People Are Sharing Songs They Didn’t Realize Were Overtly Sexual Until They Grew Up, And I Confess I Was One Of The Gullible Little Goobers

I can't believe I was singing these high-key nasty songs at the top of my lungs as a kid.

Recently in a thread on Ask Reddit, user u/Dry_Lie8495 asked, "What’s a song you didn’t realize was sexual until you were a teen/adult? and people quickly reminded me of all the songs I loved as a kid but didn't realize the lyrics were naughty until I grew up.

Here are some of my favorite responses shared:

1. "Wannabe" — Spice Girls

UMG

"Zig-a-zig-ah is an orgasm, apparently."

— u/kurdtpage

"I used to sing it with friends as a little kid. I didn't have a clue it wasn't just a load of silly words."

— u/Pmabbz

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

2. "Birthday" — Katy Perry

Capitol Records

"I played it on my birthday in the car with my family when I was 12."

— u/No-Letterhead3158

"Katy Perry is dirty as hell. It clicked when I was driving somewhere with my daughter and Katy blasting. The two of us singing aggressively, I thought, 'this might not be appropriate.'"

— u/poser765

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

Capitol Records / Via youtu.be

3. "Like a Prayer" — Madonna

WMG

"I just realized a couple of weeks ago that Madonna's 'Like a Prayer' was about blowjobs. Sigh."

— u/Redditdenier 

"I had this epiphany about 2 years ago. I am in my 40s with two kids."

— u/sarabeara12345678910

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WMG / Via youtube.com

4. "Get Lucky" — Daft Punk

Columbia

"My friend thought 'Get Lucky' was about spending all night trying to be literally lucky in a casino until recently."

— u/DeathbyGlimmer

"I thought it was about online gambling." 

— u/Midnight-Dipper

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

Columbia / Via youtube.com

5. "Cake By the Ocean" — DNCE

UMG

"I honestly thought it was about some friends having a party on the beach."

— u/Upbeat-Membership-45

And here is the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

6. "Fancy" — Reba McEntire

UMG

"I thought it was a song about Fancy going to prom, and I thought that for waaaay too long." 

— u/Dumptruck_yourlove

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

7. "Macarena" — Los Del Rio

RCA

Suggested by u/SabotageFusion1

"It’s about a lady getting with, like, a dozen different guys while her boyfriend is off serving in the military."

— u/UnderlordZ

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

RCA / Via youtube.com

8. "Cherry Pie" — Warrant

SME

"I just thought he and the pretty girl in the video really liked pie. I got older and heard it again and was like, 'oohhhhhhhh...... I get it now!'"

— u/stealth_mode_76

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

SME / Via youtube.com

9. "Shut Up and Drive" — Rihanna

WALT DISNEY RECORDS

"Didn't Disney put this in one of its kids movies? I really thought it was about cars."

— u/ilikemilkypuff

"The whole thing is a giant metaphor for sex, and I didn’t realize it until I was a teen. It definitely made me see things in a different light."

— u/crashinqdovvn

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WALT DISNEY RECORDS / Via youtube.com

10. "Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo" — Bloodhound Gang

UMG

"The many ways you can articulate putting something into another thing. GASP!"

— u/Illustrious-Mix9904

"Fun fact: It is the only song on that album not tagged 'EXPLICIT.'"

— u/QWaxL

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

11. "Afternoon Delight" — Starland Vocal Band

Windsong

Suggested by u/AdmiralBofa

"There’s a scene in Glee where a teacher sings this thinking it’s about having dessert in the afternoon."

— u/ammezurc

"My husband loves telling the story about how in kindergarten, he brought the 45 to class for show and tell. I imagine the teacher must have been ready to burst."

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

Windsong / Via youtube.com

12. "(I Just) Died in Your Arms" — Cutting Crew

UMG

Suggested by u/theclipse111

"TIL that's not about a dude getting dumped."

— u/eddmario

"Even though I was learning French as a teenager when this song came out (and knew what la petit mort meant), I would never have twigged it except I read an interview with Cutting Crew, and the interviewer asked them straight out if that's what it meant. They laughed and said, '100%! Housewives and grandmothers across the country are singing along to it right now, totally unawares!'"

— u/The_Dark_Presence

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

13. "Candy Shop" — 50 Cent

Polydor Limited

Suggested by u/DickieCheez

"I just thought 50 Cent really liked sweets. Then I realized he was talking about a brothel. And the lollipop he will let them lick doesn’t have sugar in it."

— u/Slow_Tonight5260

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

Polydor Limited / Via youtube.com

14. "Semi-Charmed Life" — Third Eye Blind

WMG

"The song was released when I was pretty young, and I'd happily sing along to it, having no idea it was full of sex and drug references. It blew my mind when I listened to it again in my early 20s and realized what they were actually talking about."

