| "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Jennifer Holliday | ||||
| from the album Dreamgirls: Original Broadway Cast Album | ||||
| B-side | "Fake Your Way to the Top" by Cleavant Derricks, Loretta Devine, Jennifer Holliday, and Sheryl Lee Ralph | |||
| Released | 1982 | |||
| Format | 7" single | |||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||
| Genre | Show tune, soul | |||
| Length | 4:08 | |||
| Label | Geffen | |||
| Writer(s) | Tom Eyen, Henry Krieger | |||
| Producer | David Foster | |||
| Jennifer Holliday singles chronology | ||||
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"And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" (also known in short as just "And I Am Telling You") is a torch song from the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, with lyrics by Tom Eyen and music by Henry Krieger. In the context of the musical, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" is sung by the character Effie White, a singer with the girl group The Dreams, to her manager, Curtis Taylor Jr., whose romantic and professional relationship with Effie is quickly ending. The lyrics to "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", often considered the show's signature tune, describe Effie's love for Curtis, both strongly devoted and defiant. She refuses to let Curtis leave her behind, and boldly proclaims to him, "I'm staying and you ... you're gonna love me."
In addition to its presence in the musical, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" is also notable as the debut single of two women who portrayed Effie. Jennifer Holliday originated the role on Broadway in 1981 and won a Tony Award for her performance. In 1982, Holliday recorded a number-one R&B hit version of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going". Jennifer Hudson portrayed Effie in the 2006 film adaptation of Dreamgirls, winning an Oscar for the role. Hudson's version became a Top 20 R&B single, and a number-one dance hit.
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In 1982, Jennifer Holliday, the actress who portrayed Effie in the original Broadway production, released the song as a single. It was her first single release and it met with great success, topping the Billboard R&B charts and attaining top forty positions on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart. In 1983, Holliday won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female for the single.
"And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" was designed as the closing number of Dreamgirls' first act. Holliday's performance of the song, in a style owing much to gospel music singing traditions, was regularly staged to thunderous applause; it was hailed as the highlight of the show in several printed reviews of the musical.[1] In his review of Dreamgirls' opening night performance, New York Times theatre critic Frank Rich referred to Holliday's "And I Am Telling You" as "one of the most powerful theatrical coups to be found in a Broadway musical since Ethel Merman sang "Everything's Coming Up Roses" at the end of Act I of Gypsy"[2] "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" remains Holliday's signature song.
In 2001, Rosabel remixed the song and released their version (credited as Rosabel with Jennifer Holliday) as a single. It performed well on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart, peaking at number six. In 2007, it reappeared on the same chart, with additional, promotional-only remixes by Jody Den Broeder, and reached number 10 (this time credited to Jennifer Holliday with Rosabel). Coincidentally, the 2007 remix was climbing the U.S. dance chart at the same time as Jennifer Hudson's cover version with both songs appearing in the top ten simultaneously in February 2007.
Remixes:
| "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Jennifer Hudson | ||||
| from the album Dreamgirls: Music from the Motion Picture & Jennifer Hudson | ||||
| Released | December 5, 2006 | |||
| Format | Paid download | |||
| Recorded | The Underlab, Los Angeles: March 2006 | |||
| Genre | R&B, soul | |||
| Length | 4:43 | |||
| Label | Music World/Columbia | |||
| Producer | The Underdogs | |||
| Jennifer Hudson singles chronology | ||||
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"And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" was recorded in 2006 by former American Idol contestant Jennifer Hudson, who portrayed Effie White in the DreamWorks/Paramount motion picture adaptation of Dreamgirls. Her recording of the song, the Dreamgirls film soundtrack's second single, peaked at number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and number 14 on the R&B chart. Hudson won the 2006 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Dreamgirls; she thanked Holliday in her acceptance speech. The song can be heard on her debut album Jennifer Hudson (2008).
