11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2 | Playlist 🎧

11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2  features songs by Eminem, Joey Valence & Brae, Maxwell, Polo G, and Taylor Swift.

Ah, let the BAD commence! No worries, though – it’s not too bad! The bad is limited to the word being used in the song titles of 11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2. 11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2 is the sequel to 11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 1 (2024).  Don’t expect Vol. 2 to be the final installment either! There are so many bad songs 😝! Of course, The Musical Hype would never wish its audience bad vibes! 11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2 features songs by Eminem, Joey Valence & Brae, Maxwell, Polo G, and Taylor Swift. So, without further ado, let’s embrace sheer badness via 11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2!

~ Table of Contents ~

1. Joey Valence & Brae, “THE BADDEST (BADDER)” (Ft. Ayesha Erotica)

2. Maxwell, “Bad Habits”

3. Eminem, “Bad One” (Ft. White Gold)

4. Dmitri Vegas & Like Mike, Tiësto & Dido, “Thank You (Not So Bad)”

5. Polo G, “Bad Kids” (Ft. GloRilla)

6. Ed Sheeran, “Bad Habits”  

7. Bloodhound Gang, “The Bad Touch”

8. AJR, “100 Bad Days”

9. Taylor Swift, “Bad Blood”

10. The Manhattans, “It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad”

11. Robert Palmer, “Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)”

1. Joey Valence & Brae, “THE BADDEST (BADDER)” (Ft. Ayesha Erotica)

NO HANDS (Deluxe Edition) // JVB // 2024

“Who’s the baddest bitch in this club? / I’m the baddest bitch in this club.” The confidence is through the roof, and that’s ‘totally bitchin’!’ Joey Valence and Brae ‘bring the heat’ and fierceness on “THE BADDEST (BADDER).” Fittingly, those are two bad bitches 😝! Assisting them in the remix of “THE BADDEST” from their 2024 album, NO HANDS (Deluxe Edition), is Ayesha Erotica. Valence asserts, in the first verse, “I wanna rock right now / I don’t wanna go, I want to get down.” Joey confirms he’s “the baddest bitch in this club.” Or maybe, the baddest bitch is Ayesha Erotica, given her sickening second verse.  “It’s Ayesha, bitch,” she commences, adding, “I make these rap heads go and beat some dick (Woah) / With my big fat ass and my sleazy lips.” Damn! She’s a catalyst for masturbation. For good measure, towards the end of the verse, she asserts, “In the club with a stick in my tits (ooh) / And I might shoot it off in this bitch.” What more is there to say but bang, bang… With an electrifying, energetic instrumental (produced by Valence), “THE BADDEST (BADDER)” is one badass dance/rap joint.

~ Table of Contents ~

2. Maxwell, “Bad Habits”

BLACKsummers’night // Sony Music Entertainment // 2009

“Make me crazy, don’t speak no sound / I want you to prove it to me in the nude / Addicted to the way you move.” Ooh-wee! The handsome, talented Maxwell came back strong in 2009 with BLACKsummers’night. Sure, there was an eight-year-hiatus involved 😏, but the quality upon return was one of his best albums.  While “Pretty Wings” is the crowning achievement, rightfully, the opener, “Bad Habits”, sets the tone. “Lady, when we lock it low ah-ah / We get together, it’s an overdose,” he sings in the second verse, concluding, “I’m slipping, I’m here, I’m on my knees / I feel my heart’s about to explode.” Oh, snap! Maxwell and Hod David penned and produced his steamy gem.

