Last Friday I stood in my bathroom for twenty minutes with my phone in my hand, full glam done, outfit on point, staring at a name I’d deleted twice already. My best friend was already outside honking, we had drinks and dancing planned, and here I was thinking about the guy who makes terrible decisions look really fucking good. Then ONiGS and Mishell Ivon’s ‘BAD COMPANY’ came on my speaker and suddenly ditching my plans to see him felt like the only move that made sense. That’s the thing about wanting someone you know is chaos – it’s sexier when you know exactly what you’re doing. This track just bottled that exact craving, when you know this person is chaos and you want them anyway because it feels too good to stop yourself and restraint gets boring fast.
Okay but can we talk about how this production just takes over your body? The drums hit with this crisp urgency that makes your hips move before your brain catches up. The bass line grooves in a way that makes standing still physically impossible, and those guitar licks sound expensive as hell. ONiGS pulled inspiration from Madonna, Janet Jackson, Dua Lipa, and Daft Punk – you can feel all of it in the funky retro-futuristic energy. The synths have this nasty quality that makes you want to dance way too close to someone and feel every inch of him and honestly? That’s the vibe we’re going for.
Advertisement
Mishell Ivon‘s vocals are doing serious work here. She opens with ‘ Tonight I’m craving bad company ‘ and I felt that in my entire body. We’ve all had that night where you’re not looking for someone good for you—you’re looking for someone bad for you, someone who can actually fuck you properly and make the chaos worth it. Then she follows with ‘ What’s not good for me ‘ and that honesty is everything. She’s walking into this with full awareness that this person is probably a disaster and the danger is the whole fucking point.
‘Tempted me’ gets delivered with this breathy seduction that sounds like she’s already in bed whispering it, the kind of tone that makes bad ideas sound really goddamn appealing. When Mishell hits ‘Give me all you got / ‘Cause I’ve got a lot of pent up energy’, this is straight-up foreplay. She’s being completely direct about it. The pent-up energy she’s talking about? That’s sexual frustration wrapped in a beat and she’s done pretending she doesn’t need someone to help her work it out. ‘ Let loose / Release / That’s exactly what I need ‘—release isn’t vague here, it’s physical, it’s urgent, and she’s spelling out exactly what kind of night she’s after.
Then Mishell fucking destroys you with ‘I know, I know better / That don’t stop the rush that I get, that I get / When I’ve done things that I shouldn’t have’. Holy shit. This is the entire energy of the song right here – knowing better makes it hotter. She’s fully aware it’s a terrible idea and she wants it anyway because the rush of doing something you shouldn’t is half the thrill. The way she repeats ” that I get, that I get “ feels like she’s reliving the memory while she’s singing it and you can hear the want in her voice.
ONiGS has been building toward this sound for years and his background is genuinely insane. Started producing music on his laptop while traveling the globe as a fashion model working with Karl Lagerfeld—which is such a flex I’m obsessed. He played festivals with Nina Hagen and The Kooks as part of his project Phases of Life, landed on Spotify’s New Funk playlist, got his music featured on Hyundai’s official IONIQ 6 playlist. He’s a VIP member of Timbaland’s Beatclub and remixed “Keep Going Up” with Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, and Nelly Furtado. Earlier this year he released a remake of “Rub You The Right Way” – that Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis classic jam they created for Johnny Gill in 1990 and Jimmy Jam himself shared it on Instagram. When your actual heroes co-sign your work that’s when you know you’re onto something real.
Advertisement
What gets me about this track is how completely unapologetic it is. There’s no moralizing about consequences here. This is about that electric moment right before you make the choice, when everything in you wants it so badly that practical thoughts just shut the fuck up and desire takes over. Mishell’s delivery has this confident, seductive edge throughout – she knows exactly what she’s asking for and she’s not playing coy or pretending to be anything other than someone who wants what she wants.
The dance-pop/electro-funk crossbreed means this track works in multiple contexts and they’re all a little dangerous. Your bedroom at midnight while you’re deciding whether to text back? Perfect. An actual club dance floor where the bass vibrates through your entire body and everyone’s moving too close? Even better. That Uber ride when the tension is so thick the driver’s pretending not to notice but definitely knows exactly what’s happening? Ideal. This song soundtracks the moment when you stop overthinking and start moving toward what you actually want.
Listen, I’ve had this on repeat while getting ready to go out and it completely transforms your energy. Your outfit suddenly looks better, your confidence jumps about three levels, you’re already mentally planning which impulse you’re following first. ONiGS and Mishell Ivon made something for the moment when desire wins and you’re perfectly fine with it. Sometimes the bad decision is exactly what you need and this track knows it. Last Friday I was supposed to meet my friend for drinks. Instead I texted the guy I’d deleted twice and had a way better night. No regrets. That’s the power of bad company when it’s this good.
