Keith Sweat was born in Harlem, New York City, to Juanita Thompson, a hairdresser, and Charles Sweat, a factory worker. After Charles Sweat's passing in 1973, Juanita raised their five kids by herself. He worked as a night stock boy at Macy's Department Store, and then a mail room clerk at Paine Webber, a brokerage firm. In just four years he worked his way up to a lucrative brokerage assistant job on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.[2] Sweat also worked as a supervisor for the New York Mercantile Exchange.[1]
Sweat started his musical career as a member of a Harlem band called Jamilah in 1975.[3] With the help of Jamilah, Sweat was able to hone his craft as a lead singer by performing regionally throughout the tri-State area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The group was started by bassist Larry Peoples, guitarist Michael Samuels, and drummer Walter Bradley.[citation needed]
After leaving the group in 1984 to begin a solo career, he sang at nightclubs throughout New York City and landed a chance to record for the independent label, Stadium Records. Sweat recorded only two tunes for Stadium, "Lucky Seven", and "My Mind Is Made Up", which was their third and fourth ever release, but on Stadium's first release, he is credited as co-writer and co-producer of "You Are the One for Me", the last recording ever made by the group GQ. One of GQ's original members is his uncle, Keith "Sabu" Crier.
Later in 1987, Keith Sweat was discovered by Vincent Davis and offered a recording contract with his label, Vintertainment Records, which was founded in 1983 on the foundations of early Hip-Hop and otherwise best known for releasing Joeski Love's "Pee Wee's Dance" in 1985. Vintertainment was distributed by Elektra Records from 1985 until it ceased operations in 1990. On November 24, 1987, Sweat released his debut solo studio album Make It Last Forever, which sold three million copies. The biggest hit from this album was the song that inaugurated the new jack swing era "I Want Her"[5] (No. 1 R&B & No. 5 Pop), which was nominated for the 1989 Soul Train Best R&B/Urban Contemporary Song of the Year award, while the title track from the album hit No. 2 on the R&B charts. Sweat reached the charts again with his second album I'll Give All My Love to You (1990) which hit No. 6 on the Billboard 200 chart. He released his third album, Keep It Comin' in 1991, which debuted in the Top 20 of the album chart. He produced soul singer Omar Chandler.
In 1992, Sweat discovered the group Silk, and helped craft their debut album, Lose Control, which hit No. 7 on the Billboard 200 album chart.[6]
The album's single "Freak Me" hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on May 1, 1993. In 1993, Sweat discovered the Atlanta-based female R&B group Kut Klose. Sweat also produced the group's debut album Surrender, which produced their biggest hit single "I Like", peaking to No. 8 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart.
Sweat released his fourth album Get Up on It in the summer of 1994, and his self-titled fifth album in 1996. Both albums reached the top ten on the Billboard 200. The single co/produced and written by Eric McCaine "Twisted" featuring R&B group Kut Klose hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and "Nobody" hit No. 3, which made them Sweat's biggest hits to date. "Just A Touch" was a cover of the 1979 song "Just a Touch of Love" by Slave. He produced R&B group Dru Hill in 1996.
In the fall of 1997, Sweat discovered the group Ol' Skool and helped with their self-titled debut. He was on their biggest single, "Am I Dreaming", which featured the R&B group Xscape. Sweat also formed the R&B supergroup LSG with Gerald Levert and Johnny Gill, and released their self-titled debut album Levert.Sweat.Gill in 1997.[7] That album featured "My Body", which became a hit single. The album was certified double platinum and reached No. 4 on the U.S. Billboard 200.
Sweat's sixth album, Still in the Game was released in 1998, hitting No. 6 on the Billboard 200, and No. 2 on the R&B/Hip Hop albums chart. It featured the singles "Come and Get With Me" (which featured Snoop Dogg) (No. 12 Hot 100) and "I'm Not Ready" (No. 16 Hot 100). Sweat's success on the charts started to diminish in 2000, when he released the album Didn't See Me Coming. None of the singles from the album reached the top forty.
