It was written by Giancarlo Bigazzi, Steve Piccolo and Raf, and arranged by Celso Valli.

That same year, "Self Control" was covered by American singer Laura Branigan, whose version reached No.

In 2024 German duo Fast Boy collabration with Italian singer Raf presents sampled (remaking) track Self Control (Renamed "Wave").

Raf (born Raffaele Riefoli) co-wrote the song "Self Control" with Giancarlo Bigazzi and Steve Piccolo.

Branigan's first major hit had also been co-written by Bigazzi: "Gloria" (1982) was an English-language cover of the 1979 original Italian song recorded by Umberto Tozzi.

According to Bryan Buss of AllMusic, the song is about "finding sex in the seamy side of town".

[22] "Self Control" also topped the charts in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Portugal, South Africa and Sweden,[23][24][25][26] while reaching No.

[28] Raf's version surpassed the success of Branigan's only in his native Italy, where her single reached No.

Filmed in New Jersey and New York City, the video was produced by Fred Caruso and first aired in April 1984.

Though Branigan resisted at first, her record company convinced her to allow a minor alteration and the video was aired on MTV, though by this time the single had peaked on the charts.

Branigan would go on to be nominated for a 1985 American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Video Artist, losing to Cyndi Lauper.

[31] Branigan performed the song live in her debut on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on 27 April 1984.

One of those, the Classic Summer Mix, appeared on the European greatest hits album The Very Best of Laura Branigan.

Branigan sought to reclaim her career after years away from the music industry first to take care of her ailing husband and then to mourn his loss.

The latter track reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot Dance Singles Sales chart following Branigan's sudden death from an aneurysm in August of that year.

In 1993, Ricky Martin recorded a Spanish-language cover of "Self Control", titled "Que Dia Es Hoy" ("What Day Is Today").

With lyrics by producer Juan Carlos Calderón and Mikel Herzog, the song was released as single from Martin's second studio solo album, Me Amaras, in 1993.

In 2004, German dance group Royal Gigolos recorded a cover of "Self Control" for their debut studio album, Musique Deluxe.

It was released as a CD maxi single the following year, along with their cover of the 1984 Rockwell song "Somebody's Watching Me".

In 2018, American singer Kendra Erika released a cover of "Self Control", reaching number one on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart.

[93] In 2024 German duo Fast Boy remade the track for its 40th anniversary, and renamed it "Wave".

In 2002, the Branigan recording was used as a track on the fictional radio station Flash FM in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City As Well Races Only For Need for Speed: Underground, and it appears on the CD collection Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Official Soundtrack Box Set, as well as numerous other hits collections.

In 2018, Branigan's version appeared in the episode "Descent" of FX's The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.