OK, try to follow this: It’s St. Patrick’s Day. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. There’s a silly old saying about “the luck of the Irish.” “Getting lucky” is a term for having sex. So of course NPR had a “Get Lucky” promotion featuring R&B songs about sex. How else would you logically celebrate St. Patrick’s day?
Government-funded National Public Radio (NPR) touted, “Get Lucky On St. Patrick's Day With These 25 R&B Songs [1].” The NPR staff introduced the piece, advertising, “Get ready for St. Patrick's Day with these 25 lucky love songs from NPR R&B.”
Daft Punk’s hit “Get Lucky,” featuring Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers made number one on the song list. The lyrics [2] make clear this was far from the finding-a-four-leaf-clover kind of lucky: “We're up all night to get some/ We're up all night for good fun/ We're up all night to get lucky.”
Other songs and their “lucky” lyrics included:
“Pull Up To The Bumper [3]” by Grace Jones: “Now in the parking lot garage/ You'll find the proper place/ Just follow all the written rules/ You'll fit into the space. Pull up to my bumper baby/ In your long black limosine/ Pull up to my bumper baby/ And drive it in between.”
“Erotic City [4]” by Prince & The Revolution: “If we cannot make babies, maybe we can make some time/ Thoughts of pretty you and me, Erotic City come alive/ We can funk until the dawn, making love ‘til cherry’s gone.”
“Till The Cops Come Knockin’ [5]” by Maxwell: “Gonna take you in the room suga'/ Lock you up and love for days/ We gonna be rockin baby/ Till the cops come knockin.”
“Give It To Me Baby [6]” by Rick James: “When I came home last night/
You wouldn't make love to me” so “Give it to me baby (give to me baby)/ Give it to me baby (give to me baby)/ Make it hot like you've had enough.”
"Untitled (How Does It Feel) [7]” by D’Angelo: “I'd love to make you wet/ In between your thighs cause/ I love when it comes inside U/ I get so excited when I'm around U.”
“Never Gonna Give You Up [8]” by Barry White: “Make love to you right now, that's all I want to do/ I know you need it, girl and you know I need it too.”
And a Happy St. Paddy’s Day to you too, NPR.
NPR routinely brings the studid, from asking, “Which place is more sexist, the Middle East or Latin America? [9]” to hyping First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” anniversary [10] while skipping the Tea Party’s five year anniversary.
— Katie Yoder is Staff Writer, Joe and Betty Anderlik Fellow in Culture and Media at the Media Research Center. Follow Katie Yoder on Twitter. [11]