"Trick Me" is a song by American singer

Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perfor ...

from her third studio album, '' Tasty'' (2003). It was written and produced by

Dallas Austin Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and film producer. Biography Early life During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfirmed events in ...

. The song was released as the album's second single on February 17, 2004. "Trick Me" was not released in the United States as her American label, Arista, folded after the release of ''Tasty'', and she was transferred to Jive. In Europe, she was still on the same label,

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

. The song received praise from critics. Internationally, "Trick Me" achieved similar chart success to that of "

Milkshake A milkshake (sometimes simply called a shake) is a sweet beverage made by blending milk, ice cream, and flavorings or sweeteners such as butterscotch, caramel sauce, chocolate syrup, fruit syrup, or whole fruit into a thick, sweet, cold mix ...

". The single topped the charts in Hungary and Romania, and peaked inside the top five in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia, among other countries. It was certified platinum by the

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replac ...

(ARIA) and gold by the

Recording Industry Association of New Zealand Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded M ...

(RIANZ).

Background and release

"Trick Me" was written and produced by

. Recording sessions took place at DARP Studios in Atlanta, Georgia; O'Henry Studios in

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, wh ...

; and Chalice Studios in Hollywood, California. Background vocals and guitar were provided by Tony Reyes, and the recordings were mixed by Kevin Davis at Larabee North in

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...

, California. " In Public" featuring

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ...

was originally chosen to be released as the second single from '' Tasty'', but

MTV News MTV News is the news production division of MTV. The service is available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network. In February 2016, MTV Networks confirmed it would refresh the MTV News brand in 2016, to compete with the likes ...

reported in late January 2004 that "Trick Me" would be released instead. "In Public" was eventually released as the fourth single in April 2005. The single was not released in the United States as Kelis' label, Arista, folded just when ''Tasty'' was released in December 2003; as a result, no more singles were released there after "

". Nevertheless, "Trick Me" was sent to

rhythmic contemporary Rhythmic contemporary, also known as Rhythmic Top 40, Rhythmic CHR or rhythmic crossover, is a primarily American music-radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip hop and upbeat R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary never uses ...

and

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban conte ...

radio stations in the US on February 17, 2004. In Europe, however, Kelis was still on the same label,

, so singles continued to be released there.

Music video

The music video for "Trick Me" was directed by Mr. X and shot in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough on April 15, 2004.

Reception

Critical response

"Trick Me" was well received by contemporary music critics. Tony Naylor of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' referred to the track as "a wonderful computer-processed

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use the ...

romp". ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...

'' reviewer Scott Plagenhoef felt that "Dallas Austin punches above his weight with 'Trick Me', on which Kelis advises to 'call the police/ There's a madwoman in town,' over a skanking, slightly echoed guitar." ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender container with a rotating me ...

''s Joseph Patel described the song as a "crackling funk ditty", and Neil Drumming of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cult ...

'' called it "a blistering sawtooth skank". ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publishe ...

'' wrote that the song's "sprightly canter" is "particularly irresistible".

Commercial performance

Despite not being released commercially in the United States, "Trick Me" managed to reach number seven on the

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart in April 2004. The song debuted at number two on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

behind Frankee's "

F.U.R.B. (Fuck You Right Back) "F.U.R.B. (Fuck You Right Back)" is the debut single of American R&B singer-songwriter Frankee. The song was recorded as an answer song to Eamon's hit single " Fuck It (I Don't Want You Back)". Although Frankee claimed to be Eamon's ex-girlfri ...

", earning Kelis her second consecutive top-five entry. "Trick Me" debuted on the

Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is the Republic of Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) and compiled on their behalf by the Official Charts Company. Chart rankings are b ...

at number eight for the week ending May 27, 2004, the week's highest debut. It peaked at number four two weeks later. "Trick Me" found similar success in continental Europe, outpeaking "

" in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Switzerland—although "Trick Me" peaked at number five on the

European Hot 100 Singles The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...

, while "Milkshake" reached number three. The single also reached number one in Hungary and Romania, the top five in Norway, and the top 10 in Denmark. Additionally, "Trick Me" has become Kelis' highest-peaking solo single in Germany, France, Italy, and Switzerland. The single debuted and peaked at number five on the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...

for four non-consecutive weeks, becoming Kelis' second top-five single in Australia. The

(ARIA) certified it platinum, denoting shipments in excess of 70,000 copies. In New Zealand, "Trick Me" debuted at number seven on the

RIANZ Singles Chart Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

, before peaking at number three in July 2004, tying with "Milkshake" as Kelis' highest-peaking single on the chart. The track was certified gold by the

(RIANZ) the following month for sales of 7,500 copies.

Track listings

*UK CD 1 and German CD single #"Trick Me" (album version) – 3:26 #"

" (remix) (featuring

Pharrell Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

and

Pusha T Terrence LeVarr Thornton (born May 13, 1977), better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper, songwriter and record executive. He rose to prominence as one-half of the hip hop duo Clipse, which was mainly active from 1994 to 20 ...

from

Clipse Clipse, also known as The Clipse, is an American hip hop duo, chiefly active from 1994 to 2010. It consists of brothers Gene "No Malice" and Terrence "Pusha T" Thornton. Pusha T was known as Terrar during the group's early years, while No Mal ...

) – 4:45 *UK CD 2, Australian CD single, and digital EP #"Trick Me" (album version) – 3:26 #"Trick Me" (Mac & Toolz Extended Remix) – 4:31 #"Trick Me" (Artificial Intelligence Remix) – 5:54 #"Trick Me" (

Adam Freeland Adam Freeland (born 7 August 1973) is an English record producer and DJ. He is also the owner and creative director of the record label Marine Parade, which has released material by artists including Evil Nine, ILS, Alex Metric and Jape. B ...

Remix) – 7:27 #"Trick Me" (

E-Smoove Eric Miller (born in Chicago, Illinois) is an American house music DJ, record producer and remixer. As E-Smoove, he worked for a number of years with Steve "Silk" Hurley and Maurice Joshua, before he hit the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play char ...

House Trick) – 7:42 *UK 12-inch single :A1. "Trick Me" (album version) – 3:26 :A2. "Trick Me" (Mac & Toolz Extended Remix) – 4:31 :B1. "Trick Me" (Artificial Intelligence Remix) – 5:54 :B1. "Trick Me" (Adam Freeland Remix) – 7:27 *Digital single #"Trick Me" – 3:26

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of '' Tasty''.

Recording

* Recorded at DARP Studios (Atlanta, Georgia), O'Henry Studios (

), and Chalice Studios (Hollywood, California) * Mixed at Larabee North (

, California) * Mastered at

Sterling Sound George Marino (April 15, 1947 – June 4, 2012) was an American mastering engineer known for working on albums by rock bands starting in the late 1960s. Biography Marino was born on April 15, 1947, in the New York City borough The Bronx. He at ...

(New York City)

Personnel

– vocals *

– production, arrangement * Rick Sheppard – recording * Carlton Lynn – recording * Doug Harms – recording assistance * Cesar Guevara – recording assistance * Kevin "KD" Davis – mixing * Tony Reyes – guitar, background vocals * Greg "Ruckus" Andrews – DJ * Chris Athens – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2003 songs 2004 singles American reggae songs Arista Records singles Funk songs Kelis songs Music videos directed by Director X Music videos shot in Toronto Number-one singles in the Czech Republic Number-one singles in Hungary Number-one singles in Romania Ska songs Song recordings produced by Dallas Austin Songs written by Dallas Austin Virgin Records singles