 " I Wanna Go " is a dance @-@ pop and hi @-@ NRG song , which features a heavy bassline and drum fills ; the latter are reminiscent of English band New Order 's song " Blue Monday " ( 1983 ) . Spears squeals and chuckles throughout the song , and her vocals are processed . In the pre @-@ chorus , she draws out the " e " ' s in lines such as " Shame on me / To need release / <unk> . " The section also has a whistled hook , which was compared by Rich Juzwiak of The Village Voice to the music of French recording artist Bob Sinclar and American recording artist Frankie Knuckles . In the chorus , Spears stutters " I @-@ I @-@ I wanna go @-@ o @-@ o / All the wa @-@ a @-@ ay / Taking out my freak tonight " . Ryan Brockington of the New York Post compared " I Wanna Go " to the music of her fifth studio album Blackout ( 2007 ) . In the lyrics , Spears sings about losing inhibitions , as evident in lines such as " I @-@ I @-@ I wanna sho @-@ o @-@ ow / All the dir @-@ ir @-@ <unk> / I got ( sic ) running through my mind . " , while playfully apologizing for her need for sexual release . Jon Caramanica of The New York Times stated that she sings about " the scrum that surrounds her " in " Lately people got me all tied up / There 's a countdown waiting for me to erupt " . According to the sheet music published by EMI Music Publishing , " I Wanna Go " is written in the key of D minor , with an electropop beat infused metronome of 138 beats per minute . Spears ' vocals range from the low note of D3 to the high note of D5 . 
