"Kiss Me More" is a song by American rapper and singer Doja Cat featuring American singer SZA from the former's third studio album Planet Her (2021). It was released on April 9, 2021, as the album's lead single through Kemosabe and RCA Records. "Kiss Me More" was written by the artists alongside producers Yeti Beats and Rogét Chahayed, as well as Tizhimself and Carter Lang, who both provided additional production, and Lukasz Gottwald. It has been described as a disco and rap influenced pop song.
As it interpolates the melody of the chorus from Olivia Newton-John's 1981 single "Physical", additional co-writing credits on the track go to Steve Kipner and Terry Shaddick. "Kiss Me More" met a huge commercial success, peaking atop in New Zealand, Mexico, Malaysia and Singapore, and reached the top five in eighteen countries including Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States, top twenty in the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Belgium, Iceland, Portugal, Switzerland, Sweden, Austria and Hungary and top forty in France, Panama, Germany and Brazil. It is also the longest-running all-female top 10 hit in American chart history. It is certified Diamond in France and Multiplatinum in twelve additional countries, including five-times Platinum in the US. The song won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (becoming both Doja and SZA's first Grammy wins) and was also nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
Background Doja Cat released her second studio album, Hot Pink, in November 2019. The album spawned seven singles, including "Juicy", "Say So", and "Streets". "Juicy" gave Doja Cat her first entry into Billboard US Hot 100 chart. It then went viral on the video-hosting application TikTok, where it served as background music for several Internet dance challenge clips. Aided by their popularity in TikTok, "Say So" and "Streets" became her first songs to top the US Hot 100 and reach the top 10 of the Billboard Global 200, respectively.
Looking back at the success of Hot Pink, staff writers at Billboard observed that Doja Cat had the "innate ability" to produce hit singles, and argued that she was becoming a "quintessential [Generation] Z pop star". After the album had performed great on the charts, the senior staff at Doja Cat's record label, RCA, believed that they needed to release a good follow-up song that would attain Internet-driven commercial success just like her previous singles. Such a song turned out to be "Kiss Me More", featuring American singer-songwriter SZA.
In early January 2021, Doja Cat revealed that her upcoming studio album features numerous guest appearances, including SZA. On March 5, 2021, SZA first mentioned "Kiss Me More" during an interview with V. She revealed that the song was "a different strut and I'm just excited", while Doja Cat replied by praising SZA, saying "I commend artists, like you, who stick to something". On April 8, 2021, Doja Cat took to social media to reveal the cover art and announce the release of the song for April 9. In an interview with Zane Lowe for Apple Music, she said: "I wanted to make a song about kissing. I just thought it would be cute. That doesn't happen too often, but just a song that's solely about kissing."
Composition "Kiss Me More" is a pop, pop rap, bubblegum pop, dance-pop and R&B song largely influenced by disco. It is composed in time and the key of A-flat major, with a moderately fast tempo of 111 beats per minute (BPM) and a chord progression of B♭m7–E♭7–A♭maj7–D♭maj7. Doja Cat opens the song with vocals that recall "the gentle airiness of a light breeze", before two crashes of cymbals "act like glue" as they precede the beat drop. The song is "bolstered" by a "sunny, glimmering riff" and both singing and rap verses which critics noted to spotlight Doja Cat as equal parts singer and rapper. It is distinguishable by its slightly distorted signature guitar lead. Lyrical themes include "romance, passion, bold sexual desires, and tenderness all at once". The song's chorus interpolates the melody from Olivia Newton-John's "Physical", for which songwriters Steve Kipner and Terry Shaddick are also credited as co-writers.
Critical reception "Kiss Me More" received critical acclaim. Some critics drew resemblance between the song and Doja Cat's breakthrough 2020 hit "Say So". Jon Caramanica of The New York Times wrote that it "mixes the breeze of lite 1980s funk with the bawdiness of 2020s hip-hop, a juggling act that Doja Cat has pioneered, if not trademarked, by now." Justin Cutro of Vulture described it as "a silky, playful R&B jam", while writers at Rolling Stone deemed it a "groovy, disco-inflected jam". Heran Mamo of Billboard wrote that "the slinky, sensual jam will definitely be a summer playlist staple with its groovy bass line". Writing for Nylon, Steffanee Wang described the song as "a mid-tempo pop number with guitar and sticky melodies". Writing for Teen Vogue, Claire Dodson described the song as "excellent" and "a shimmering ode to kissing [...] with a somewhat melancholy underlying melody that contrasts well with that signature soft-disco Doja beat." Anders Hare of Rated R&B wrote that the "sunkissed, bouncy tune [...] features both musical prowesses sensually crooning about embracing the now with their significant others." Doja Cat and SZA's vocals were described as "smooth", "sultry" and "evocative". Jason Lipshutz of Billboard praised the duo's delivery and noted that they "keep their rhymes tight and chorus vocals breathy, but don't mince words". Both the song and its accompanying music video received all-round praise for its dreaminess and sensuality.
