I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)

"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. It won a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1988. The single sold over 18 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". 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.

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".

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.

Response
The single sold over 18 million copies worldwide. 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.

 References 

Category:1987 songs
Category:Whitney Houston songs
Category:Pop songs
Category:Dance songs
Category:R&B songs