I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)

"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
Single by Whitney Houston
from the album Whitney
B-side"Moment of Truth"
ReleasedMay 2, 1987
RecordedSeptember 1986
Genre
Length4:51
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Narada Michael Walden
Whitney Houston singles chronology
"Greatest Love of All"
(1986) 		"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
(1987) 		"Didn't We Almost Have It All"
(1987)
Music video
"I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" on YouTube

"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" is a 1987 song by American singer Whitney Houston and is the lead single from her second studio album Whitney (1987). It topped the single charts in a lot of countries.[1][2][3] It won a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1988.[4][5] The single sold 14 million copies worldwide.

Background

"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" was written by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, who wrote Houston's 1985 song "How Will I Know".[6] The duo sent a copy of the lyrics of this song to Arista Records, but they did not approve it, saying it was not right for Houston.[6]

Release

When the single came out, it received mixed reviews with many critics saying it sounded like Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun".[7]

On July 28, 1987, the single was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and re-certified Platinum. This made it Houston's first single to do this.[8]

Response

The single sold over 14 million copies worldwide.[9] After Houston's death, the single returned to the Billboard Hot 100 debuting at number 35 the same week "I Will Always Love You" re-entered at number 7, giving Houston two posthumous Top 40 hits.[10]

References

  1. ↑ ""I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" on the New Zealand Singles Chart". charts.nz. June 28, 1987. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  2. ↑ ""I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" on the Irish Singles Chart". The Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original on June 2, 2009. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  3. ↑ ""I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" on the Austrian Singles Chart". austriancharts.at. July 15, 1987. Archived from the original on June 22, 2022. Retrieved September 25, 2010.
  4. ↑ Battle And Jackson Top Grammy Award Nominees. Jet. February 1, 1988. Retrieved February 8, 2011.
  5. ↑ Jon Pareles (March 4, 1988). "U2 Wins Top Grammy Prize". The New York Times. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Seal 1994, pp. 22–23
  7. ↑ Robert Hilburn (June 1, 1987). "Album Review : Houston: Commercial Sparkle, Artistic Fizz". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 7, 2012. Retrieved January 4, 2023.
  8. ↑ "American single certifications – Houston, Whitney – I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 9, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Take 40: Music > Take 40 Number Ones > 1987; Number Ones in 1987". take40.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Whitney Houston Returns to Hot 100's Top 10 With 'I Will Always Love You'". Billboard. February 15, 2012. Archived from the original on March 30, 2013. Retrieved January 4, 2023.