“Come Get It Bae” is a song written and performed by American recording artist Pharrell Williams from his second studio album GIRL (2014). The song features uncredited vocals from American recording artist, Miley Cyrus.
“Come Get It Bae” is a funk song, and discusses sex through the metaphor of a motorcycle. The song received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who complimented its overall production, but were ambivalent towards its lyrical content. It was released in the United States as the third overall single from Girl on May 8, 2014. The song has since peaked at number 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number 108 on the French SNEP.
Background and composition
Williams first collaborated with Cyrus while producing the tracks “4x4” and “Get It Right” for her fourth studio album Bangerz (2013). It was announced that Cyrus would appear on Williams’ second studio album Girl when its track listing was confirmed on February 25. Their collaboration, “Come Get It Bae”, was premiered through iTunes Radio on February 28 during an exclusive streaming of the record before its official release on March 3. “Come Get It Bae” is a funk song with playful beat, which sees the incorporation of a “throbbing bass and handclaps”. Williams delivers its verses, while Cyrus sings the chorus and is heard yelling “hey!” throughout the song. The metaphor “you want to ride my motorcycle?” is frequently heard during the chorus; it serves as an innuendo for sex, a recurring theme throughout Girl. The “World of Red Bull” commercial premiered on March 3, 2014, and features a 30-second snippet of “Come Get It Bae”. Williams performed the song on Good Morning America on April 7; Cyrus was not present, although her vocals were heard on the pre-recorded backing track.
Critical reception
“Come Get It Bae” received generally favorable reviews from music critics. Writing for Entertainment Weekly, Nick Catucci provided a favorable review; he wrote that Cyrus’ background vocals “[made] for a beat with a restless edge”, although he also felt that her contributions were “[sunk] too low into the mix”. Carl Williott from Idolator opined that the track is “a worthy addition to their budding partnership”, although he personally preferred Cyrus’ appearance on “Smoke Signals” by Buddy, which Williams had produced shortly before premiering his own track. Michael Marotta from Vanyaland noted that Cyrus’ repetition of the term “Bangerz” on her track “SMS (Bangerz)” was his favorite piece of Bangerz, and similarly noted that Cyrus’ repetition of “hey!” had “the same effect” on “Come Get It Bae”. Ashley Rose from Cambio compared the song’s production to the works of the folk band The Lumineers and the track “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke.
In a more mixed review, Tim Jonze from The Guardian felt that “Come Get It Bae” misrepresented Girl’s intended concept of “[celebrating] womankind”, instead leaning towards the “recounting [of] how nice it is to have sex with pretty ladies.” He joked that the sexual innuendos blended into its lyrics was “the kind of ungainly sexual metaphor that puts [Williams] up there with such renowned musical feminists as Mick Jagger and R. Kelly.” Chris Kelly from Fact sarcastically remarked that “nothing says timeless like a song with ‘bae’ in the title and Miley Cyrus on the hook”. Samuel Tolzmann from Pretty Much Amazing commented that the sole reason that “Come Get It Bae” was not worse than Cyrus’ Williams-produced track “Get It Right” was “only because nothing could possibly be worse than that.” In addition, 4Music called the song a “clap-along lady-admiring hit”.
Commercial performance
“Come Get It Bae” debuted at number 2 on the U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles component chart, which represents the twenty-five tracks that failed to reach the flagship Billboard Hot 100. The track also charted at number 108 on the French SNEP. As of July 10, 2014, the song has peaked at number 58 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold 114,925 copies in the United States according to Nielsen Soundscan.
Live performances
In May 2014, Williams performed the song as part of a medley at the iHeartRadio Awards where he received the iHeartRadio Innovator Award. On June 29th, 2014 the song was performed at the annual BET Awards held at the Nokia center in Los Angeles, California.
In popular culture
The song is featured in Red Bull’s 2014 commercial “World of Red Bull.”.
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