While ubiquitous as the high-energy theme for the TV show Cops and the Bad Boys film franchise, the 1987 hit "" by the Jamaican reggae band Inner Circle carries a deeper social message often lost in its pop-culture fame. The Story Behind the Song
: The band's 1993 album, also titled Bad Boys (or Bad to the Bone in some regions), won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1994. inner_circle_bad_boys
: The song's massive popularity directly inspired the title and theme of the Bad Boys action-comedy franchise starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. A Misunderstood Message While ubiquitous as the high-energy theme for the
: It became the theme for Cops in 1989 after the show's producer sought a reggae track to provide a unique "counterpoint" to law enforcement. A Misunderstood Message : It became the theme
The track achieved global stardom in the early 1990s through several key milestones: