I Wanna Get Next to You

"I Wanna Get Next to You"
Song
B-side	"Sunrise / Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is"

I Wanna Get Next to You is a 1977 R&B/soul song written and produced by Motown alumni songwriter Norman Whitfield, and most famously sung by American R&B music group Rose Royce.

The song talks about how a narrator pleads love for a beautiful woman, e:xcept that the young woman is unkind, and does not understand his affection for her.

The song debuted at #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1977, becoming the group's first R&B single to chart on the Top 10, and at #1 on the R&B charts.

The song was nominated a few Grammys in February 1978: one for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best R&B Song.

In the U.S., the B-side to "I Wanna Get Next to You" was "Sunrise", and also in some other states, the B-side replaced "Sunrise" with "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is".

The song was sung on the popular sitcom in 1995, Martin, in the season three episode, "All The Players Came", where Martin Lawrence's character, Jerome, the pimp, sings the song to guest star Pam Grier as part of a competition, facing off with Dolemite, and Huggy Bear. Other guests included OutKast, Whitman Mayo and Ja'net DuBois.