{"id":556328,"date":"2026-03-31T15:01:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T15:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/556328\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T15:01:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T15:01:14","slug":"halestorms-i-get-off-the-story-behind-the-song-and-what-it-means","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/556328\/","title":{"rendered":"Halestorm’s I Get Off: the story behind the song and what it means"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lzzy Hale<\/a> wants to clear the air. Backstage in Birmingham on her band\u2019s first headline arena tour of the UK \u2013 an achievement 15 years in the making \u2013 she\u2019s been animatedly discussing the band\u2019s many accomplishments. Among them: Grammy nominations and wins, massive gigs with bands like Black Sabbath<\/a>, Iron Maiden and Slipknot, and bringing sex positivity back to metal long before Baddiecore was a stirring in the sheets. Then Hammer puts our foot in it by asking how a band who\u2019d later make it big with songs like Love Bites (So Do I), Do Not Disturb and I Get Off fall under the \u201cChristian rock\u201d banner.<\/p>\n

Lzzy gives us a \u2018Really?\u2019 look, shrugs and clarifies: \u201cHalestorm<\/a> were never a Christian rock band. We just got marketed that way for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brother and I grew up Presbyterian, went to church all the time, and my first time singing in front of people was in choir,\u201d Lzzy explains. \u201cBut when we started getting into rock\u2019n\u2019roll in middle school, our teachers would berate us \u2013 \u2018Where is Jesus in this?\u2019 It made me realise that religion, this man\u2019s idea of what Christianity should be, isn\u2019t the goal. The goal is to be the best person that you can and go after what you love, see people for who they actually are and not judge them. Our band was the last act of defiance.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Halestorm were never a Christian rock band. We just got marketed that way for a while<\/p>\n

Lzzy Hale<\/p>\n

Although formed in 1997, it wasn\u2019t until 2009 that Halestorm released their self-titled debut. By that point, Lzzy had been in the band almost half her life. The Hale siblings were the only constant members until guitarist Joe Hottinger and bassist Josh Smith joined in the 2003 and 2004, respectively. Joe recalls his first meeting with Lzzy was\u2026 intense.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe came at me!\u201d He chuckles. \u201cShe was shaking my hand really vigorously and I was amazed because her speaking voice was really low. It was like, \u2018This is very aggressive, it\u2019s intimidating\u2026\u2019 Arejay was like 15 by that point, so he was basically bouncing of the walls.\u201d<\/p>\n

Much like the Hale siblings, Joe had dreamed of being a rock star for years. Growing up in Wisconsin, he\u2019d heard Nirvana<\/a> and decided he wanted to form a band. After a year living in the UK (\u201cI\u2019d go to the market in Worcester to buy cheap CDs,\u201d he fondly recalls), his family moved back to the States, and he formed his first bands.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe found out, I played my first ever show in mid-August 1997, the same month Lzzy played her first gig a few counties away,\u201d Joe reveals. \u201cWe were on a collision course.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Halestorm\n<\/p>\n

Halestorm on stage in Columbus, Ohio in 2009 (Image credit: Raymond Boyd\/Michael Ochs Archives\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

But like everything in Halestorm\u2019s story, it would take time for things to come together. To secure a record deal, the band played showcases for just about every major label that dealt in rock. They faced a serious uphill battle.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a lot of, \u2018We love what you do, but the girl-fronted thing isn\u2019t really happening right now,\u2019\u201d Lzzy recalls. \u201cWe bottled that into defiance \u2013 we\u2019d keep doing what we were doing, making enough noise that they would notice us eventually.\u201d<\/p>\n

It paid off. In June 2005, the band signed to Atlantic Records. A first attempt to record, at Johnny K\u2019s studio in Chicago, didn\u2019t result in any usable material. Still, they kept working on their craft. Halestorm songs were written with the live experience in mind, every song built around \u201cmoments that could make the crowd scream,\u201d Lzzy says. In 2006, they went out on their first major tour, opening for Flyleaf, Shinedown<\/a> and Seether on the 2006 SnoCore Tour. It was an educational experience.<\/p>\n

What to read next<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was like going to war every night because nobody\u2019s expecting you, you\u2019re not the headliner \u2013 they\u2019re just waiting,\u201d Lzzy muses. \u201cTo turn that crowd around, get them on our side was the biggest rush in the world. But some of those early tours were also utter debauchery.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of those early tours were utter debauchery<\/p>\n

Lzzy Hale<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019d see other groups getting fully fucked up,\u201d Joe says. \u201cOn one tour, we watched a guy fall out his bus and smash his face on the ground, doing the rest of the tour with this cast on his nose. He was crying before he went onstage the next day because he was so fucked up. It was like\u2026 \u2018This doesn\u2019t look worth it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

