!
Spmce
Got damn