Hudson's version has been well-acclaimed, receiving outstanding reviews from multiple movie and music critics, which have highlighted her strength as both a vocalist and an actress. New York Observer described Hudson's performance as "five mellifluous, molto vibrato minutes...."[3] Newsweek said that when moviegoers hear Hudson sing the song, she "is going to raise goose bumps across the land."[4] Variety wrote that Hudson's performance "calls to mind debuts like Barbra Streisand in Funny Girl or Bette Midler in The Rose, with a voice like the young Aretha."[5]
On June 26, 2007, the 7th Annual BET Awards opened with Jennifer Holliday and Jennifer Hudson performing "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" live in their first duet together.
Although it in essence it is Hudson's first single release, it became her fourth top 75 hit in the United Kingdom after a performance on 2009's the X Factor, sung by Danyl Johnson.[6]
A club remix was created for this single, engineered by Richie Jones and Eric Kupper, and appears as a bonus track on the "Deluxe Edition" of the Dreamgirls soundtrack album. This version of Hudson's "And I Am Telling You" was a chart success, reaching the top of Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play songs chart in early 2007. A shortened edit of the full remix appeared on a Columbia Records promotional-only CD accompanying the Jones & Kupper remix of another Dreamgirls song, the Beyoncé Knowles/Anika Noni Rose/Sharon Leal/Tiffany Hudson rendition of "One Night Only". Also included were the Freemasons remixes of Beyoncé's singles "Déjà Vu" and "Ring the Alarm".
Regine Velasquez won the 1989 Asia-Pacific Singing Contest held in Hong Kong with "You'll Never Walk Alone" from Carousel and "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" from Dreamgirls.
Siobhan Fallon Hogan performed a snippet of the song as part of the 1992 Saturday Night Live sketch, Chris Rock's White Person's Guide To Surviving The Apollo, to raucous applause from the "audience". Her character's original choice of "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue" merely got her booed at and pelted with various items.
Will Smith lip-synched to Jennifer Holiday's version of "And I Am Telling You" in a 1995 episode of the sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Jennifer Hudson says this was where she discovered the song.[7]
In 1994, Donna Giles scored a minor club hit in the US and UK with her rendition of the song. The track remained a sleeper club hit in the UK throughout 1995, prompting a spate of re-releases and remixes, including Stonebridge, culminating in a major release on Ore Records in 1996. This last release would finally take the track to number 27 on the UK Singles Chart in February of that year. On November 20, 2007, the original master, Produced by critically acclaimed Eve Nelson, was released digitally by Breaking Records and is available on all major download sites.
Whitney Houston performed this song at the 1994 American Music Awards and as part of a medley during her Bodyguard World Tour.
On an episode of Martin, Gina (Tisha Campbell-Martin) performs "And I'm Telling You" on Martin's show Word on the Street. She and Pam (who sings the song "Home" from The Wiz) are trying to win a chance to sing back up for The Notorious B.I.G., and nearly come to blows onstage while outsinging each other for the part. Ultimately, Biggie announces on television that Sheneneh has won the part, who then proceeds to exclaim her excitement, and then sings "And I'm Telling You", much to Gina's and Pam's disgust.
Jim Carrey performed a version of the song in the final episode of The Larry Sanders Show in 1998.
Comedienne Judy Gold performed a conspicuously lip-synched version of the song as part of a closing gag for her 2000 standup comedy performance for Comedy Central Presents. The song was played as if she were being "played off stage" as is done in awards shows, but she lip synched it and emphasized the lyrics that echoed her refusal to leave the stage.
In the 2001 comedy film Down to Earth, Phil Quon, played by John Cho, performed it at the Apollo Theater on its closing night.
In a 2002 episode of Six Feet Under, the main character Nate (Peter Krause) performs the song in a fantasy sequence, reflecting thoughts of his own mortality.
In 2002, American Idol contestant Tamyra Gray performed this song during the Top 30 and in an International H&M Commercial in 2005. Also, in 2007, contestant LaKisha Jones performed this song during a Top 24 performance just days prior to Hudson's Academy Award bestowment. She received considerable praise for her performance, with judges Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell stating that her performance and musical talent was out of the league of fellow competitors that were on the program. Cowell's praise went so far as to practically predict her the winner of the season.