That tour may also have saved Halestorm\u2019s career. Although their only release at that point was a live EP, fan enthusiasm was such they could shift up to 500 copies a night.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo many baby bands we knew that were at our level were getting dropped from their record labels at that point,\u201d Joe says. \u201cThe sales we made while on tour really saved us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Halestorm pick their 5 essential songs | Metal Hammer – YouTube
\n\"Halestorm<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

Although their Chicago adventure hadn\u2019t worked out, Atlantic invited Halestorm out to Los Angeles to try again at recording material for their debut album. Rock\u2019n\u2019roll nerds that they were, Halestorm delighted in spending nights on the Sunset Strip, retracing the steps of their favourite bands. They ended up staying in LA for a whopping 19 months.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe lived through it all \u2013 mudslides, floods, fires\u2026 It was the full LA experience,\u201d Lzzy recalls with a chuckle.<\/p>\n

The band\u2019s first single, I Get Off was written in the lobby of an LA hotel. Playing a weekly residency at the Viper Room, Halestorm had been roadtesting material and quickly recognised that they wanted something bold as their opening statement. I Get Off certainly was that. Anchored on a powerhouse vocal from Lzzy, the song\u2019s lyrical content appeared to relish in exhibitionism. But as Lzzy admits, the meaning was less about sexual themes and more tied to her experiences as a vocalist.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe phrase started out as something really dumb \u2013 I love the fact you love me,\u201d she reasons. \u201cThat steadily devolved into \u2018I get off on you getting off on me.\u2019 It\u2019s funny, the reaction, even from management, went from like, \u2018This is amazing!\u2019 to, \u2018Are you sure you wanna say this?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

\"Lzzy\n<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Raymond Boyd\/Michael Ochs Archives\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

So far as bold opening statements go, I Get Off did the job. Released on March 10, 2009, it quickly climbed the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, peaking at number six. It was the first indication that all of the band\u2019s hard work had paid off, and for Lzzy the first real validation that speaking openly about her sexuality could be celebrated.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the years, because I\u2019ve had a lot of parents come up to me and instead of going, \u2018Oh you\u2019re not a good role model because you talk about sex\u2019, they say the opposite,\u201d she says proudly. \u201cWhen you talk about sex in music, it\u2019s empowering personally. You\u2019re talking about something that, besides eating and sleeping, really keeps all of us going.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not everyone agreed, however. After the hedonist heights of the 80s, sex had become a surprisingly dirty topic in heavy metal and some reviewers denounced Halestorm\u2019s debut for its \u201cunappealing\u201d sexual themes, one site decrying it as \u201clow-grade stripper music.\u201d Lzzy has no regrets, though.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt makes a lot of people uncomfortable\u2026 I like doing that!\u201d She says with a cheeky grin. \u201cIt\u2019s a you problem, not a me problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

It makes a lot of people uncomfortable\u2026 I like doing that!<\/p>\n

Lzzy Hale<\/p>\n

The haters were quickly outweighed by new fans. Among them were the members of recently-resurrected metal legends Heaven And Hell, the Ronnie James Dio<\/a>-fronted iteration of Black Sabbath. On August 29, 2009, they invited Halestorm to open for them. It turned out to be Ronnie’s final gig.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember seeing Ronnie and Geezer [Butler] up on the balcony watching our set like, \u2018Oh god, don\u2019t fuck it up!\u2019\u201d Lzzy recalls.<\/p>\n

\u201cGeezer wrote about it in his book,\u201d Joe adds. \u201cThey wanted to take us on tour with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even having supported the likes of Iron Maiden, Slipknot and the Ozzy Osbourne<\/a>-fronted Black Sabbath (coincidentally, also for Ozzy’s last show), Lzzy is practically bouncing as she recounts getting advice from Dio.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ended up spending the night with them, hanging out till like 2am,\u201d she says happily. I remember saying, \u2018Thank you for taking the time for us \u2013 I\u2019d have understood if you were too tired.\u2019 He turned and wagged his finger in my face and said, \u2018Lzzy, this is a moment in time. You won\u2019t remember everywhere you play or all the people you\u2019ll meet, but they\u2019ll remember you for the rest of their lives. So make it good for everyone.\u2019 At the time I figured it was just advice for my fans, but afterwards I realised he made that moment for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

I Get Off remains a staple of Halestorm\u2019s sets today. It was a big, bold declaration from the band that announced their arrival unto the world, and a song that still holds a special place in Lzzy\u2019s heart almost 20 years on.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still getting off!\u201d She grins. \u201cFor as long as we\u2019ve had that song, every time I play it live it\u2019s new for me. We start the song and look out, and not just the front row but everyone is singing their heads off. It\u2019s amazing how different people react to it differently.\u201d<\/p>\n

Halestorm – I Get Off (Official Video) – YouTube
\n\"Halestorm<\/p>\n

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