Brick & Lace’s ‘Love Is Wicked’ Featured On Jimmy Kimmel Live! COVID-19 Hotline Joke
Former Dancehall/R&B duo Brick & Lace were remembered this week when talk show host Jimmy Kimmel featured their biggest hit, Love Is Wicked during one of his comedic skits on his highly rated Jimmy Kimmel Live! show on ABC.
On his Monday, January 25 show, Kimmel was doing a joke about calling the COVID-19 case info and vaccine assistance hotline in California and being put on hold for an inordinate amount of time while trying to access the service.
“I was on for two and a half hours and no one picked up the phone. And the music…the whole music, please listen to this,” he said.
Then the Diwali riddim, produced by Steven ‘Lenky’ Marsden came on. Kimmel even bopped and hummed along to the iconic Dancehall riddim to titters of laughter from the crowd.
“This went on for two and half hours to the point where I involved Siri. Hey Siri, what song is this ? Siri knew, it turn out it is like a song ‘Love is Wicked’ by Brick and Lace. I don’t know Brick or Lace , but they should sue for this…for being associated with this, my only comfort is that the people from Spectrum cable are forced to sit through all that too, how ya like it now?” he said.
Nyanda, from the Brick & Lace duo, posted the clip from the show and captioned it: “Siri let @jimmykimmellive know whats up. If she said It’s Brick and Lace inna di place, I wudda been ded 😆🤣. Jimmy, lets do a quick chat and we’ll show you how to tiktok to #LoveIsWicked on the #diwaliriddim..ps. it will be our 2nd on your show.: @lenkymarsden 🎶 🔥”
Nyla, the other half of the Dancehall duo, reacted in an Instagram post saying, “Crazy !!! @nyandabnl is ringing my phone down to tell me @jimmykimmel @jimmykimmellive just played our hit song #loveiswicked on his show.”
“Well that covid hotline really knows what’s up and yes time to go get paid,” she added.
Signed to the Geffen label, Brick & Lace originally consisted of three performing sisters Tasha, Nyla, and Nyanda. Tasha left the stage to work behind the scenes and co-write songs for the group. The group then morphed into a duo, comprising Nyanda and Nyla Thorbourne, before disbanding in 2013 when Nyanda Thorbourne stepped away to pursue a solo career.
Love Is Wicked is the second single from Brick & Lace’s debut album of the same title. The single, released in 2007, sampled the Diwali Riddim and sold over 120,000 copies in France during the summer of 2008. It is a slightly modified version of a song of the same name that Brick & Lace recorded sometime in 2004.
The track is also featured on the Bratz Motion Picture Soundtrack, as well as The Sims 2 video game.
The Diwali Riddim originally hosted 20 hit songs when it was released in 2002. Marsden explained last year that he initially struggled to get artists to take part in the production as they labeled it “the loud rhythm with the annoying clap.”
Eventually, Sean Paul’s Get Busy kicked 50 Cent’s In Da Club from the top position on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, while No Letting Go from Wayne Wonder peaked at number 16. Later in 2003, Lumidee’s Never Leave You peaked at number three on the same chart.
In addition to Love is Wicked, the riddim was sampled by Rihanna on Pon De Replay (2005), Ed Sheeran on Shape of You (2017), and DJ Snake on Let Me Love You (2016) which featured Justin Beiber.
Watch more of Kimmel’s monologue below.
Anyone else still on hold trying to get a vaccine appointment? pic.twitter.com/JpYnPlbrRp
— Jimmy Kimmel Live (@JimmyKimmelLive) January 26, 2021