Maxwell sounds refined throughout “Bad Habits.” He sings with ease.  His falsetto is ripe, perfect for a sensual cut like “Bad Habits.” It’s not all falsetto, though.  Maxwell shows off a compelling middle register too. He superbly brings the melodies to life, singing about L-O-V-E and S-E-X. (“You got me sick with this love, baby / I’m so, I’m so in love, I can’t come down”).  Beyond marvelous vocals and electrifying songwriting, the arrangement and production are magnificent. At a time when keyboards and synthesized sounds were king, Maxwell opted for more acoustic and live instrumentation.  Some of the glorious sounds beyond the rhythm section include organ (Shedrick Mitchell) and horns (Kenneth Whalum on saxophone, Keyon Harrold on trumpet, and Saunders Sermons II on trombone).  This hearkens back to the R&B of the past.  The chorus is epic:

“This is the highest cost

Take you and make you off

Live you and leave you lost

Will you forgive me?

Asked out all over town

Drags you and keeps you down

Two times in a day around

Will you forgive me?” 

Maxwell says it best: “You’re my bad habit, baby.” Indeed.

Appears in 🔻:  

• Maxwell, Bad Habits: Midnight Heat 🕛 🔥 93 (2024)

~ Table of Contents ~

3. Eminem, “Bad One” (Ft. White Gold)

The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grǎce) // Marshall B. Mathers III // 2024

“I love all of my records, but she said I got a bad one.” Not every album or song is considered to be good or as successful as others.  Eminem, a legendary Academy, and Grammy-Award-winning rapper, attests to this in his song, “Bad One.” “Bad One” is the sixteenth track on his 12th studio album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce). For the second time on the album, Eminem collaborates with White Gold. Eminem and Luis Resto produced the track.  Eminem references his past work throughout “Bad One,” weaving in ample wordplay and clever references.  As always, he’s controversial, living on the edge.  In the first verse, he recalls “Just Lose It” from Encore, spitting, “So, come get in line like Santa / And climb up inside my lap (Come on) / While I devise a plan (Kidnap) / Won’t be talkin’ about Purell (Yeah) / When Santa ties your hands (Haha).” Later in the verse, he proudly raps, “Like drawing breath from your diaphragm / I’ve achieved every aspiration that I have had / Got a diamond plaque or two, or three, or four / But that don’t change my attitude.”

Of course, Eminem delivers two more ‘colorful’ verses. “You said you were looking for miniature golf,” he spits in the second, adding, “Thought you said, ‘looking for men to jerk off.’” Holy shit! As for the third verse, there’s plenty to sink one’s teeth into.  Andre 3000 gets a mention: “But like when Three Stacks just plays the flute / I ain’t got shit to say to you (Nah).” Puff Daddy is also mentioned 😏: “This is subterfuge, just to screw with you / And yeah, this much is true / This sounds like something that Puff would do / At a party with Aaron Hall ‘cause I just love to fuck with you.” Gah-day-um! Fitting the album, Eminem reflects on Slim Shady, stating, “Because I’m so stuck in my evil ways / Then I’m fucked either way / The people still seem to think that they want the old me ‘til they get him.” As always, Eminem says a lot.  White Gold appears in the chorus, memorably singing:

“She just gotta put up with my shit, I’m going platinum

You just gotta put up with my wrist, I’m going diamond

I just put Fidel up on the link, I’m going gold now

I love all of my records, but she said I got a bad one.”

“Bad One” is an ‘interesting one’ from an album that many critics consider to be a ‘bad one’.

~ Table of Contents ~

4. Dmitri Vegas & Like Mike, Tiësto & Dido, “Thank You (Not So Bad)”

“Thank You (Not So Bad)” // Cheeky // 2023

DJs and producers love a remix/reworked version of a popular song.  On “Thank You (Not So Bad),” Dmitri Vegas & Like Mike, Tiësto, and W&W join forces for a remake/remix of the Dido classic, “Thank You”.  In their hands, “Thank You” gets a more modern sound. The synths are sharp, the beat is sick, and the energy is high. Fittingly, Dido sings the track. How could she not? She made “Thank You” a top 10 hit on the pop charts in 2001 (it peaked at no. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100). Before things ratchet up, the vocals are barely discernible (“And I can’t see at all / But your picture on my wall / That it’s not so bad, it’s not so bad”). Soon enough, the most iconic and memorable lyrics from “Thank You” are presented clearly by Dido:

“My tea’s gone cold, I’m wondering why I got out of bed at all

The morning rain clouds up my window and I can’t see at all

And even if I could, it’d be all grey, but your picture on my wall

It reminds me that it’s not so bad, it’s not so bad.”

