John Legend, Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’ offers new take

The song has been a flashpoint of the #MeToo era, with foes calling it everything from sexist to an ode to date rape.

By Associated Press

Kelly Clarkson and John Legend have joined forces on a reimagined version of the oft-criticized Christmas classic “Baby It’s Cold Outside.” (AP Photo)

NEW YORK — John Legend and Kelly Clarkson, his fellow coach on “The Voice,” have joined forces on a reimagined version of the oft-criticized Christmas classic “Baby It’s Cold Outside.”

UPDATE: The song dropped at midnight Nov. 8:

The song, written by Frank Loesser in 1944, is a duet that has a man trying to convince a woman to stay overnight at his home on a cold winter’s night. It’s been a flashpoint of the #MeToo era, with foes calling it everything from sexist to an ode to date rape.

Legend and comedian Natasha Rothwell of HBO’s “Insecure” wrote the new take, which includes Clarkson leading the lyrics:

”What will my friends think (I think they should rejoice)/If I have one more drink? (It’s your body, and your choice).”

Gone are such lines as, “Gosh, your lips look delicious,” sung by the man, and “Say, what’s in this drink?” by the woman.

Earlier this week, “The Talk” co-host Sharon Osbourne, discussing the lyric snippets of the new version that were released ahead of the full track, was critical of the song’s politically correct makeover. On Monday’s show, Osbourne said: “To change an innocent lyric, to what is it, ‘Your mind and your body’? What the hell are you on? That’s ridiculous. I have to tell you, I love John Legend. I love John Legend’s wife, his family. He’s an amazing artist that I really respect. Why do you do this? That’s not right.”

In a column in the Daily Mail, Piers Morgan echoed the sentiment. “There’s nothing sleazy about it, or nasty, or even remotely ‘problematic’ to quote the ghastly buzzword of modern-day political correctness,” Morgan said, referring to the tune as his “favorite” Christmas song.

The twittersphere was also quick to weigh in on the new lyrics. One user wrote:

“Don’t like the song, dont sing it! But dont rewrite it.”

The new take appears on expanded version of Legend’s 2018 “A Legendary Christmas: The Deluxe Edition,” available starting Nov. 8.

Here’s a look at the original version of the song: