Dirrty
"Dirrty" is a song by American singer Christina Aguilera featuring American rapper Redman, released as the lead single from her fourth studio album Stripped. Despite Aguilera's first three years of commercial success, she was displeased with the lack of control over her image. In response, she desired to create a song that would represent her authentic persona. She approached hip hop producer Rockwilder and suggested using Redman's 2001 song "Let's Get Dirty (I Can't Get in da Club)" as a guide. The final result, "Dirrty", is an R&B and hip hop song that also features rapping verses from Redman and describes sexual activities.
"Dirrty"
- "I Will Be"
- "Make Over"
September 3, 2002
2002
4:58
- Dana Stinson
- Christina Aguilera
- Balewa Muhammad
- Jasper Cameron
RCA Records sent "Dirrty" to American radio stations on September 3, 2002, as the lead single from Stripped. RCA and Bertelsmann Music Group later released the song as a CD single. The song peaked at number 48 on the US Billboard 100. Outside of the United States, "Dirrty" saw significant success in the British Isles, topping the charts in Ireland and the United Kingdom. Elsewhere, the song peaked within the top ten in many countries including Australia, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
David LaChapelle directed the music video for "Dirrty", which was intended to publicize Aguilera's new image. Depicting sexual fetishes such as mud wrestling and muscle worshipping, the controversial video eliminated her previous image as a bubblegum pop singer. Various news publications and other recording artists criticized the video, and it was banned on Thai television, but Aguilera defended the video, calling it inspirational as it put her to the forefront. "Dirrty" was included on the setlists of Aguilera's five major concert tours: The Justified & Stripped Tour (2003), The Stripped Tour (2003), Back to Basics Tour (2006–2008), The Liberation Tour (2018), and The X Tour (2019).
Composition[edit]
"Dirrty" is a hip hop and R&B song.[11][12][13] Composed in the key of G minor, it has a moderately fast tempo of 100 beats per minute. The lines in the refrain and Redman's rapping verses are emphasized by a pair of B♭ octave dyads. Aguilera's vocal range on the track spans F3 to F#5.[14] Redman's original ape-like sounds from "Let's Get Dirty" are also featured on "Dirrty".[9] According to Stylus Magazine's Todd Burns, the song features a bassline which "doesn't quite mesh with the song in a natural way" and an "effective" overdubbing technique.[15] The song's lyrics detail sexual activities such as table dancing.[16] Jon Pareles noted that Aguilera was determined to shed her teen pop image that she achieved with her early works, and decided to show her sexuality and aggression in the "self-explanatory" "Dirrty".[17] A sequel to the song entitled "Still Dirrty" was recorded by Aguilera for her 2006 album, Back to Basics.[18]
Release and chart performance[edit]
"Dirrty" was released as the lead single from Stripped. RCA Records encouraged Aguilera to release the ballad "Beautiful" as the first single from Stripped. Aguilera insisted on releasing "Dirrty" as the lead single, as she felt that it represented her "real" persona.[19] RCA Records sent "Dirrty" to US pop and rhythmic radio stations on September 3, 2002.[20] It debuted at number 64 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart on September 21, 2002, and rose to number 49 the following week.[21] It dropped one place to number 50 on the chart issue dated October 5, 2002.[22] RCA Records released it in the United States as a 12-inch single on September 24, 2002, and as a CD single with "I Will Be" as a B-side on October 14.[23][24] Another US CD featuring "Make Over" as its B-side was released on December 10.[25] "Dirrty" was also released as a CD single in Germany on October 14, and in the United Kingdom on November 11 by RCA and Sony Music Entertainment.[26][27]
"Dirrty" was Aguilera's first single to fail to enter the top 20 of the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 48 on October 5, 2002.[28] It debuted at number 67 on September 21, 2002, and rose to number 49 the following week.[29] "Dirrty" additionally charted at number 14 on Top 40 Mainstream, number 20 on Rhythmic Top 40, and number 22 on Top 40 Tracks.[4] It reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales chart in late December 2002.[30] On October 14, 2022, it was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of 1,000,000 copies.[31]
