Straight Up (Paula Abdul song)

"Straight Up"
Single by Paula Abdul
from the album Forever Your Girl
B-side	"Opposites Attract"
Released	November 22, 1988
Genre	Dance-pop new jack swing funk[1]
Length	4:11
Label	Virgin
Songwriter(s)	Elliot Wolff
Producer(s)	Elliot Wolff
Paula Abdul singles chronology
"(It's Just) The Way That You Love Me" (1988) "Straight Up" (1988) "Forever Your Girl" (1989)
Music video
"Straight Up" on YouTube

"Straight Up" is a song by American recording artist Paula Abdul from her debut studio album, Forever Your Girl (1988). The song is a mid-tempo dance-pop song with influence from new jack swing. Written and produced entirely by Elliot Wolff, the song was released as the album's third single on November 22, 1988, by Virgin Records.

"Straight Up" became Abdul's first top-40 hit in the United States, eventually topping the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1989. The single brought Abdul widespread public attention and remains her biggest international hit to date, reaching the top 10 in at least 16 countries. The song was also included in her six compilation albums, released between 1998 and 2013.

The song received positive reviews from music critics, with Daniel J. Levitin's This Is Your Brain on Music praising it as "hold[ing] a certain appeal over many, many listenings." It also earned Abdul several award nominations in the US, most notably including her first Grammy nomination in the category of Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1990, and six other nominations for its music video at the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards.