"Baby, It's Cold Outside" Still Slaps

And it’s not as problematic as it sounds

I hate winter weather, but I try to make the best of it.

I love hot drinks and the way fresh snow blankets my backyard.

I like the holiday decorations and the light from the Christmas tree.

My husband does more baking, too. That’s always nice.

It’s also the time of year when I listen to “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” a lot.

I love that song. I know it’s not exactly a Christmas song, but I associate it with the holidays and I play it all December long.

It’s a really sexy song. It’s playful and flirty. It’s hot and suggestive.

It’s the perfect song to have on when I’m teasing my husband across the kitchen island while we’re cooking elaborate meals together.

It makes me want to get cuddled and squeezed.

And, yes, it puts me in the mood to get frisky and fuck.

But every year, I see complaints about it. The song I think of as fun and sexy comes across to others as completely rapey.

Don’t Put “Baby” in a Corner

Last year, my country’s public broadcaster (and other stations) pulled the song from their holiday rotation. The CBC at least had the good sense to reinstate the song after complaints.

And now John Legend has released a rewritten version of the song. That’s fine, I guess, but it’s not going on my holiday playlist.

Legend’s new lyrics have the male vocalist helping his lady get a ride home instead of nudging her to stay the night.

It helps him prove his woke credentials, I guess, but it takes the fun out of it. He just sounds like a guy who’s too clueless to pick up on her signals.

There’s no playfulness. All the horniness and heat is gone. In this version, it’s cold inside, too.

There are a few versions where the genders are reversed (like the one by She and Him), maybe as an attempt to make the song less problematic without having to fuck with the lyrics.

That makes more sense to me - some guys are just more passive and need to be seduced. But if it’s a rapey song, switching up the genders won’t fix that.

Thankfully, though, there’s no reason to fix it at all. Because, let’s be clear here, the song is about a woman who wants to fuck. She just isn’t comfortable admitting that plainly.

The song plays out the flirty banter at the start of a hookup. It’s about saying everything between the lines. It was written in 1944 by Frank Loesser. Loesser would sing the tune with his wife as a kind of coda at swanky New York City parties.

Given when and where it was performed, the lyrics had to be fairly tame. The sex is palpable, but it’s only hinted at.

The female performer is getting macked on in a context where a woman’s reputation depended on her chastity. Or at least, the appearance of it.

It’s telling that about half of the protests in the lyrics have to do with reputation rather than lack of desire. She’s worried, first, about what her mother, father, and the neighbors will think, then runs through her sister, her brother, and her maiden aunt.

Everyone but herself.

She comes closest to voicing what she wants at the end of every verse. When she says “maybe just a half a drink more,” “maybe just a cigarette more,” and “just another drink then,” it’s not another martini and a smoke she’s after.

And the guy doing the macking is partly just enabling her. When he gives her enough excuses, she can finally tell him “At least I’m going to say that I tried” and stay the night.

That kind of thing isn’t all that outdated, either. The song might be a classic, but 70 years later we’re still playing that same game.

It’s not because we’re not consenting - it’s because submissive people want to be chased. As a certified subby dame, I can attest to that personally.

That’s why the male vocals are delivered with a grin and a wink instead of a sneer. That’s why the female vocals are coy and flirty.

And they’re both hella DTF.

Keep Christmas Sexy

I find it so fitting that “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” was originally performed by a married couple because the banter in the song is the kind of thing I play out with my husband.

It reflects our sexual dynamic. I do little things to tease and bait him. I drop sly little hints and make winking comments. I make him want me.

He reciprocates by pursuing me. He draws me in. He works to win me over every time.

That’s when we’re at our sexiest. That’s part of what keeps the fun and passion alive in our marriage.

And I love that there’s a Christmas song that captures this so perfectly. Because there’s something really sexy about this time of year. It’s intimate. It’s cozy. It makes coming together so much more satisfying, and it’s right in the middle of cuffing season.

We get flirty and naughty like this all year long. But it’s always hotter when it’s cold outside.

If you liked this article, you should totally check out the How to Seduce a Married Woman (Even Though You Really Shouldn’t) episode of my dirty and intimate sex podcast, Pillow Talk With Emma Austin!