On this day in 1996, Toni Braxton released ‘You’re Makin’ Me High’ as the lead single from her ‘Secrets’ album.
‘You’re Makin’ Me High’ became Toni’s first #1 single on Billboard’s Hot 100, Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles, and Dance Club Songs charts. In charted well internationally, notably spending sixteen weeks in the Australian Top 20, peaking at #2. It has been certified Platinum in Australia, New Zealand and the United States.
The song earned Toni her first Billboard Music Award, and her third Grammy and Soul Train Music Awards.
Interestingly, the song features background vocals from recording artists Chanté Moore and Marc Nelson. Popular remixes of the song include a dance remix by David Morales with re-recorded vocals by Toni, and the ‘Groove Remix’, featuring rapper Foxy Brown.
In 2012’s ‘Behind The Music’ special on VH1, Toni revealed that the song was inspired by her first time smoking marijuana, a week before recording the song.
“In the bridge I’m singing ‘I want to feel your heart and soul inside of me / Let’s make a deal / You roll, I lick, and we can go flying into ecstasy’. I was talking about [smoking marijuana]”.
Toni Braxton | VH1’s ‘Behind The Music’
The iconic music video directed by Bille Woodruff showed a sultrier side of Toni, and helped catapult her into sex symbol status. The video starred Vivica A. Fox, Tisha Campbell and Erika Alexander as Toni’s group of friends, and the song’s co-writer and co-producer Bryce Wilson as her love interest, who was Toni’s real-life boyfriend at the time.
Watch the remastered HD video: