“I Wanna Love You Forever” by Jessica Simpson

Jessica Simpson is a contemporary of Britney Spears, and they also kinda look alike. But one main difference is that, first off Jessica had more of a background within the music industry itself before blowing up. And secondly, said background was actually in the gospel pop circuit. 

So with that in mind, it’s understandable that when “I Wanna Love You Forever”, Simpson’s debut track was released, it did not meet the same type of parental backlash that Spears’ “…Baby One More Time” did.

However, both of the songs are based on the same fundamental principle, that the vocalist is addressing a romantic interest whom she strongly desires to be with. 

Jessica Simpson tried to flip the explanation like the lyrics of “I Wanna Love You Forever” can be addressed to just about anyone respective listeners truly adore, even your family or God. But in the second verse, the vocalist explicitly states that she “never thought (she’d) fall [and] be at the mercy of a man”. 

And that definitely doesn’t sound like something to be uttered in a love letter to, say your mom. So we get what Jessica is trying to say, that this song isn’t overtly romantic. But at the same time, we must logically proceed as if the addressee is in fact her sweetheart.

The Lyrics of “I Wanna Love You Forever”

With the above established, there isn’t anything complicated or seemingly subliminal about these lyrics, even if some metaphors and vague lingo are used. The most outstanding line arguably comes at the end of the first verse. Here, Jessica is like “pour yourself all over me, and I’ll cherish ever drop here on my knees”. 

That’s an ambiguous statement that clearly can be interpreted different ways in a secular song but could also be found in a gospel. 

And the bridge also comes off like a passage that can be easily inserted into a contemporary gospel piece without any alterations whatsoever. So that’s probably what the songstress meant when she said that this track can even be “about your love God”. The lyrics in question, especially the first cited instance, sound reminiscent of something you could hear in a Christian track or a mainstream pop song.

Takeaway

But again, all lyrics considered we can’t reasonably conclude that she is in fact singing to a Higher Power. Instead the setting reads a bit like a semi-tumultuous relationship, i.e. the vocalist being really into the addressee but not so much vice versa. 

And the inner dilemma the singer is faced with is that the narrator, up until this point, was convinced that no man could ever have her feening like this, so to speak. Or phrased differently, it sounds like this relationship is her first love. And accordingly she is stricken with a desire to be with the addressee that her mind cannot fully comprehend. 

And given the less-than-ideal state of this romance from her perspective, it’s as if that incomprehensible desire or willingness to submit, if you will, has her concerned.

But that said, what she does understand is that she is in fact in love. Indeed, as the title states, the addressee is someone she “wanna love… forever”. 

So if we were to combine the religious undertone with the romantic element of this track, perhaps an acceptable theoretical conclusion can be made. And it is that the addressee is someone that the vocalist wants to marry. She doesn’t want him just as a lover she may be simply be interested in dating for the meantime, as Britney Spears’ “Baby One More Time” sorta implies.

Facts about “I Wanna Love You Forever”

With Columbia Records officially issuing this track on 28 September 1999, “I Wanna Love You Forever” was the first song that Jessica Simpson put out. 

And even though Jessica proceeded to remain hard in the game for a decade after, this song remains her biggest hit. The song broke the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. It also did the same on the UK Singles Chart. In addition to this, it has been certified gold in the US and Australia.

Additionally the album this song is derived from, “Sweet Kisses”, performed very well. It actually performed better than all of her other albums. For instance, it notably achieved double-platinum status via the RIAA and sold millions of copies worldwide.

Below are all the major regions where this song enjoyed top-10 standing:

• Australia – # 9
• Belgium – #8
• Norway – #3
• Portugal – #9
• Scotland – #10
• Sweden – #5
• Switzerland – #7
• United Kingdom – #7
• United States – #3

The Music Video

The music video to “I Wanna Love You Forever” was put together by director Bille Woodruff.

The video actually is not romantic in nature. It is rather centered on Simpson herself, portraying the role of a model. 

However Woodruff had reportedly stated that they did in fact film one more romance-oriented. The said clip co-starred Ashton Kutcher, who would go on to become a prominent Hollywood actor. But music industry godfather Tommy Mottola, who was running Columbia at the time, scrapped that version of the video. According to reports, he do so because of his personal disapproval of the curly hairdo Jessica was rockin’.

Did Jessica Simpson write “I Wanna Love You Forever”?

No. The writers and producers of this track are Louis Biancaniello and Sam Watters. The latter of the two used to be a member of Color Me Badd.