The 1982 song Devo wrote with Ronald Reagan’s would-be assassin: “Don’t ever let me hurt you”
Ohio rockers Devo never subscribed to the traditional way of doing things.
Whether it be their off-kilter music, humour or bright yellow suits, the band is wholly distinctive and achieves this end by following their unique creed to the letter. This unwavering nature has seen them experience both sides of the coin, scoring great success and ruffling feathers along the way.
One of their most controversial moments came in the form of ‘I Desire’, a track which appeared on their 1982 album Oh, No! It’s Devo. The song features lyrics from President Ronald Reagan’s would-be assassin and a teenage Jodie Foster’s stalker, John Hinckley Jr.
Notoriously, in 1981, Hinckley Jr attempted to assassinate President Reagan in a bid to win the romantic affection of teenage actor Jodie Foster. His actions were greatly influenced by JD Salinger’s angsty 1951 novel, The Catcher in the Rye, and more significantly, Martin Scorsese’s dark psychological drama Taxi Driver. In the film, the main character, Travis Bickle, considers assassinating the US Senator Palantine before opting to murder the pimp of Jodie Foster’s 14-year-old prostitute, Iris.
Hinckley followed Foster from his home in Texas to New Haven, Connecticut, as she enrolled at Yale University. He engaged in various stalker behaviours, including repeatedly calling her and leaving messages and poems. Failing to make tangible contact with Foster, Hinckley dreamed about killing himself in front of her or hijacking an aircraft to gain her attention. His fantasising led to his decision to settle on assassinating the President, thinking that if he could write himself into the history books, he would seem equal to Foster, and she would then love him.
Hinckley followed incumbent Jimmy Carter across the country but was arrested in Nashville, Tennessee, on a firearms charge. Destitute, he returned home. After this detention, Hinckley received psychiatric treatment, but his condition did not improve. Then, when Reagan was elected President in 1981, he set his sights on him and researched the 1963 assassination of John F Kennedy for inspiration.
On March 30th, 1981, Hinckley embarked on the mission he had set himself. He shot his revolver six times at Reagan as he left the Hilton Hotel in Washington, DC However, Hinckley failed in his objective. He wounded police officer Thomas Delahanty, Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy, and critically hit press secretary James Brady, who was permanently disabled after the incident. Although he did not hit Reagan directly, the former actor was seriously wounded when a bullet ricocheted off the presidential limousine and hit him in the chest.
Just before his attempt on Ronald Reagan, Hinckley wrote to Foster: “Over the past seven months I’ve left you dozens of poems, letters and love messages in the faint hope that you could develop an interest in me. Although we talked on the phone a couple of times, I never had the nerve to simply approach you and introduce myself. … The reason I’m going ahead with this attempt now is because I cannot wait any longer to impress you.”
Per a 2012 account in Rolling Stone, Devo contacted Hinckley and managed to obtain one of his love poems for Foster. They subsequently adapted it into the song ‘I Desire’. The lyrics include: “Don’t let me torment you / Don’t let me bring you down / Don’t ever let me hurt you / Don’t let me fail because / I desire your attention / I desire your perfect love / I desire nothing more (than this)”.
For Devo, the decision to incorporate Hinckley’s words was less about shock value and more about confronting uncomfortable realities head-on. Their work had always thrived on exposing the darker, absurd undercurrents of modern society, and ‘I Desire’ became an extension of that philosophy, forcing listeners to engage with something deeply unsettling rather than turning away from it.
However, that artistic intent did little to soften the reaction. The song blurred the line between commentary and controversy, leaving many unsure whether it was critique or provocation. In doing so, it became one of the clearest examples of Devo’s refusal to play by conventional rules, even when the consequences threatened to overshadow the music itself.
Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh recalled: “[Hinckley] let us take a poem that he had written, and we used it for the lyrics and turned it into a love song. It was not the best career move you could make. We had the FBI calling up and threatening us.” It wasn’t only the FBI that the Akron band annoyed. Their record label Warner Bros found out they were legally obliged to pay the incarcerated Hinckley royalties. Understandably, they were furious.
In November 1982, the month after, Oh, No! It’s Devo arrived, Hinckley wrote a letter to the Dallas radio station, KZEW, and outlined his love for new wave music, requesting that they play ‘I Desire’ for a total of “58 times each day”. He said: “I like New Wave music, especially Devo, since I co-wrote a song on their new album. The song is called ‘I Desire” and I want you to play it 58 times each day.”
Listen to ‘I Desire’ below.
