"Opposites Attract" is a song by American singer

Paula Abdul Paula Julie Abdul (born June 19, 1962) is an American singer, dancer, choreographer, actress, and television personality. She began her career as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 18 and later became the head choreograph ...

from her debut album, ''

Forever Your Girl ''Forever Your Girl'' is the debut studio album by American singer Paula Abdul. It was released on June 21, 1988, through Virgin Records. The album was Abdul's breakthrough into the music industry after being a choreographer for high-profile ...

'' (1988). It was written and produced by Oliver Leiber. Vocals on the song, in addition to Abdul, were provided by Bruce DeShazer and Marv Gunn, also known as The Wild Pair. "Opposites Attract" was the sixth and final single from the album in November 1989 and achieved success in many countries, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, where it was a number-one hit. Lyrically, the song is about a couple who love each other despite being different in almost every way possible.

Music video

The song's

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

was directed by Candace Reckinger and

Michael Patterson Michael Patterson may refer to: *Michael Patterson (animator), American director and animator, creator of MC Skat Kat *Michael Patterson (English footballer) (1905 – after 1931) *Michael Patterson (Australian footballer) (1941–2002), AFL player ...

, in which Abdul dances with cartoon character

MC Skat Kat MC Skat Kat is an animated cat character who appeared with Paula Abdul in the video for her song "Opposites Attract" in 1989. History MC Skat Kat was created by Michael Patterson and performed by the Wild Pair duo of Bruce DeShazer and Marv Gu ...

, voiced by The Wild Pair, Bruce DeShazer and Marvin Gunn. An additional rap, written by

Romany Malco Romany relates or may refer to: *The Romani people or Romany people, also known as Gypsies *Romani language or Romany language, the language of the Romani people *"Romany", the pseudonym of a broadcaster and writer of Romani descent, George Bramwel ...

was provided by Derrick "Delite" Stevens for the Street mix version of the song, which was edited for the 7"/video. The idea of MC Skat Kat came from the

Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, singer, filmmaker, and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...

film ''

Anchors Aweigh "Anchors Aweigh" is the fight song of the United States Naval Academy and unofficial march song of the United States Navy. It was composed in 1906 by Charles A. Zimmermann with lyrics by Alfred Hart Miles. When he composed "Anchors Aweigh", Zim ...

'', where Kelly dances with

Jerry Mouse Gerald Jinx "Jerry" Mouse is a fictional character and one of the two titular characters in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's series of ''Tom and Jerry'' theatrical animated short films and other animated media, usually acting as the protagonist opposite his ...

from the ''

Tom and Jerry ''Tom and Jerry'' is an American Animated cartoon, animated media franchise and series of comedy short films created in 1940 by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera. Best known for its 161 theatrical short films by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the series c ...

'' cartoon series. Paula even choreographed the animated character's moves to match her live-action dance moves in the video. MC Skat Kat was animated by members of the

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

animation team, working outside the studio between major projects, under the direction of Chris Bailey. MC Skat Kat's movements were the result of

rotoscoping Rotoscoping is an animation technique that animators use to trace over motion picture footage, frame by frame, to produce realistic action. Originally, animators projected photographed live-action movie images onto a glass panel and traced ov ...

animation, with Michael "Boogaloo Shrimp" Chambers standing in for the character against a blue screen, then drawing the animated form over Chambers' dance moves. The Wild Pair Marvin Gunn and Bruce DeShazer did not appear in the video, although two other cats (also animated) did appear, possibly meant to represent them. The video won the 1991

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for

Best Short Form Music Video The Grammy Award for Best Music Video is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to performers, directors, and producers of quality short form music videos. Hon ...

and was nominated for Breakthrough Video at the

1990 MTV Video Music Awards The 1990 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on September 6, 1990, honoring the best music videos from June 2, 1989, to June 1, 1990. The show was hosted by Arsenio Hall at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. This year saw the elimination of ...

Critical reception

Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' commented, "For this release

Abdul Abdul (also transliterated as Abdal, Abdel, Abdil, Abdol, Abdool, or Abdoul; ar, عبد ال, ) is the most frequent transliteration of the combination of the Arabic word '' Abd'' (, meaning "Servant") and the definite prefix '' al / el'' (, mea ...

duets with The Wild Pair. The song also features a

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

by Derrick Delite and is, of course, very danceable." A reviewer from ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC (company), IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People ...

'' described it as one of "the liveliest cuts" from the album.

Chart performance

"Opposites Attract" initially rose from number 72 to number 47 the week of December 23, 1989, and landed at number one the week of February 10, 1990, where it remained for three weeks, matching the run of " Straight Up". It became Abdul's fourth number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and made her only the fourth artist in music history to score four number-one hits from a single album, after

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...

and

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

. (

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

, Usher and

Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. Known for her influence on modern pop music and her Camp (style), campy style, she has been ...

would later duplicate the feat.) "Opposites Attract" also topped the charts in Australia and Canada and peaked at number two in the United Kingdom.

Track listings and formats

* 7-inch and cassette single # "Opposites Attract" (7-inch) – 3:45 # "One or the Other" (LP version) – 4:08 * US and Australian 12-inch single # "Opposites Attract" (Street mix) – 4:28 # "Opposites Attract" (12-inch mix) – 5:40 # "Opposites Attract" (dub version) – 6:25 # "Opposites Attract" (Magnetic mix) – 4:01 # "Opposites Attract" (club mix) – 6:01 # "Opposites Attract" (Party dub) – 3:09 * Japanese CD single # "Opposites Attract" – 3:46 # "(It's Just) The Way That You Love Me" – 4:03 * UK and Australian CD single # "Opposites Attract" (Street mix) – 4:28 # "One or the Other" (LP version) – 4:08 # "Opposites Attract" (club mix) – 6:01 # "Opposites Attract" (Party dub) – 3:09 * UK 12-inch single # "Opposites Attract" (Street mix) – 4:28 # "Opposites Attract" (Party dub) – 3:10 # "The Paula Abdul Megamix" ("Straight Up"/"Cold Hearted"/"The Way That You Love Me"/"Forever Your Girl"/"Knocked Out")

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel are adapted from ''Forever Your Girl'' album liner notes. *

–

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

* The Wild Pair (Bruce DeShazer and Marv Gunn) – lead vocals * Oliver Leiber –

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

, producer,

drum programming Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices and computer software, such as sequencers and workstations or hardware synthesizers, sampler and sequencers, to generate sounds of musical instruments. These mus ...

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

* Keith "K.C." Cohen – mixing at Skip Saylor Studio (Los Angeles) * Pete Martinsen –

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

* Russell Bracher – engineering *

Jeff Lorber Jeffrey H. Lorber (born November 4, 1952) is an American keyboardist, composer, and record producer. After six previous nominations, Lorber won his first Grammy Award on January 28, 2018 for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for '' Prototype' ...

– engineering, additional drum programming * Cliff Jones – engineering * Yvette Marine – background vocals * Patti Brooks – background vocals

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

External links

{{Authority control 1988 songs 1989 singles Animated music videos Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video Male–female vocal duets New jack swing songs Number-one singles in Australia Paula Abdul songs RPM Top Singles number-one singles Songs written by Oliver Leiber Virgin Records singles