— u/Hewballs

"I swear my brain bypassed all the fun parts. 🥲😭"

— u/Dry_Lie8495

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WMG / Via youtube.com

15. "Little Red Corvette" — Prince

WMG

Suggest by u/pasnow

"As a kid, I never heard the song and thought it was about an actual car. Then, when I was around 12-ish, I had my MJ/Prince phase and listened to the song. It got hella awkward, and I rarely listened to it, but I remember thinking, 'it'd be better if it were about cars.'"

— u/berrys_a_ghost

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WMG / Via youtube.com

16. "Pop That Coochie" — 2 Live Crew

LIL JOE RECORDS

"I got in trouble in kindergarten for singing 'Pop That Coochie' in front of a bunch of people at recess. Major Payne was my favorite movie back then."

— u/sirNataz

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

LIL JOE RECORDS / Via youtube.com

17. "Relax" — Frankie Goes to Hollywood

WMG

Suggested by u/fukprestige

"This is me finding out this song is apparently sexual. I suppose it's about delaying ejaculation now I've read up on it, but this lyric is confusing. Chew it?

"Originally, when questioned on the matter, the press was told that the
line that sounds something like 'when you want to suck to it' was really
'when you want to sock it to it.' Later, once the song was successful, Holly Johnson confessed the line is, 'When you wanna suck it, chew it.'"

— u/realchairmanmiaow

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WMG / Via youtube.com

18. "Physical" — Olivia Newton-John

SME

"It seems no one bothered about the lyrics. They saw the music video and thought it was about getting into physical exercise."
— u/andoy

"I remember those days well. Doing all the warm-up exercises in third grade while the headband-wearing lesbian gym teacher led us. Good times!"

— u/TrixicAcePolyamEnby

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

SME / Via youtube.com

19. "Brand New Key" — Melanie

NBC

Suggested by u/Notch99

"Last line before it clued me in. I was a kid when the original by Melanie came out. There was something in that line I wasn't so sure was just pure lyrics. 'I'm okay alone, but you got something I need.'"

— u/kat-deville

And here are the lyrics.

I couldn't find a legit version of the music video. 

20. "You Shook Me All Night Long" — AC/DC

SME

"It was my favorite when I was about five, and then I stopped listening. I listened to it again about two years ago (when I was 19), and I was shocked."

— u/smallemochick

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

SME / Via youtube.com

21. "Not Fair" — Lily Allen

CMRRA

"Whenever the music video came on the TV, I remember being confused and saying to my mum, 'Why does she say that it’s unfair that he never makes her scream, surely that’s a nice thing?'"

— u/PlasticBroccoli1977

And here is the music video and the lyrics.

CMRRA / Via youtube.com

22. "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy" — Big & Rich

WMG

"That one country song, 'Save a Horse/Ride a Cowboy.' I sang that shit as a kid and didn’t realize I was promoting country cowboy hillbilly sex."

— u/Kindly-Brick-5835

"I imagined a cowboy giving piggyback rides as a kid."

— U/LucyFaruqah

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WMG / Via youtube.com

23. "Greased Lightning" — John Travolta and Jeff Conaway

UMG

"My sister and I took our kids to see a version with lyrics printed so the audience could sing along. We couldn’t cover their eyes fast enough!"

— u/peacegrrrl

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

24. 'Whistle" — Flo Rida

WMG

Suggested by u/Commercial_Safe_4542

"When I was a little kid I use to tell people (who were older than me at the time) that that song taught me how to whistle. I regret it so much now."

— u/VisitSecure

"I really enjoyed it as a kid, and it stuck with me. I never really thought about it since then, but when I started to grow older and learn english properly, once I happened to read the text I was laughing my arse off at my innocence. 🤣"

— u/EvBismute

And here's the music video and the lyrics.

WMG / Via youtube.com

25. "Ticket to Ride" — The Beatles

UMG

Suggested by u/tupped

"I always thought it was just a song about some girl leaving her guy."

— u/kwunschel316

"In Germany at that time, prostitutes had to get a ticket/certificate showing they were disease-free. 'Ticket to Ride' is a reference stating that she has a ticket and is safe for a "ride."

— u/BigWhiskeyTime

And here is the music video and the lyrics.

UMG / Via youtube.com

26. "Too Close" — Next

SME / Arista

"The lyrics are VERY obvious, but elementary school me was not absorbing them. I was just bopping along. It was in college when I heard it again and was horrified I used to jam out to that."

— u/emeliz1112

"I was singing that as like a 10-year-old had no clue the whole song was about a boner. I mean it's quite obvious but my young brain didn't get it for sure."

— u/LilMsCurtainTwitcher

And this is the music video and the lyrics.

SME / Arista / Via youtube.com

What are some of the songs you didn’t realize were sexual until you were a teen/adult? Share in the comments.