Doctor (Work It Out)

Album: single release only (2024)
Charted: 46 74
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Doctor (Work It Out)" is a lustful bop where Miley Cyrus offers herself to her love interest, like a doctor providing care. It's one of many songs that uses playful language and medical metaphors to explore a physical and intimate connection. Others include:

    "Bad Case Of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)" by Robert Palmer
    "Doctor! Doctor!" by Thompson Twins
    "Doctor Jones" by Aqua
    "Bad Medicine" by Bon Jovi
    "Calling Dr. Love" by Kiss
    "Disease" by Matchbox Twenty
  • The song is a collaboration between Miley Cyrus and Pharrell Williams. It marks their sixth collaboration together. The previous five were:

    Four tracks recorded for Cyrus' 2013 Bangerz album, including "4x4" and "#GETITRIGHT."

    "Come Get It Bae" from Pharrell Williams' 2014 solo album Girl, where Cyrus contributed guest vocals.
  • Cyrus and Williams originally recorded "Doctor (Work It Out)" back in 2013 for Bangerz, but it didn't make the final tracklist. The song first appeared online when it was leaked with the title "Doctor" on December 26, 2017. The pair re-recorded the track in 2023 with additional writing from New York songwriter Michael Pollack ("Prisoner," "Flowers") and released it on March 1, 2024.

    "We just believe so much in timing and in everything happening when it's supposed to," Cyrus told Apple Music's Zane Lowe. "And around the Grammys, Pharrell and I were talking about putting the song out, and it just felt like it was so serendipitous, and there were so many alignments and so many moments that made me know that now was the perfect time. And then sometimes things in our past make more sense in our present than they ever did then. And so this song, I think the nature, the celebration, the feeling, especially with the video, the joy, the dancing, the letting go, it's what this song really always needed."
  • Pharrell Williams first previewed the song during the livestream of his Louis Vuitton menswear fall-winter show during Paris Fashion Week on January 16, 2024.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Don Brewer of Grand Funk

Don Brewer of Grand FunkSongwriter Interviews

The drummer and one of the primary songwriters in Grand Funk talks rock stardom and Todd Rundgren.

Reverend Horton Heat

Reverend Horton HeatSongwriter Interviews

The Reverend rants on psychobilly and the egghead academics he bashes in one of his more popular songs.

Jay, Peaches, Spinderella and other Darrining Victims

Jay, Peaches, Spinderella and other Darrining VictimsSong Writing

Just like Darrin was replaced on Bewitched, groups have swapped out original members, hoping we wouldn't notice.

Grunge Bands Quiz

Grunge Bands QuizMusic Quiz

If the name Citizen Dick means anything to you, there's a chance you'll get some of these right.

Frankie Valli

Frankie ValliSong Writing

An interview with Frankie Valli, who talks about why his songs - both solo and with The Four Seasons - have endured, and reflects on his time as Rusty Millio on The Sopranos.

Wedding Bell Blues

Wedding Bell BluesSong Writing

When a song describes a wedding, it's rarely something to celebrate - with one big exception.