Shaggy, the legendary Jamaican-born rapper and singer, has teamed up with Smirnoff ICE for the Summer Nights Tour.
And with over 30 years in the music business, the musician recently sat down with PEOPLE to spill the beans on the true meaning of the hit song “It Wasn’t Me.”
Shaggy Insists We Misunderstood The Song
Despite the considerable popularity of “It Wasn’t Me,” the singer has been happily married to Rebecca Packer for almost a decade, with three daughters together.
However, the rapper insists that it’s all a misunderstanding.
According to Shaggy, “It Wasn’t Me” is an anti-cheating anthem and people think the opposite because they never listened to the whole record.
The singer especially noted the ending of the song, where he gave bad advice (“Just say, ‘It wasn’t me.”) but the other character decided to apologize for the pain he caused.
Shaggy insists that the ending is the true essence of the song, but most people never paid attention to it–and in clubs, the DJs never let the song end before skipping to the next track.
So, according to the singer, most fans only have one narrative of the song’s story.
However, he thinks this misconception has helped the song’s longevity.
Cheating is something people experience regardless of age, race, or sexual orientation, so the song has become timeless.
However, love is another timeless theme.
Shaggy referenced Lionel Richie, who released a number of songs with “I love you” in them.
So, according to the singer, when you tackle relatable topics, it doesn’t matter how many times you present them in different melodies.
All you need is a catchy new melody, and voila, you’ve got yourself a brand-new hit–like “It Wasn’t Me.”
