Love Me Harder

“Love Me Harder” was released on August 20th as a part of a promotional stream hosted by MTV. This highly anticipated collaboration with The Weeknd is much less a feature and much more a duet. In this song, Ariana and Abel trade verses and interchange lines with one another on the chorus. For Ariana these lyrics are far from the innocence she brought with her in 2013 with her album Yours Truly. For Abel, these lyrics might even be considered mild, as he is known for being more than a little bit explicit with his sexual exploits. Together the two strong voices combine to create this hit-song about aggressive loving backed by a minimal but rhythmic instrumental provided by Max Martin.

[Verse 1: Ariana Grande] Tell me something I need to know Then take my breath and never let it go If you just let me invade your space I’ll take the pleasure, take it with the pain [Pre-Chorus: Ariana Grande] And if in the moment, I bite my lip Baby, in that moment, you’ll know this is Something bigger than us and beyond bliss Give me a reason to believe it [Chorus: Ariana Grande] 'Cause if you want to keep me You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder And if you really need me You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder (Lo-love me harder) Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Love me, love me, love me Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Harder, harder, harder [Verse 2: The Weeknd] I know your motives and you know mine The ones that love me, I tend to leave behind If you know about me and choose to stay Then take this pleasure and take it with the pain [Pre-Chorus: The Weeknd] And if in the moment you bite your lip When I get you moaning, you know it's real Can you feel the pressure between your hips? I’ll make it feel like the first time [Chorus: Ariana Grande, The Weeknd] 'Cause if you want to keep me You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder (I'ma love you harder, hey!) And if you really need me You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder (Love me, baby, love me) (Lo-love me harder) Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Love me, love me, love me Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Harder, harder, harder (Oh) Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Love me, love me, love me Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Harder, harder, harder (You gotta love me harder) [Bridge: The Weeknd, Ariana Grande] So what do I do if I can’t figure it out? (Figure it out) You got to try, try, try again, yeah (Oh whoa) So what do I do if I can’t figure it out? (Figure it out) I’m gonna leave, leave, leave again [Chorus: Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, both] 'Cause if you want to keep me (Hey!) You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder (I'ma love you, love you, love) And if you really need me (Ooh) You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder (Got to love me, baby) 'Cause if you want to keep me (Hey) You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta Got to love me harder (Love me harder, love me harder) And if you really need me You gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta (I'ma do it, do it, do it) Got to love me harder (I'ma love you harder, hey!) [Outro: Ariana Grande, The Weeknd] Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Love me, love me, love me (Love me) Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Harder, harder, harder (Boy, you gotta love me, love me, baby) Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Love me, love me, love me (Just a little bit harder, harder, baby) Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh Harder, harder, harder