Five classic tracks with hidden profanities
A lot of people roll their eyes at swear words, and those people are fucking stupid. While profanity is often used as a means to shock people, as it was just then (apologies, but it’s hard not to seize an opportunity like that), it can have a much broader impact as well. Using a swear word in art is a great way to get a message across and really emote, like how The Last Dinner Party do in their hit song ‘Nothing Matters’.
While swear words remain divisive in art, there are some people who will not bend on whether or not they can be used; these people work for radio and TV. Regardless of your opinion on swear words, there is no way you will get a song on the radio if it contains multiple expletives. But that hasn’t stopped people from trying.
For decades, artists across genres, whether pop, punk, rap, or rock, have tried to sneak swear words into their music without them being recognised and censored. Some people did this to send a message; others did it because it was funny. Regardless, a surprising number have achieved their goal.
Here, we will examine some of the best examples of musicians who have written a hit and then managed to have it go mainstream with hidden profanity.
Classic songs with hidden swear words:
The Beatles – ‘Hey Jude’
The Beatles have so many wonderful songs that if you ask a variety of fans what their biggest hit is, you’ll likely get a different answer from all of them. That being said, ‘Hey Jude’ is an instantly recognisable tune that is still frequently sung in pubs, clubs and football stadiums today.
Despite the song’s popularity, it still comes as a surprise to many people when they find out that John Lennon snuck a swear word into the recording. At just under the three-minute mark, if you listen carefully, you can hear his Liverpudlian voice proclaim, “Oh fucking hell!”
Sex Pistols – ‘Pretty Vacant’
Sex Pistols completely took the world by storm when they released their controversial tracks ‘Anarchy In The UK’ and ‘God Save The Queen’. However, neither of these songs was played on the radio or on TV because of the profane nature of their lyrics. When the band released ‘Pretty Vacant’, they finally had a song free from swears or controversy that could be shown on mainstream media…or did they?
Even though the lyrics in the chorus simply state, “We’re so pretty, oh so pretty, vacant,” the way that Johnny Rotten sings them is clearly him sneaking one of the worst profanities past officials. The emphasis on the second half of the word “vacant” isn’t an accident and was Sex Pistols’ secret way of getting swear words on the radio.
EMF – ‘Unbelievable’
Widely renowned as an upbeat and fun song that gets played at parties, EMF’s track ‘Unbelievable’ actually has a swear word repeated throughout. This continues to get past audiences, but it becomes more apparent when you’re listening out for it.
The “Ohhhh”, which is sampled and repeated in the song, is followed by three syllables. Because the song is edited and these words never find official form, they come across as noises. However, it was revealed that the words being repeated are actually “What the fuck.”
Lou Reed – ‘Walk on the Wild Side’
Lou Reed is one of the best lyricists ever to live. He had a unique ability to lace his songs with poetry so that they sounded profound but remained accessible. He appealed to the public at large because he spoke in a way that was simple to connect with while still being hauntingly beautiful.
Because some of his songs are lyric-heavy, many lines went over people’s heads, to the point that it wasn’t until years later that people realised how rude what he was saying was. As a nod to fellatio, in his song ‘Walk On The Wild Side’, Lou Reed sings, “She never lost her head, even while she was giving head.” The line was never picked by TV or radio stations and was able to run as usual.
The Who – ‘Who Are You’
The Who is another band for which it would be difficult to name their biggest hit, but ‘Who Are You’ would certainly be on the tip of many fans’ tongues. Still, despite the song’s popularity, there is a sneaky swear stuffed in there that often goes unnoticed.
When you listen to the track, at one point, Roger Daltrey quite blatantly screams the line, “Who the fuck are you?” Again, despite the swear word being clear, many people missed it, and the song has never had to undergo any form of censorship.
