Poison (Bell Biv DeVoe song)
Encyclopedia
"Poison" is a 1990 single
by the New Edition
spinoff group, Bell Biv DeVoe
. This song—in the style of New Jack Swing
, a late-80s hybrid of R&B and hip hop
—was the group's most successful, and sings of the dangers of falling in love. "Poison" was the first single taken from Bell Biv DeVoe's debut album as its title track
.
While the song samples
from hip hop (Kool G. Rap's "Poison"), the lines "Never trust a big butt and a smile" and "The J, the I, the M, the M, The Y" (originally from Boogie Down Production's 1988 classic "Jimmy") reflected a new era of AIDS consciousness and would quickly become a staple of hip hop. In the outro, BBD gives shout-outs to their former New Edition bandmates, Bobby Brown
, Ralph Tresvant
and Johnny Gill
.
On the Billboard Hot 100
singles chart, "Poison" rose from number fifty-two to number thirty-eight in the week of April 14, 1990, and eventually peaked at number three for four consecutive weeks, beginning on June 9, 1990. The single also peaked at number one on the Hot Black Singles chart for two weeks. "Poison" became one of the most successful singles of 1990 (see 1990 in music
), and was a staple on MTV
and mainstream radio in the summer, spending ten weeks in the Top 10. The single peaked at number seven on the dance charts. "Poison" was certified platinum by the RIAA on June 1, 1990 for sales of over one million copies.
It has been used in film (Pootie Tang
, Pineapple Express
), television (A Different World, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
, Scrubs
, Glee
), and video games (2004's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
, on New Jack Swing
radio station CSR 103.9, 2009's DJ Hero
, 2010's Dance Central
). It is also referenced in the Madvillain
song, "Fancy Clown". "Poison" was named #60 on VH1
's 100 Greatest Songs of the 90's.
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
by the New Edition
New Edition
New Edition is an R&B group formed in Boston in 1978. The group reached its height of popularity during the 1980s. They were the progenitors of the boy band movement of the 1980s and 1990s and led the way for groups like New Kids on the Block, Boyz II Men, Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync...
spinoff group, Bell Biv DeVoe
Bell Biv DeVoe
Bell Biv DeVoe is an American R&B musical group which branched off from New Edition. It consists of three of New Edition's previous members, Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie DeVoe...
. This song—in the style of New Jack Swing
New jack swing
New jack swing or swingbeat is a fusion genre spearheaded by Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle which became extremely popular from the late-1980s into the mid-1990s. Its influence, along with hip-hop, seeped into pop culture and was the definitive sound of the inventive Black New York club scene...
, a late-80s hybrid of R&B and hip hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
—was the group's most successful, and sings of the dangers of falling in love. "Poison" was the first single taken from Bell Biv DeVoe's debut album as its title track
Poison (album)
-Album:-Singles:"—" denotes releases that did not chart.-Chart procession and succession:-Personnel:Information taken from Allmusic and Discogs.*arranging – Carl Bourelly, Roney Hooks, Hank Shocklee*art direction – Bell Biv DeVoe...
.
While the song samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
from hip hop (Kool G. Rap's "Poison"), the lines "Never trust a big butt and a smile" and "The J, the I, the M, the M, The Y" (originally from Boogie Down Production's 1988 classic "Jimmy") reflected a new era of AIDS consciousness and would quickly become a staple of hip hop. In the outro, BBD gives shout-outs to their former New Edition bandmates, Bobby Brown
Bobby Brown
Robert Barisford "Bobby" Brown is an American R&B singer-songwriter, occasional rapper, and dancer. After success in pop group New Edition, Brown began his solo career in 1987 and had a string of Top 10 Billboard hits, culminating in a Grammy Award. He was a pioneer of New Jack Swing music, a...
, Ralph Tresvant
Ralph Tresvant
Ralph Tresvant , aka Rizz, is an American tenor singer, best known as one of the lead singers in New Edition.-New Edition:Tresvant sang lead on many of the New Edition lead singles including "Candy Girl", "Cool It Now" and "If It Isn't Love"...
and Johnny Gill
Johnny Gill
Johnny Gill is an American R&B singer-songwriter. He is the sixth and final member of the R&B supergroup New Edition, and was also a member of another supergroup called LSG; with Gerald Levert and Keith Sweat. His signature song "My, My, My" has been included on numerous romantic...
.
On the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
singles chart, "Poison" rose from number fifty-two to number thirty-eight in the week of April 14, 1990, and eventually peaked at number three for four consecutive weeks, beginning on June 9, 1990. The single also peaked at number one on the Hot Black Singles chart for two weeks. "Poison" became one of the most successful singles of 1990 (see 1990 in music
1990 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1990.-Events:*January 21 – MTV's Unplugged premieres on cable television with British band Squeeze...
), and was a staple on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
and mainstream radio in the summer, spending ten weeks in the Top 10. The single peaked at number seven on the dance charts. "Poison" was certified platinum by the RIAA on June 1, 1990 for sales of over one million copies.
It has been used in film (Pootie Tang
Pootie Tang
Pootie Tang is an American comedy film written and directed by Louis C.K. and released in 2001. It was adapted from a comedy sketch that first appeared on The Chris Rock Show. The character Pootie Tang is a satire of the stereotyped characters who appeared in old blaxploitation films...
, Pineapple Express
Pineapple Express (film)
Pineapple Express is a 2008 American stoner action comedy directed by David Gordon Green, written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and starring Rogen and James Franco. Producer Judd Apatow, who previously worked with Rogen and Goldberg on Knocked Up and Superbad, assisted in developing the story,...
), television (A Different World, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is an American television sitcom that premiered on FX on August 4, 2005. New episodes continue to air on FX, with reruns playing on Comedy Central, general broadcast syndication, and WGN America—the first-ever cable-to-cable syndication deal for a sitcom...
, Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
, Glee
Glee (TV series)
Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues...
), and video games (2004's Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a 2004 open world action video game developed by British games developer Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the third 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the fifth original console release and eighth game overall...
, on New Jack Swing
New jack swing
New jack swing or swingbeat is a fusion genre spearheaded by Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle which became extremely popular from the late-1980s into the mid-1990s. Its influence, along with hip-hop, seeped into pop culture and was the definitive sound of the inventive Black New York club scene...
radio station CSR 103.9, 2009's DJ Hero
DJ Hero
DJ Hero is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the Guitar Hero franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe...
, 2010's Dance Central
Dance Central
Dance Central is a music video game for the Xbox 360 that utilizes the Kinect motion peripheral. The game was developed by Harmonix, creators of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchises, and is a launch title for Kinect...
). It is also referenced in the Madvillain
Madvillain
Madvillain is a hip hop group consisting of MF DOOM and Madlib . Their debut album Madvillainy was met with wide critical acclaim for its unique approach—short songs, obscure lyrics, few choruses and a sound which was generally unfriendly to commercial radio.In 2006, Madvillain was featured on...
song, "Fancy Clown". "Poison" was named #60 on VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's 100 Greatest Songs of the 90's.
Charts
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | 19 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance/Maxi Singles | 7 |
| End of year chart (1990) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 4 |