Bad Habit

Steve Lacy's "Bad Habit" is a bedroom pop and contemporary R&B ballad that captures the ache of a missed romantic connection. Released on June 29, 2022, as the second single from his second album Gemini Rights, the song features a slightly warped guitar riff, a funky bassline, and layered synthesizers. Lacy wrote and produced the track, with additional writing contributions from singers Fousheé and Diana Gordon, as well as John Carroll Kirby and Matthew Castellanos. The lyrics trace his regret over not making a move on a crush, then shift to a more confident tone in the final breakdown.

Lacy signed with RCA Records in 2021 and began writing "Bad Habit" soon after, calling it a creative turning point. He recorded an initial version in June 2021, then spent months refining it, with Fousheé helping to write verses and a chorus melody during a freestyle session. After release, the song and its sped-up versions blew up on TikTok in July 2022, becoming Lacy's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. It went on to make history as the first song to top both the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rock & Alternative Songs charts, and also the first to top five of Billboard's genre charts. By October 2022, it hit number one on the Hot 100. It also cracked the top ten in Australia, the UK, and Ireland.

Critics raved. Billboard, The Guardian, and The Ringer named it the best song of 2022, while Rolling Stone, USA Today, and Time included it on their year-end lists. A music video directed by Julian Klincewicz earned BET and Soul Train Music Award nominations. At the 65th Grammy Awards, Lacy performed "Bad Habit" and saw it nominated for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance. He also closed his Give You the World Tour with it in late 2022. [edit]