Complex ranked "Kiss Me More" seventh on its mid-year list of the best songs of 2021 and named it one of the most "infectious" songs of the year. Describing it as "light and uptempo" and deeming it "a masterclass in disco-adjacent pop music", they praised Doja Cat's "terrific job balancing singing and rapping over a catchy riff" with her "snappy flow" and "tongue-in-cheek punchlines". Insider crowned "Kiss Me More" the best song on Planet Her and hailed it as "easily one of the best songs released [in 2021]" since "every moment of this song is disarming and brilliant." Brandon Yu of Mic deemed it "the most refined showcase of her many talents thus far". In an album review for Consequence, Carys Anderson agreed that the song "sums up every layer of Doja Cat’s complex celebrity" with its infectious guitar line and chanted refrain, ultimately making it "a summery summation" of the "hyper-feminine, hyper-sexual, hyper-futuristic aesthetic" of Planet Her.
Accolades Kiss Me More has won 16 awards, including one Grammy Award from three nominations, one MTV Video Music Award from two nominations, one Billboard Music Award from three nominations, one iHeartRadio Music Award from five nominations , one MTV Europe Music Award from three nominations, one Clio Award and one Spotify One Billion Streams Plaque. It also has been nominated for one NAACP Image Award, one Brit Award, two BET Awards, one People's Choice Award and one Soul Train Music Award.
+Awards and nominations for "Kiss Me More" Ceremony Year Award Result American Music Awards 2021 Collaboration of the Year Favorite Pop/Rock Song ASCAP Pop Music Awards2022Most Performed Songs of the YearASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards2023 BET Awards 2022 Video of the Year Best Collaboration Billboard Music Awards 2022 Top Hot 100 Song Top Collaboration Top Viral Song BMI Pop Music Awards2022Most-Performed Songs of the YearBRIT Awards 2022 International Song of the Year Bulletin Awards2021Single of the YearCollaboration of the YearSong of the SummerMusic Video of the YearClio Music Awards2022Film/Video (Music Marketing – Music Video) Grammy Awards 2022 Record of the Year Song of the Year Best Pop Duo/Group Performance Hit FM Music Awards2022Collaboration of the YearTop 10 Singles of the Year iHeartRadio Music Awards 2022 Song of the Year Best Music Video Best Collaboration TikTok Bop of the Year iHeartRadio Music Titanium Awards2023One Billion Total Spins on iHeartRadio StationsJoox Thailand Music Awards2022International Song of the Year MTV Europe Music Awards 2021 Best Song Best Video Best Collaboration MTV Millennial Awards 2021 Global Hit of the Year MTV Millennial Awards Brazil 2021 International Collaboration MTV Video Play Awards2021Top 20 Music Videos MTV Video Music Awards 2021 Video of the Year Best Collaboration NAACP Image Awards2022Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration (Traditional) People's Choice Awards 2021 Collaboration of the Year Soul Train Music Awards 2021 Best Collaboration Spotify Plaques2022One Billion Total Streams on SpotifyThe Daily Californian's Arts Awards2021Song of the YearBest Collaboration Urban Music Awards 2021 Best Collaboration
Rankings "Kiss Me More" appeared on many mid-year best-of lists, with several critics identifying it as one best songs of the year so far. The following is a selected list of publications. + Critical rankings for "Kiss Me More" Publication AccoladeRank Amazon Music Best Songs of 2021 1 Apple Music The 100 Best Songs of 2021 5 The 20 best songs of 2021 4 Billboard The 50 Best Songs of 2021 13 Complex The 50 Best Songs of 2021 5 Cosmopolitan 15 Best Summer Songs of 2021 2 NME The 50 best songs of 2021 16 NPR The 100 Best Songs of 2021 63 Pitchfork The 100 Best Songs of 2021 35 Spin The 30 Best Songs Of 2021 3 Uproxx The Best Songs Of 2021
Music video
The music video was filmed throughout the week of March 15–19, 2021, directed by Warren Fu.Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: It premiered the same day as the single. It features an astronaut (played by American actor Alex Landi) who crash-lands and explores the fictional "Planet Her", where Doja Cat and SZA portray seductive aliens who "provide soulful ambiance to his journey." At the end, he wakes up in a glass tube displayed among a collection of other men who have tried to explore the planet before him.
Emlyn Travis of MTV News praised the music video, describing Planet Her as "a mysterious, flourishing world filled with glittering oases, calming zen gardens, pastel sunset skies, and blossoming cherry trees that is ruled by two larger-than-life queens". Meaghan Garvey of Billboard noted that the video is "bathed in pastel hues and high-femme futurism, and while it's over-the-top sexy, it still ends with Doja and SZA cracking each other up while playing a video game in a galaxy far, far away." Erica Gonzales of Harper's Bazaar described the video as a "fantastical" one that "only their creative minds could pull off." Jem Aswad of Variety deemed it "trippy", while Jackson Langford of NME described it as "sensual sci-fi". Mekishana Pierre of Entertainment Tonight noted that it was "as playful and sugary-sweet as the track itself". Trishna Rikhy of V wrote: "A celestial visual and sonic experience, the hints of surrealism Doja Cat constantly threads through her videos still lingers". John Wohlmacher of Beats Per Minute noted that the fact that these "playful goddesses" were more interested in videogames than men shows just how clever the thematic approach to Planet Her was.
Live performances