John Legend and Kelly Clarkson are redesigning a Christmas classic.
Christmas songs bring life to the festive season. Some Christmas songs, however, have lost their charm in the modern era due to its problematic lyrics. Baby, It’s Cold Outside is one such song. While it remains one of the most iconic songs of the season, it is also the most controversial.
The lyrics of the song, upon closer inspection, come off as rather questionable. The line ‘Say what’s in this drink’ is particularly suspect as it could indicate a date rape situation.
The Voice coaches John Legend and Kelly Clarkson have, however, re-recorded a version of the song that is much more suited to a modern setting. They have tweaked the lyrics to ensure the song promotes consent.
Vanity Fair revealed the new lyrics include Kelly Clarkson asking ‘What will my friends think?’ and Legend saying ‘I think they should rejoice.’ Kelly further sings ‘… if I have one more drink?’ and John replies with ‘It’s your body, and your choice.’
The song was originally written in 1944 by Frank Loesser and went on to win the Oscar for Best Original Song in the film Neptune’s Daughter.
Legend collaborated with Natasha Rothwell for the lyrics. Natasha is a comedian known for her work on Saturday Night Live and Insecure.
The updated consent-friendly version came around after a Cleaveland radio station announced it wouldn’t play the song due to complaints from listeners.
Sceptics raise their voice
However, not everyone is happy with revamping the lyrics or banning the song. Piers Morgan previously argued on Good Morning Britain that, ‘This is flirtation. Harmless flirtation from a beautiful harmless scene in a movie. It’s a wonderful song that everyone’s enjoyed and we should continue to enjoy. Radical feminists like you want to suck the joy out of everything and make this look like sexual assault. She gave consent, she stayed. Do you not read the lyrics? She’s flirting with him.’