Does “Thank You (Not So Bad)” supplant the original ‘thankful’ song? No, but it reintroduces it to an entirely new generation.  That, my friends, is something to be thankful for!

Appears in 🔻:

• 11 Songs Filled with Immense Gratitude & Thanks (2024)

~ Table of Contents ~

5. Polo G, “Bad Kids” (Ft. GloRilla)

HOOD POET // Columbia // 2024

“All I hung around was bad kids, I was raised with killers / Woofin’ on the net like he a threat until we came to get you.” WOO! Melodic, hardnosed Chicago rapper Polo G (Taurus Bartlett) tapped Grammy-nominated Memphis rapper GloRilla (Gloria Woods) for the assist on “Bad Kids.” “Bad Kids” is the 15^th track from his 2024 fourth studio album, HOOD POET. Twysted Genius produced the track, whose instrumental consists of a souped-up, sick beat, infectious piano loop, and some sick string-like synths. Polo G and GloRilla trade verses on this brief but entertaining rap banger. “Love a crazy bitch who act delusional and pull up quick,” Polo asserts in the first verse, adding, “I ain’t cashin’ shit, ain’t scared of losin’ you ‘cause, bitch, I’m lit.” Oh, snap! As for Gloria, she responds, “Don’t get cocky, I don’t want you, baby, I just want some dick.” Damn! In the third verse, Polo informs her, “Bae, I’m a paid nigga, they might got dog shit, but they ain’t richer.” As for Glo, who performs the final verse, she states, “I like an honest nigga, keep it P, don’t put me in no drama.” She gets more specific, too: “He give me head, all up in it, shakin’ his dreads like Waka Flocka / Like, ugh…” The sheer power of oral sex… As Denise LaSalle proudly sang, “Lick It Before You Stick It”.  Anyways, “Bad Kids” is something else!

~ Table of Contents ~

6. Ed Sheeran, “Bad Habits”  

= // Atlantic // 2021 

“Bad Habits” is a respectable record from = (Equals), an album that finds Grammy-winner Ed Sheeran reflecting on marriage, fatherhood, and where his life currently stands.  “Bad Habits” has a relatable message. The strongest aspect is the songwriting.  He speaks of pure intentions, but those ‘best-laid plans’ lead to problems that are unhealthy and at best, counterproductive. “My bad habits lead to wide eyes starin’ at space,” he sings, adding, “And I know I’ll lose control of the things that I say.” We all have bad habits that usually don’t end up well. Working to curb them and get to a better place is the right thing to do.  Sheeran sings well as always. The production (Sheeran, FRED, and Johnny McDaid) embraces more of a dance-pop vibe – a change of pace. All in all, it’s among the best of = even if it’s nothing game-changing.   

Appears in 🔻:

• Habit: 3 or 4 BOPS No. 18 (2022)

~ Table of Contents ~

7. Bloodhound Gang, “The Bad Touch”

Hooray for Boobies // Geffen // 1999

“Sweat baby, sweat baby, sex is a Texas drought / Me and you do the kind of stuff that only Prince sings about.” The quirky “The Bad Touch” marks the biggest song by Bloodhound Gang.  In the first verse of their sole song chart on the Billboard Hot 100, Jimmy Pop continues singing – well – rapping, “So put your hands down my pants and I’ll bet you’ll feel nuts / Yes, I’m Siskel, yes, I’m Ebert and you’re getting two thumbs up.” Wow! While “The Bad Touch” charted on the pop charts, it failed to reach the top 40, peaking at no. 52 in 2000.  This raunchy, sexed-up joint appears as the 10^th track on the band’s 1999, platinum-certified album, Hooray for Boobies.   

