[2] It is one of four songs that Reed explicitly wrote in the voice of a female character, in the case of "Candy Says", a transgender woman, telling her experiences.
"Stephanie Says" was the first (later adapted into "Caroline Says" on his solo album Berlin).
The song is based on a real person, as it addresses trans woman Candy Darling's desire to escape her gender assigned at birth.
Reed insisted that Doug Yule take the lead vocal on the song.
"[3] Anohni's 2003 live version of the song was featured in the 2022 interactive film video game Immortality.