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Song Stories

“Thinkin Bout You”

Frank Ocean | 2012

Odd Future's crooner spun himself off from that collective by releasing a mixtape, working with Kanye West and writing tracks for a few big names. "Thinkin Bout You," which has Ocean hoping a girl from his past still keeps him in mind, was originally intended for R&B singer Bridget Kelly. But Ocean's demo version was leaked, a music video followed, and then the song became the lead single from his debut album. Kelly still recorded it, and she talked about all the confusion. "I think the unfortunate thing is that everyone [saw] it as Frank's record so when mine came out, it was kinda like, wait a minute, she's covering Frank Ocean's song," she said. "And it was like, not really. Your boy actually demoed my song."

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Song Stories

“1999”

Prince | 1982

“I don’t consider myself a great poet,” Prince told Rolling Stone. “I just know I’m here to say what’s on my mind.” In the case of the apocalyptic party anthem “1999,” he was worried about then-president Ronald Reagan’s foreign policies. The song’s melody is based on a riff borrowed from the Mamas and Papas’ “Monday, Monday,” and Prince originally envisioned the first verse with three-part harmony but later split the vocals between himself and members of the Revolution. Because Warner Bros., with whom Prince was locked in a contractual battle, owned the original’s masters, Prince rerecorded the song and appropriately released that version in 1999.

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