Jimmy is horny throughout “The Bad Touch.” “I want you smothered, want you covered, like my Waffle House hash / Come quicker than FedEx, never reach an apex,” he naughtily asserts towards the end of the first verse. Wow! The second is filthy too: “So, if I capsize on your thighs high tide, B-5, you sunk my battleship / Please turn me on, I’m Mister Coffee, with an automatic drip.” Pop keeps it quick-paced and un-pitched in the verse while he sings on the surprisingly tuneful chorus:

“Do it now

You and me, baby, ain’t nothing but mammals

So, let’s do it like they do on the Discovery Channel

Do it again now.”

So, like mammals mating on Discover Channel? Beyond the lyrics, there are ear-catching production touches with rhythmic synths, horns, and the groove. Notably, “The Bad Touch” features multiple samples, including Pet Shop Boys’ “In The Night”.  This sex song is one for the ages.

Appears in 🔻:

• Bloodhound Gang, The Bad Touch: 1 Hit WONDERful 7 (2024)

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8. AJR, “100 Bad Days”

Neotheater // AJR Productions, LLC / BMG Rights Management (US) LLC // 2019 

“Woah, when all is going wrong, and you’re scared as hell / … Maybe a hundred bad days made a hundred good stories / A hundred good stories make me interesting at parties.” One of the biggest pros for “100 Bad Days”, a standout from the 2019 AJR album, Neotheater, is the sick production work.  Groovy from the onset, “100 Bad Days” is chocked-full of awesome sounds, including the anthemic, brassy chorus.  During this same section, Jack Met sounds incredibly passionate vocally, dropping the strongest section of the record.  Interestingly, the final two lines of the pre-chorus (excerpted above) kick off the chorus, which continues, “…Yeah, no I ain’t scared of you / No, I ain’t scared of you no more.”  In the verses, Jack Met highlights ‘bad’ happenings exemplifying the ‘millennial’ tilt.  On the first, he sings, “Remember when we all got drunk? / I ended up with two broke thumbs.” On the second, matters of love have him feeling bad – “Remember when she broke my heart / Waitin’ for the waiter to return my card?” But, as the chorus made crystal clear, Jack and company are turning bad into good, or something along those lines.  

Appears in 🔻:

• 13 Songs from 2019 That Go Strictly by the Numbers (2019)
• 50 Best Songs of 2019 (So Far): Year in Review
• 10 Intriguing Measurement, Quantification Songs (2020)
• 100… 💯 … 5ive Songs No. 16 (2020)
• 11 Intriguing Triple Digit Songs (2021)
• 15 Stellar Good or Bad Songs (2021)
• 11 Kick-butt Songs That Keep It 100 (2024)

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9. Taylor Swift, “Bad Blood (Taylor’s Version)”

1989 (Taylor’s Version) // Taylor Swift // 2023

“‘Cause, baby, now we got bad blood / You know it used to be mad love / So, take a look what you’ve done / ‘Cause, baby, now we got bad blood, hey.” Those lyrics are iconic from the one-and-only pop superstar, Taylor Swift.  “Bad Blood” isn’t ‘kind of a big deal,’ it is a big deal.  Swift penned the no. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 with Max Martin and Shellback.  The version that topped the pop charts was a remix featuring Grammy and Pulitzer Prize winner Kendrick Lamar.

Swift has since re-recorded most of her pre-2019 catalog with “Bad Blood (Taylor’s Version)” appearing on 2023’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version).  Swift and Christopher Rowe produced the re-recorded rendition.  The highs of  the original are retained in ‘Taylor’s Version.’  It begins with the  enthusiastically troubled chorus where Swift tells the world, “Now we got problems.” Oh, snap! She elaborates on this ‘bad blood’ in the verses. “Did you have to ruin / What was shiny? Now it’s all rusted,” Swift sings in the first verse, adding, “Did you have to hit me / Where I’m weak? Baby, I couldn’t breathe / And rub it in so deep.” Damn, you nameless fella! At the end of the second verse, Swift informs him, “All these things will catch up to you / and time can heal, but this won’t / So, if you’re comin’ my way, just don’t.” Mic drop! Besides unforgettable lyrics, Swift delivers spirited, well-rounded vocals.  The musical accompaniment embraces her shift to pop with its bombastic drums.  Sure, the blood is bad, but the song is good, good, good! 

