Songfacts®:

• "Heated" is a tongue-in-cheek braggadocio track where Beyoncé declares her self-worth after her man doesn't give her enough attention. She warns him there are plenty of guys waiting for her if he doesn't get her act together. Beyoncé knows she's hot, but her lover has got her so "heated," she has to fan herself off.
• Beyoncé recorded "Heated" for Renaissance, an album that celebrates clubbing, including the Ballroom Scene, an African-American and Latino underground LGBTQ+ subculture that originated in New York City. During the song, the Texan star pays tribute to her gay first cousin, Uncle Jonny, who died of an AIDS-related illness in the early '90s. "He was my godmother and the first person to expose me to a lot of the music and culture that serve as inspiration for this album," Beyoncé wrote in a message that accompanies the record.
• Beyoncé sings in the song's ballroom-inspired breakdown:
  
  Uncle Jonny made my dress
  That cheap Spandex, she looks a mess
  
  Early in Beyoncé's career, Uncle Jonny helped her mom, Tina Knowles, create and sew designs.
• Drake originally wrote the chorus, then passed on the demo to Beyoncé. The Toronto rapper's go-to collaborators Boi-1da, Jahaan Sweet, Sevn Thomas and Neenyo produced his original track along with Cadenza, Kelman Duran, Stuart White and Harry Edwards. They all get writing credits on Beyoncé's final version of "Heated" along with Queen Bey herself, the writing/production duo Nova Wav, and Calev.
• When Lizzo released "Grrrls" as a single on June 10, 2022, it sparked a backlash over an offensive term.
  
  I'ma spazz
  I'm about to knock somebody out, yo, where my best friend?
  
  "Spazz" comes from the word "spastic," which is used medically to describe the spasms someone with a condition like cerebral palsy will experience. Lizzo issued an apology and altered the lyrics.
  
  Seven weeks later, Beyoncé included a similar ableist lyric on "Heated."
  
  Spazzin' on that ass, spaz on that ass
  
  After facing criticism from disability campaigners, Beyoncé re-recorded the derogatory line.
• Boi1da, Jahaan Sweet and Sevn Thomas were in Miami working on different song ideas when they started creating the beat that became "Heated." Sweet isn't sure how the song became Beyonce's.
  
  "I couldn't even believe it," he told Billboard. "When I produce with 1da, we just in our own world making ideas. Things get sent to one person, then the next person. Next thing you know, boom, something happens."