Outside of the United States, "Dirrty" debuted at number seven on the Canadian Singles Chart in Canada on November 30, 2002,[32] and later peaked at number five on February 15, 2003.[33]
In the United Kingdom, the single debuted at the top of the UK Singles Chart on November 17, 2002—for the week ending date November 23, 2002—becoming Aguilera's third number one and remaining on the top spot for two weeks,[34] and was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry.[35]
The song reached the top 10 of the charts in many other European countries including Ireland (number one),[36] Netherlands (number two),[37] Norway,[38] Spain,[39] and Switzerland (number three),[40] Belgian Flanders,[41] Denmark,[42] and Germany (number four),[43] and Austria[44] and Hungary (number five).[45] Overall, the song peaked at number three on the European Hot 100 Singles chart on December 7, 2002.[46]
"Dirrty" also peaked at number four on the ARIA Singles Charts in Australia and was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association.[47][48]
Critical reception[edit]
"Dirrty" received mixed reviews from music critics, some praised its production, while others criticized the heavily sexual persona Aguilera adopted on the song. Cinquemani from Slant Magazine called it "the most instantly gratifying" song from Stripped.[49] Todd Burns from Stylus Magazine labeled it "one of the most interesting songs of the year" and compared its styles to Britney Spears' "image transformation" on "I'm a Slave 4 U".[50] In a separate review, Burns deemed it the best single of 2002, writing, "That's what pop music is all about, appealing to as many people as possible."[15] Writing for The Guardian, Betty Clarke described the song's lyrics as "majestically filthy."[51] Reviewing Aguilera's 2008 compilation album Keeps Gettin' Better: A Decade of Hits, Nick Levine from Digital Spy called "Dirrty" the "sluttiest, sweatiest club banger in recent memory."[52]
Jancee Dunn called the release of "Dirrty" as the lead single "a shame" and opined that it misrepresented the rest of the album.[53] Likewise, Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic was disappointed towards the track's being released as the lead single and found Aguilera's vocal range in the song too narrow.[54] Michael Paoletta from Billboard called the song "horribly derivative",[55] while NME's Jim Wirth said that "Dirrty" was "probably the pick of an inconsistent crop."[56] Entertainment Weekly critic Seymour Craig gave it a D−, calling Aguilera's voice "desperate and shrill," and found it to be an unsuccessful attempt to gain street cred.[16] "Dirrty" won the Best Single award at the 2003 Q Awards.[57] The song also earned a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the 45th Grammy Awards, but lost to Santana's "The Game of Love" featuring Michelle Branch.[58][59]
In 2022, Billboard ranked "Dirrty" at number twenty-two on its list of the hundred greatest 2002 songs, calling it "a blueprint to reinvention in the pop game".[60]
Legacy and influence[edit]
Covers of the song were recorded by Ed Sheeran and Hanson.[119] "Dirrty" was featured the sixth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, performed by Kylie Sonique Love and Manila Luzon.[120] In the How I Met Your Father episode titled "Dirrty Thirty" a Christina Aguilera-themed birthday party is planned, focusing on the song and its music video.[121][122] In 2020, the British magazine i-D ranked the song at number four on a list of the Best Pop Comebacks of the 21st Century, calling the choice to release it as a single "immaculate".[123]
Wrestler Liv Morgan wore outfits that paid tribute to Aguilera's "Dirrty" attire at the Royal Rumble in 2021 and 24.[124] Troye Sivan's 2023 music video for "Rush" was compared to "Dirrty".[125][126] The music video for Tate McRae's 2023 single "exes" also drew comparisons to "Dirrty" for having similar scenes, outfits, and choreography.[127] Other music stars and celebrities such as Miley Cyrus, Kylie Jenner, and Aguilera herself have also worn outfits inspired by the music video years later.[128][129][130]
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Stripped.[8]
Recording location
Personnel