Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind & Fire and Phil Collins of Genesis teamed up in 1984 to create "Easy Lover", one of the era's most successful male-male duets, a pairing that was rare in the pop landscape of the time. The two singers had already crossed paths through the Phenix Horns, a brass ensemble that played with both their bands, and had long wanted to collaborate; the chance came when Bailey invited Collins to produce his album Chinese Wall.

Concerned the record lacked a song with strong pop crossover potential, Collins, Bailey and bassist Nathan East jammed together one evening and quickly wrote and recorded "Easy Lover", initially intending it only as a demo before deciding it was too good to improve upon. The pair released a comic video to boost its chances on MTV, and despite Collins simultaneously releasing his own single "One More Night", the two tracks coexisted successfully on the charts, with "Easy Lover" reaching number two and "One More Night" hitting number one.