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Le Freak

"Le Freak"
Chicfreak.jpg
One of the US editions
Single by Chic
from the album C'est Chic
B-side "You Can Get By"
"Savoir Faire"
Released July 10, 1978
Format
Recorded January 1978
Genre
Length 5:23 (LP version)
3:30 (7" edit)
Label Atlantic (3519)
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
  • Bernard Edwards
  • Nile Rodgers
Chic singles chronology
"Everybody Dance"
(1978)
"Le Freak"
(1978)
"I Want Your Love"
(1979)

"Le Freak" is a song by American R&B band Chic. It was the band's third single and first Billboard Hot 100 and R&B number-one song. Along with the tracks "I Want Your Love" and "Chic Cheer", "Le Freak" scored number one on the disco charts for seven weeks. The single achieved sales of seven million and also scored number seven in the UK singles chart.

Billboard magazine ranked it as the number 3 song for 1979. The song was ranked number 21 on Billboard magazine's top 100 songs of the first 55 years of the "Hot 100" chart.

Part of the lyrics mention "Stompin' at the Savoy", referencing a song of the same name composed by Edgar Sampson. They also invite the listener to "Come on down to the 54", a reference to Studio 54, which was a popular nightclub in New York City at that time.

This song commemorates Studio 54 for its notoriously long customer waiting lines, exclusive clientele, and discourteous doormen. According to guitarist Nile Rodgers, the song was devised during New Year's Eve of 1977, as a result of he and bassist Bernard Edwards' being refused entrance to Studio 54, where they had been invited by Grace Jones, due to her failure to notify the nightclub's staff. He said the lyrics of the refrain were originally "Fuck off!" rather than "Freak out!"

"Le Freak" was the first song to score the number one position on the Billboard Hot 100 three separate times. MC Lyte sampled the song "Woo Woo (Freak Out)" featuring Brownstone's Nicci Gilbert, which first appeared on the soundtrack to the 1998 movie Woo and also appeared on her album Seven & Seven, titled "Woo Woo (Party Time)" which released three months later. This record remained until 2008, when three different songs, "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis, "Whatever You Like" by T.I., and his follow-up single "Live Your Life", featuring Rihanna all achieved this feat. Bruno Mars also managed this in 2011 with "Grenade", as did The Weeknd with his 2015 single "Can't Feel My Face".


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Wikipedia

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