American Idol 7 runner up and Star Search winner, David Archuleta sang this song to the finalists of season one of American Idol. He was 11 years old at the time and got praise from Kelly Clarkson.
Also in 2002, Bonnie Tyler recorded this on her album Heart Strings.
In the 2003 musical drama Camp, the character of Ellen Lucas (played by Joanna Chilcoat) sings a powerful (if visually comic) version of this song that unfortunately did not make it on the soundtrack.
In 2003, Darius McCrary performs the song throughout much of a fourth season episode of the UPN/CW sitcom Girlfriends (entitled "You Ain't Gotta Go Home but...You Know the Rest"). McCrary portrays Toni's (Jill Marie Jones) brother Antoine, who has fallen in love with Maya (Golden Brooks). Antoine locks himself in Maya's bathroom and continuously belts out the song after she rejects his request for a long-term commitment after a weekend together.
In 2004, Star Search winner Tiffany Evans recorded the song for her debut.
Rowetta performs a dance version of the song on her self-titled 2005 debut album.
On the 2006 TV contest America's Got Talent, eventual winner Bianca Ryan sang this song as her audition performance. The song is also on Ryan's debut album.
Southern hip hop group Da BackWudz sampled Holliday's version for their hit song "You Gonna Luv Me". Their song uses the famous "You're gonna love me" lyric as a repeated loop through the song, which the duo raps over.
Jake Gyllenhaal performed it on Saturday Night Live shortly after the film's release in a mock performance of Jennifer Hudson. He wore a wig, black heels, and a black sequin dress. Three of the regulars on SNL were his "backup singers", also dressed in a black dress, heels, and wigs.
Jasmine Trias performs the song at the Flamingo Hotel as the first American Idol finalist to hold residency on the Las Vegas Strip in 2007. Trias states that she was intimidated to take on the song after hearing Jennifer Hudson's version.
On December 19, 2007, 14 year old Filipino Charice Pempengco performed the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. She had also sang it earlier in the year in the Korean show Star King. In 2008, she flew to London, UK, she was given a standing ovation from the audience after performing the same song on Paul O'Grady Show. This was her first performance and appearance on the show.
On Saturday 22 November 2008, X Factor contestant Rachel Hylton performed the song in what was to be her final performance of the show, receiving a standing ovation and praise for her version of the song.
Nick Mitchell performed this song as Norman Gentle during the Season 8 semi-finals of American Idol.
Kyla performed this song at the TV program Sis and made impressive reviews from David Archuleta.
Shaheen Jafargholi performed this song at the semi-finals of Britain's Got Talent 2009.
Danyl Johnson also performed this song at the first live final of X Factor 2009, the song also proved a popular choice for several auditonees in the same season.
On the television show Glee, the character Mercedes (played by Amber Riley) performs this song to the Glee Club before the Sectionals competition.
Cleveland Brown sings a part of the song in the Season 2 premiere episode of the sitcom The Cleveland Show.
The song is referenced in the song "Forever" from Shrek the Musical.
Jack Vidgen, the winner of Australia's Got Talent 2011, performed this song in the semi final to judges' applause and critical claim.
Jennifer Holliday version
| Chart (1982) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 22 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Songs | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 32 |
Rosabel with Jennifer Holliday version
| Chart (2001) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 6 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales | 66 |
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 10 |
Jennifer Hudson version
| Chart (2006/2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 60 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs | 14 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 70 |
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
| UK Singles Chart | 32 |
| UK R&B Singles Chart | 12 |
| Preceded by "Early In the Morning" by The Gap Band |
Billboard's Hot Soul Singles number one single July 24, 1982 - August 14, 1982: Jennifer Holliday version |
Succeeded by "Dance Floor, Part 1" by Zapp |
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