On August 13, 2002, Keith Sweat released his eighth album, Rebirth. The single "One on One" reached No. 75 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 44 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart.His 2008 album Just Me included the single, "Love U Better (featuring Keyshia Cole)". Sweat is currently signed to Kedar Records and released his tenth studio album entitled Ridin' Solo on June 22, 2010. The lead single taken from the album is "Test Drive" and featured label-mate Joe. Since 2007, Sweat has been the host of a nationally syndicated radio program based upon the Quiet storm format. The Keith Sweat Hotel (known as The Quiet Storm with Keith Sweat on WBLS in New York City) is syndicated through Premiere Radio Networks.[8]
Sweat is also the host of a nationally syndicated radio show called The Sweat Hotel, which I s produced and distributed to urban adult contemporary and classic soul radio stations across the U.S. by Premiere Networks, a subsidiary of iHeartMedia, Inc.[9]
What Is It
Keith Sweat Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Time you get nasty baby
Do you think you can handle this boy
Oh yeah...
It's crazy how I feel when you touch me girl
I get a feeling like no other so deep inside
Your body's driving me crazy
I like what you doing to me lady
Oh baby yeah...
What is it about me girl that you like [4*]
I like it when you call me 10 times in a day
And when we making love girl you let me do it my way
Don't stop baby don't stop you keep turning me on
I can't get enough of you baby
That's why I sing this song
What is about me boy that you like [4*]
Lady if you making love to your man tonight on this song
Going on and freak him freak him freak him freak him freak him
Man if you making love to girl tonight on this song
Going on and freak her...
What is it about me girl that you like
What is about me boy that you like
[2*]
The lyrics to Keith Sweat's "What Is It" are a reflection of the singer's desire to understand what it is about him that draws his lover to him. The opening lines of the song are a plea for her to describe what she is feeling, to which he responds with the promise of getting "nasty" and a confidence that she won't be able to resist him. He then goes on to describe the intense feelings he experiences when she touches him and how her body drives him crazy, expressing his appreciation for the way she turns him on. The song's refrain asks the titular question: "What is it about me girl/boy that you like?" The third verse of the song takes on an even more intimate tone, with Sweat admitting his fondness for when his lover allows him to take control during sex. The song ends with a call to action, suggesting that the listener use this very same song to enhance their own sexual encounters.
Line by Line Meaning
So what is it about me, can you feel it tell me
I want to know what it is about me that you find attractive, can you sense it and share with me?
Time you get nasty baby
It's time to get wild and intimate, my darling
Do you think you can handle this boy
Do you believe you have the capacity to handle the intensity of my passion?
It's crazy how I feel when you touch me girl
It's astonishing how much I feel aroused and stimulated when you touch me, my lady
I get a feeling like no other so deep inside
I experience an unparalleled sense of pleasure that penetrates deep within me
Your body's driving me crazy
The allure of your physique is making me go insane with desire
I like what you doing to me lady
I am enjoying the way you are tantalizing me, my lady
Don't stop don't stop don't stop turning me on
Please don't cease from arousing me, keep me on the edge of ecstasy
What is it about me girl that you like [4*]
Tell me what specific qualities of mine that you find appealing, my lady
I like it when you call me 10 times in a day
I find it pleasing when you call me excessively throughout the day, my lady
And when we making love girl you let me do it my way
During our intercourse, I appreciate you allowing me to take control and do it the way I prefer, my lady
I can't get enough of you baby
I have an insatiable craving for you, my darling
That's why I sing this song
This is why I am singing this love melody
Lady if you making love to your man tonight on this song
My lady, if you plan to engage in physical intimacy with your partner while listening to this tune tonight
Going on and freak him freak him freak him freak him freak him
Please take the liberty to titillate and satisfy him in every possible way
Man if you making love to girl tonight on this song
My man, if you plan to indulge in carnal pleasures with your lover while this piece plays tonight
Going on and freak her...
Do everything in your power to excite and satisfy her to the fullest extent
What is about me boy that you like [4*]
Please tell me the aspects of my personality that you find charming, my man
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: RAPHAEL HAMILTON, ROY HAMILTON, ROM LINTON, KEITH SWEAT, KEITH D SWEAT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind