One of the funniest TikTok memes of last year was Kris Kardashian’s performance of the incendiary song Lady marmalade.
The funny thing is that this is a rather old episode from a reality show. And the song is even older.
Krissed — Lady Marmalade Song History
Lady Marmalade was one of the biggest hits of the 1970s. It was created by Bob Kru and Kenny Nolan (authors of many hits of the Four Seasons). The authors were inspired by memories of life in New Orleans. In 1974, the Eleventh Hour performed the song. But the funk sound and male vocals made the song not very interesting and just passable.
But she was noticed by the producer of the growing girl group Labelle. In the performance of the girls, the song became a hit. This is the key track on the Nightbirds album. The single peaked at number one on two US Billboard charts at once . By the way, the following year the group broke up.
The first cover of the song was released in 1975. It was a French-language version by Canadian singer Nanette Workman. In 1987, it was covered by the Italian disco diva Sabrina.
Then there was a jazz cover by Sheila E with brass instruments. In 1995 there was a Eurodance version by Boogie Knights and a techno cover by Lords Of Acid. In 1998, it was covered by the girls from the British group All Saints.
Also, the single can be heard in the films Jacob’s Ladder , Dick, Carlito’s Way , The Long Kiss Goodnight and in the TV series “Angel”.
The real rebirth of the song occurred in 2001. Then it was performed by Christina Aguilera, Pink and Missy Elliot. It was a very bright soundtrack to the musical “Moulin Rouge”. A hip-hop tie-in appeared here, and Orleans was replaced with Moulin Rouge. There have been a number of nasty stories associated with the song. First, Christina Aguilera and Pink had a conflict. Secondly, the legendary cabaret did not like the clip. But this did not prevent the single from leading all existing charts, as well as becoming one of the most recognizable songs from the film.
After the song was covered by Beyoncé, the trio of Sugababes, The Lost Fingers, Andy Hallett, Leona Lewis and many others. The Kardashians covered the hit in 2011 on their show. In 2022, this episode went viral.
Interesting Facts Krissed – Lady Marmalade
Interestingly, the song uses an American dialect of French. Yes, there is. It is especially popular in Louisiana. In some versions, the obscene phrase “Do you want to sleep with me?” was replaced with the phrase “Do you want to sing with me?”. The very phrase “voulez-vous coucher avec moi (ce soir)?” belongs to the dissolute protagonist of the play A Streetcar Named Desire.
There are other features here as well. So, at the beginning of the song, the phrase soul sisters is used. For black American women, this combination is translated as “sisters by skin color.” But in the 2001 version, this simply meant sisters in spirit, because not all performers have dark skin. The song also features a term from the Chinese game of Go and the term Misdemeanor, the most harmless crime. But it is also the nickname of the singer Missy Elliot.
Lyrics of Krissed — Lady Marmalade
The song tells about the boring guy Joe, who got into the Moulin Rouge cabaret (in the original – in New Orleans) and met a local prostitute – a Creole nicknamed Marmalade. She invited Joe to take a walk. By the way, the leadership of the Moulin Rouge cabaret did not like it very much. They said that their institution is a temple of the arts, and not a brothel.
The song from 2001 has an insert about free women who make their own choices. The 1975 original does not. From this moment, one can judge how ideas about the rights of a woman have changed.
There is another point of contention. No one knows if a Creole called Marmalade actually existed. And there are no Creoles in the USA. This is probably a collective image.
But back to the song. The hero went with the girl to her room and lay down on her black sheets. She preened, he drank Magnolia wine. And then they partyed all night.
Then Joe returned home to a boring wife, children and work. He leads a boring life, but when the lights go out, he remembers a woman with café-au-lait skin. There is no hidden meaning in the song. It’s just a story about the fact that sometimes you need to forget about the family and just come off in full.
