Song lyrics are a funny thing. Most people have a hard time remembering what they ate for lunch yesterday, yet somehow have the ability to retain lyrics from decades past with ease .
Some are poetic, others are provocative, and some are so utterly ridiculous that you’d swear they were made up. With that in mind, have a look below at these 15+ lyrics that sound fake but are very real .
“I’m in the ocean getting shark [expletive].” – “IANAHB”/Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne is easily one of the greatest wordsmiths to ever pick up a mic — but then he goes and makes songs like “IANAHB” and he makes you question everything you ever thought you knew about him .
“I’m a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world. Life in plastic, it’s fantastic. You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere.” – “Barbie Girl”/Aqua
Back in the late ’90s, this song was inescapable. It infiltrated the airwaves and simply refused to die — no matter how badly music fans wished it would.
“I got my head checked by a jumbo jet. It wasn’t easy, but nothing is. No.” – “Song 2″/Blur
Don’t hear what I’m not saying — “Song 2” is one of the most iconic ’90s anthems . But there’s no escaping the fact that the lyrics are completely nonsensical.
“I did it all for the nookie (come on), the nookie (come on), the nookie. So you can take that cookie and stick it up your (yeah).” – “Nookie”/Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit was one of the biggest bands on earth in the early ’00s, and as much as I’m embarrassed to admit it — I still own all their albums.
“There’s no love like your love. And no other could give more love.” – “Everything I Do”/Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams is a Canadian rock legend who boasts a musical catalog bursting with #1 hits. But could he really not come up with another word to rhyme with love other than love?
“Cause tonight is the night when two become one.” – “2 Become 1″/The Spice Girls
It’s not that the lyrics are altogether preposterous or bad in any way. Rather, it’s that this song was being sung by legions of preteen girls all over the planet in the mid-90s, without even a glint of irony.
“The sky was gold, it was rose, I was taking sips of it through my nose.” – “Semi-Charmed Life”/Third Eye Blind
Most people are absolutely shocked when they realize that one of the most-played songs on the radio back in the ’90s is all about having sex and doing chemical drugs.
“I’m riding on a dolphin, doing flips and [expletive]. The dolphin’s splashing, getting everybody all wet.” – “I’m On A Boat”/The Lonely Island
I understand that this is a parody song, but the amount of radio play that it received was absolutely mind-boggling.
“And I can’t make it on my own (I can’t make it on my own). Because my heart is in Ohio.” – “Ohio Is For Lovers”/Hawthorne Heights
If there’s one thing I love about Gen Z, it’s how intent they seem on bringing Emo music and Pop Punk back into the fold. If that’s what you’re after, kids, look no further than Hawthorne Heights.
“Do ya really wanna (do ya really wanna) taste it? What’s going up must come down.” – “Do Ya Wanna Taste It”/Wig Wam
The overt sexual undertones of this song are almost too much to bear. Although I must admit, it was a great choice for the Peacemaker TV show intro.
“And as I stared I counted the webs from all the spiders, catching things and eating their insides.” – “Miss You”/Blink 182
My goodness, I’d forgotten just how badly Blink 182 got once the wheels had begun to fall off. If you ask me, I blame Tom Delonge.
“Pissing the night away. Pissing the night away…” – “Tubthumping”/Chumbawamba
Of all the godawful one-hit wonders to come out of the ’90s, and there were a lot of them, none was more reprehensible than Chumbawumba’s impossibly catchy earworm, “Tubthumping.”
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“Life’s not a bitch, life is a beautiful woman. You only call her a bitch because she won’t let you get that [expletive].” – “Daylight”/Aesop Rock
Once again, I’m not hating on Aesop Rock. In fact, I firmly believe he may just be one of the greatest poets of his age. However, even diehard fans need to be able to call a spade a spade.
“If I had a million dollars we wouldn’t have to eat Kraft Dinner, but we would eat Kraft Dinner.” – “If I Had $1,000,000.”/Barenaked Ladies
“Of course, we would — we’d just eat more!” Oh, Steven Page, how I do miss you so…
“Bawitdaba-da bang-da-bang-diggy-diggy-diggy said the boogie, said up jump the boogie.” – “Bawitdaba”/Kid Rock
You can try and deny it all you want, but if you were born anywhere between 1986 to 1992, then you most definitely listened to Kid Rock.
“On a weekend wanna wish it all away, and they called and I said that I want what I said, and then I call out again.” – “Yellow Ledbetter”/Pearl Jam
Without a doubt, ” Yellow Ledbetter ” is the most beautiful song that 99.9% of Pearl Jam fans will never truly understand or know the lyrics to.
“Soy un perdedor. I’m a loser, baby, so why don’t you kill me?” – “Loser”/Beck
Believe it or not, those are the actual lyrics to Beck’s immortal ’90s anthem “Loser.” I can’t believe that I’ve been singing it incorrectly for nearly 30 years…
“The truth is you could slit my throat. And with my one last gasping breath I’d apologize for bleeding on your shirt.” – “You’re So Last Summer”/Taking Back Sunday
This may just very well be the most emo lyrics ever written in the history of music.
“My mother says to get a job, but she don’t like the one she’s got. When masturbation’s lost its fun, you’re [expletive] lazy.” – “Longview”/Green Day
For as long as I live, I will forever defend Green Day as being the greatest pop punk band that ever was or ever will be.
“You’ve gotta fight for your right to party.” – “Fight For Your Right”/Beastie Boys
I never understood the appeal of Beastie Boys in my youth and I still don’t to this day. How they ever became hailed as artists or innovators is totally beyond me. Truly, the emperor has no clothes.
“First-born unicorn. Hardcore soft porn. Dream of Californication.” – “Californication”/Red Hot Chili Peppers
There’s very little middle ground when it comes to Red Hot Chili Peppers. Frankly, you either love them or you hate them — I just happen to fall on the latter side of the coin.
