90's Guilty Pleasures #7: S.W.V. "Right Here/Human Nature" (1993)

While nicely predicting the eventual success of mash-ups, this was also (probably) the only charting song that not only includes cameos from both Michael Jackson and Pharrell Williams, but also a co-songwriting credit from Toto, and an appearance from Free Willy himself right in the video. (Yes, the whale's full name was "Free Willy." Look it up.) Its gentle-yet-cool atmosphere is rarely heard on today's Top 40 stations, as it falls somewhere between ocean waves crashing, and a comforting hug from a loved one saying "I think it's gonna be okay." In that respect, I've found "Right Here/Human Nature" to be a fitting example of the potential power of the pop single.

SWV became unjustly forgotten when those "90's nostalgia" shows started showing up on VH1. En Vogue pretty much stole their girl-group glory, even though they never released anything as good as "Can We" or the Wu-Tang remix of "Anything." "Right Here/Human Nature" also happened to show up during a very strong period for female-fronted R&B, charting alongside Janet's "That's The Way Love Goes," Zhane's "Hey Mr. DJ," and Jade's "Don't Walk Away" among others. (Watch out for Youtube links listed below...)

As much as we do love this song, we've known people who called it "so gay" and find the MJ sample to be annoying as shit. Homophobia aside, we kinda see where these people are coming from, which is why it's included here. Also, this was one of the first mp3's I ever downloaded.



SWV "Can We" (1997) - Youtube

SWV feat. Wu-Tang Clan "Anything" (1994) - Youtube

Janet Jackson "That's The Way Love Goes" (1993) - Youtube

Zhane "Hey Mr. DJ" (1993) - Youtube

Jade "Don't Walk Away" (1993) - Youtube