The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
(Oh no)
(Oh no, no)
You'll never make me stay
So take your weight off of me
I know your every move
So won't you just let me be?
I've been here times before
But I was too blind to see
That you seduce every man
This time you won't seduce me
She said, "That's okay
Hey baby do as you please
I have the stuff that you want
I am the thing that you need"
She looked me deep in the eyes
She's touchin' me so to start
She says, "There's no turnin' back"
She trapped me in her heart
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
Let me be
Oh no
Oh no
Oh no
She likes the boys in the band
She knows when they come to town
Every musician's fan after the curtain comes down
She waits at backstage doors
For those who have prestige
Who promise fortune and fame
A life that's so carefree
She said, "That's okay
Hey baby do what you want
I'll be your night lovin' thing
I'll be the freak you can taunt
I don't care what you say
I wanna go too far
I'll be your everything
If you make me a star?
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
Diana
Diana
Dirty Diana
It's Diana-iana-iana, c'mon
(No, no)
She said, "I have to go home
'Cause I'm real tired you see
Now I hate sleppin' alone
Why don't you come with me?"
I said, "My baby's at home
She's probably worried tonight
I didn't call on the phone
To say that I'm alright"
Diana walked up to me
She said, "I'm all yours tonight"
At that I ran to the phone
Sayin', "Baby I'm alright"
I said, "But unlock the door
'Cause I forgot the key"
She said, "He's not coming back
Because he's sleeping with me"
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon (hey baby, won't you? Hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (hey baby, won't you? Hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (hey baby, won't you? Hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (ow)
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
(Oh no, no)
You'll never make me stay
So take your weight off of me
I know your every move
So won't you just let me be?
I've been here times before
But I was too blind to see
That you seduce every man
This time you won't seduce me
She said, "That's okay
Hey baby do as you please
I have the stuff that you want
I am the thing that you need"
She looked me deep in the eyes
She's touchin' me so to start
She says, "There's no turnin' back"
She trapped me in her heart
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
Let me be
Oh no
Oh no
Oh no
She likes the boys in the band
She knows when they come to town
Every musician's fan after the curtain comes down
She waits at backstage doors
For those who have prestige
Who promise fortune and fame
A life that's so carefree
She said, "That's okay
Hey baby do what you want
I'll be your night lovin' thing
I'll be the freak you can taunt
I don't care what you say
I wanna go too far
I'll be your everything
If you make me a star?
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
Diana
Diana
Dirty Diana
It's Diana-iana-iana, c'mon
(No, no)
She said, "I have to go home
'Cause I'm real tired you see
Now I hate sleppin' alone
Why don't you come with me?"
I said, "My baby's at home
She's probably worried tonight
I didn't call on the phone
To say that I'm alright"
Diana walked up to me
She said, "I'm all yours tonight"
At that I ran to the phone
Sayin', "Baby I'm alright"
I said, "But unlock the door
'Cause I forgot the key"
She said, "He's not coming back
Because he's sleeping with me"
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana, no
Dirty Diana
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon (hey baby, won't you? Hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (hey baby, won't you? Hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (hey baby, won't you? Hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (hey baby, won't you?)
C'mon (ow)
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
C'mon
Lyrics submitted by Mru007, edited by musicalization
Dirty Diana Lyrics as written by Michael Jackson
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
Van Halen
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Cajun Girl
Little Feat
Little Feat
Overall about difficult moments of disappointment and vulnerability. Having hope and longing, while remaining optimistic for the future. Encourages the belief that with each new morning there is a chance for things to improve.
The chorus offers a glimmer of optimism and a chance at a resolution and redemption in the future.
Captures the rollercoaster of emotions of feeling lost while loving someone who is not there for you, feeling let down and abandoned while waiting for a lover. Lost with no direction, "Now I'm up in the air with the rain in my hair, Nowhere to go, I can go anywhere"
The bridge shows signs of longing and a plea for companionship. The Lyrics express a desire for authentic connection and the importance of Loving someone just as they are. "Just in passing, I'm not asking. That you be anyone but you”
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
Silent Planet
I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
In a TV interview, the producer of this song Quincy Jones was asked by Mary J Blige who was MJ talking about in Dirty Diana, and Quincy said: "I thought it was about Diana Ross, like everyone else."
Quincy himself was aware that everyone thought it was about her and he didn't object to this assumption, so I'm guessing that it's true.