Hold On (En Vogue song)
| "Hold On" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by En Vogue | ||||
| from the album Born to Sing | ||||
| Released |
February 23, 1990 (airplay) March 5, 1990 (Cassette/CD single) | |||
| Format | 7", 12", CD single | |||
| Recorded | August — September 1989[1] | |||
| Genre | R&B, new jack swing | |||
| Length | 5:04 | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Writer(s) |
Thomas McElroy, Denzil Foster and En Vogue (Terry Ellis, Cindy Herron, Maxine Jones, Dawn Robinson), with William "Smokey" Robinson, James Brown, Fred Wesley, John Starks. (uncredited) | |||
| Producer(s) | Denzil Foster, Thomas McElroy | |||
| En Vogue singles chronology | ||||
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"Hold On" is the debut single from En Vogue's debut album, Born to Sing. It reached number one on the Hot Black Singles chart.[2] The single became one of 1990s' biggest hits in the US and also a major hit in the UK (No. 2 in the US, No. 5 in the UK). It also reached No. 1 on the U.S. Dance chart.[3] The song opens with an a cappella rendition of the Motown standard "Who's Lovin' You", written by Smokey Robinson and originally recorded by his group, The Miracles. It features Cindy Herron on lead but Terry Ellis on the introduction. The song also contains a guitar sample from "The Payback" by James Brown.
"Hold On" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Year-End chart for 1990 as an R&B hit.[4] As a pop hit, it also reached No. 8 on that portion of the Year-end chart.
En Vogue performed the song at the 2008 BET Awards with Alicia Keys.
The song's chorus was used and performed by Pharrell in the 2007 Jay-Z song "Blue Magic".
Charts
| Chart (1990) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 2 |
| US Billboard Hot R&B Singles | 1 |
| US Hot Dance Club Songs | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 5 |
| Year-end chart (1990) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100[5] | 8 |
| US Billboard Hot R&B Singles | 1 |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 1990 | Won Billboard Music Award for R&B Single of the Year ("Hold On"). |
| 1991 | Nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group ("Hold On") |
| 1991 | Won Soul Train Music Award for Best Single by a Duo/Group ("Hold On"). |
See also
- R&B number-one hits of 1990 (USA)
- List of number-one year-end R&B singles (U.S.)
- Number-one dance hits of 1990
References
- ↑ "WebVoyage Record View 1". Cocatalog.loc.gov. 1989-10-02. Retrieved 2012-02-21.
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 189.
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 90.
- ↑ "Year End Charts - Year-end Singles - Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on 2007-11-10. Retrieved 2009-09-08.
- ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1990". Retrieved 2009-09-15.
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