~ Table of Contents ~

10. The Manhattans, “It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad”

It Feels So Good // Sony Music Entertainment Inc. // 1977 

“Oooh, baby, the more I love you, the more I want to love you ‘cause loving you is all that’s on my mind.” Ooh wee! “It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad” appears as the sixth track on Grammy winning, soul collective The Manhattans’ 1977 album, It Feels So Good.  “It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad” was written by a trio of songwriters: Teddy Randazzo, Victoria Pike, and Roger Joyce. The amorous record dinted the pop charts, peaking at no. 66 on the Billboard Hot 100. It performed substantially better on the R&B songs chart, reaching no. 6.

“Oh baby, well / Loving you is all that’s on my mind.” That sums up “It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad” – a heaping dose of L-O-V-E 😍. The Manhattans go on to add, “You got an easy way of loving / And it’s the best that I’ve ever had /…And it feels, feels so good to be loved so bad.” The desire is lit 🔥 throughout the record, which is anchored by lush, soulful production courtesy of the band and Bobby Martin 💪. “You fill me with desire / And it’s all gonna drive me mad.” Oh, snap 🫰! It’s worth noting that award-winning musician, James Blake sampled the record in his gorgeous song, “Can’t Believe the Way We Flow”.  It doesn’t take rocket science to figure out which portion of “It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad” earned Blake’s attention: “And oh girl, I can’t believe the way we flow (we flow, we flow, we flow, we flow).” Another gem courtesy of The Manhattans.

Appears in 🔻:

• The Manhattans, It Feels So Good to Be Loved So Bad: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 171 (2023)
• Intriguing Songs Fueled by LOVE, Vol. 2 (2024)

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11. Robert Palmer, “Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)”

Secrets // UMG Recordings, Inc. // 1979

“Whoa!” Indeed! “Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)” commences Secrets, the 1979 album by the late, great English rock musician, Robert Palmer.  “Bad Case of Loving You” was written by John Moon Martin while Palmer produced it. A commercial success, it reached no. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. Furthermore, he was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Performance, ultimately losing to Bob Dylan (“Gotta Serve Somebody”). Palmer eventually won two Grammys, both in the same category in the late 80s.

The title reveals the cards, or at least, the theme of the song.  Palmer is in L-O-V-E. “I need you to soothe my head / Turn my blue heart red,” he sings at the end of the first verse.  In the second, he asserts, “You think I’m cute, a little bit shy / Mama, I ain’t that kind of guy.” Of course, the centerpiece of this late 70s classic is the chorus:

“Doctor, doctor, gimme the news

I’ve got a bad case of loving you

No pills gonna cure my ill

I got a bad case of lovin’ you.” 

Robert asks the doctor for help, but he knows what the circumstances are, PERIOD.  Palmer sounds fantastic, wowing with his commanding, nuanced pipes.  The music is lit too, matching the energy the singer brings to the table. What more needs to be said? This “Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)” forever remains our listening pleasure.

Appears in 🔻:

• Robert Palmer, Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor): Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 60 (2024)
• Entertaining, if Medically Sus Doctor Songs, Vol. 1 (2024)

~ Table of Contents ~ // ~ intro ~

11 Marvelous Bad Songs, Vol. 2 (2024) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; AJR Productions, LLC, Atlantic, BMG Rights Management (US) LLC, Cheeky, Columbia, Geffen, JVB, Marshall B. Mathers III, Sony Music Entertainment, Taylor Swift, UMG Recordings, Inc.; Çağrı KANMAZ, Jacob Moore, Kabé Rossi, Kuiyibo Campos, Photo By: Kaboompics.com, the peassa, Yan Krukau from Pexels]