Dean Martin’s ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside’ Sees Huge Digital Sales Jump, Despite Controversy

The classic song “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” seems to be more popular than ever, especially a version of the tune famously performed by Dean Martin.

“Baby, It’s Cold Outside” has been earning headlines in recent weeks, as some have criticized its lyrics as sexist.

Lines like “I really can’t stay” and “the answer is no” have inspired many people to express that the tune is a relic of its time and can now be seen as promoting a rape culture.

Various radio stations across the country have banned the song due to complaints from listeners.

Some have then reversed the bans — after outpourings of support for the tune.

Some recognizable celebrities have also stood up for the song, such as William Shatner, Dennis Quaid and Deana Martin, the daughter of Dean.

Sales for Dean Martin’s version of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” surged 70 percent during the week ending on December 13, according to a report from Billboard.

It was downloaded more than 11,000 times. For the first time ever, Martin’s cover of the song broke the top 10 digital sales chart for music.

Other versions of the song — by musicians Michael Buble, Meghan Trainor and Brett Eldredge — have also seen sales increases.

Martin’s song has also seen a bump in people streaming it, too. Streams of the song are up 35 percent to 11.1. million in the past week.

Martin’s version of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” was released in 1959.

Martin passed away in 1995.

Frank Loesser wrote the original version of the song in 1944. It gained massive popularity when it was used in the 1949 film “Neptune’s Daughter,” which starred Esther Williams.

The song ended up winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 22nd Academy Awards in 1950.

“I know my dad would be going insane right now,” the 70-year-old Deana Martin recently told Fox News about controversy around “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”

“He would say, ‘What’s the matter with you? Get over it. It’s just a fun song.’ ‘Cause he was so sweet anyway. … He was a great guy. Fun guy. Nice. And he wouldn’t want to do anything offensive. That wasn’t Dean Martin. So this has just been outrageous.”

She later added, “This PC is driving me nuts,” she added. “You gotta sit back and relax. Have a good time. It’s OK. People gotta have a sense of humor about themselves. I understand the #MeToo movement and everything. I’m all for that. But this? We gotta relax and have fun again.”

Check out Dean Martin’s version of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” below: