Released as the fourth single from the album on May 8, 1983, the song peaked at number five on the American Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, topped the American Hot Black Singles and Hot Dance Club Songs charts and reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart. "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" was re-recorded with R&B artist Akon for the 2008 reissue album Thriller 25 under the title "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin' 2008" and was released as a single, charting at number 48 on the Billboard Pop 100 in the United States. It also appears in Grand Theft Auto Vice City on Fever 105.
Listen first then continue reading later ya..
1. 2009 This Is It Rehearsal : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-S6E9Cwsu6g
2. 2001 , MJ 30th Anniversary : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSCn-YuxRho
3. 1997, HIStory Tour : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfZVdx1ohns
4. 1992, Dangerous Tour : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKMfjUp9xYs
5. 1987, Bad Tour : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kl4CdcB4DSo&feature=related
6. Album version : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZed7IlSJK0
Lyrics
[Chorus]
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
[1st Verse]
I Took My Baby To The Doctor
With A Fever, But Nothing He Found
By The Time This Hit The Street
They Said She Had A Breakdown
Someone's Always Tryin' To Start My Baby Cryin'
Talkin', Squealin', Lyin'
Sayin' You Just Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
[Chorus]
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
[2nd Verse]
You Love To Pretend That You're Good
When You're Always Up To No Good
You Really Can't Make Him Hate Her
So Your Tongue Became A Razor
Someone's Always Tryin' To Keep My Baby Cryin'
Treacherous, Cunnin', Declinin'
You Got My Baby Cryin'
[Chorus]
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
You're A Vegetable, You're A Vegetable
Still They Hate You, You're A Vegetable
You're Just A Buffet, You're A Vegetable
They Eat Off Of You, You're A Vegetable
[3rd Verse]
Billie Jean Is Always Talkin'
When Nobody Else Is Talkin'
Tellin' Lies And Rubbin' Shoulders
So They Called Her Mouth A Motor
Someone's Always Tryin' To Start My Baby Cryin'
Talkin', Squealin', Spyin'
Sayin' You Just Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
[Chorus]
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
You're A Vegetable, You're A Vegetable
Still They Hate You, You're A Vegetable
You're Just A Buffet, You're A Vegetable
They Eat Off Of You, You're A Vegetable
[Ad-Lib]
If You Cant Feed Your Baby (Yeah, Yeah)
Then Don't Have A Baby (Yeah, Yeah)
And Don't Think Maybe (Yeah, Yeah)
If You Can't Feed Your Baby (Yeah, Yeah)
You'll Be Always Tryin'
To Stop That Child From Cryin'
Hustlin', Stealin', Lyin'
Now Baby's Slowly Dyin'
[Chorus]
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
It's Too High To Get Over (Yeah, Yeah)
Too Low To Get Under (Yeah, Yeah)
You're Stuck In The Middle (Yeah, Yeah)
And The Pain Is Thunder (Yeah, Yeah)
[Ad-Lib]
Lift Your Head Up High
And Scream Out To The World
I Know I Am Someone
And Let The Truth Unfurl
No One Can Hurt You Now
Because You Know What's True
Yes, I Believe In Me
So You Believe In You
Help Me Sing It, Ma Ma Se,
Ma Ma Sa, Ma Ma Coo Sa
Ma Ma Se, Ma Ma Sa,
Ma Ma Coo Sa
[Repeat/Fade-Out]
| "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Single by Michael Jackson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| from the album Thriller | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Released | May 8, 1983 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Format | 7" vinyl | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Genre | R&B, funk, Dance pop, | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Length | 6:02 (album version) 4:17 (single version) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Label | Epic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Michael Jackson | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Producer | Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michael Jackson singles chronology | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Overview
"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" was written by Jackson and recorded for Thriller, the album on which it was released. The song is about rumors and contains a reference to "Billie Jean". The lyrics read in part:
I took my baby to the doctor
With a fever, but nothing he found
By the time this hit the street
They said she had a breakdown
Someone's always tryin' to start my baby cryin`
Talkin', squealin', lyin'
Sayin' you just wanna be startin' somethin'
With a fever, but nothing he found
By the time this hit the street
They said she had a breakdown
Someone's always tryin' to start my baby cryin`
Talkin', squealin', lyin'
Sayin' you just wanna be startin' somethin'
The song is often cited as an example of the darker flavor of Thriller as compared with Off the Wall, and it includes references to the sometimes unhealthy nature of fandom:
Still they hate you, you're a vegetable ...
They eat off of you, you're a vegetable
They eat off of you, you're a vegetable
At six minutes and three seconds, "Wanna Be Startin Somethin'" is also the longest song on Thriller.
"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" continued the trend of hit singles for Jackson, eventually peaking at number five on the Pop and on the R&B charts, and gaining time on radio playlists across the country. The song was often not played at full length, however, due to industry format standards.
African chant
The song ends with a chorus repeatedly singing "Mama-se, mama-sa, ma-ma-coo-sa". The chant is a riff on one first used by Cameroonian saxophonist Manu Dibango, who broke into the American market in 1973 with his classic "Soul Makossa". "'Soul Makossa' was a big hit, in Africa, in Europe, and in America, where it came to be seen as one of the first disco records," says Kelefa Sanneh of The New Yorker magazine. Sanneh adds that, "[Dibango] named his song after the makossa, a Cameroonian dance, but he stretched the word out, [and] played with it [so that it sounded like]: 'Ma-mako, ma-ma-ssa, mako-makossa'."
Often because of it being spoken fast, many people mistake it for such lines as: "I'm singing a song of Microsoft", "imm-a sing-a song that Michael sung" or "Gonna stay by my side of the mountainside"
Jackson's version of the Dibango chant has since been sampled and incorporated into other songs, including an interpretation by Rihanna on her 2007 single, "Don't Stop the Music", and the hook was also sampled in D12 and Obie Trice's song "Doe Rae Me". Charles Hamilton makes a reference to the chant in his song, "Brooklyn Girls".
Performance and choreography
One of the songs released as a single without an accompanying video, "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" nonetheless has attained a popularity rivaling its sister compositions on the album. Not being as strictly associated with a specific dance routine as those others has arguably allowed for more flexibility in performances and staging.
Two notable occurrences that happened during live performances were the physically complicated "stop/start" dance technique that brought Jackson and his dancers to a frozen stop several times, and the sing-along between performer and audience during the bridge.
"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" was also used on every set list of Jackson's tours, from the Victory Tour in 1984 through the HIStory Tour in 1997. Jackson performed the song on the Jacksons Victory Tour, Bad World Tour, Dangerous World Tour, and HIStory World Tour. Jackson would have performed it during the This Is It concert series, but the concerts were canceled due to his sudden death.
Personnel
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