exhale

"Exhale (Shoop Shoop)"
Single by Whitney Houston
from the album Waiting to Exhale Soundtrack
Released	November 7, 1995
Recorded	August 1995
Genre	Soul, R&B
Length	3:25
Label	Arista
Writer(s)	Babyface
Producer	Babyface
Certification	Platinum
Whitney Houston singles chronology
"Something in Common" (1993) "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" (1995) "Count on Me" (1996) Waiting to Exhale Soundtrack chronology "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" (1995) "Sittin' Up in My Room" (1995)

"Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" is a 1995 hit single by R&B/pop singer Whitney Houston, featured on the soundtrack of the film Waiting to Exhale. Babyface was nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media and won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. Whitney Houston was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

Song information

The song, written and produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, is a call to handle the emotional pain of a breakup by leaning on your friends. Houston sings the lyrics "When you got friends to wish you well... you'll find the point when, you will exhale". The song is also notable for the 1960s arrangement of the chorus, repeating 'shoop shoop shoo-be-doop.'

Music video

The camera mainly focuses on Houston with close-ups as she sings. The video is also cut with intermediate scenes from the Waiting To Exhale movie. Directed by Forest Whitaker.

Track listing

1. "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" (Album Version)
2. "Dancin' on the Smooth Edge"
3. "It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be" (with Aretha Franklin) (album edit)
4. "Do You Hear What I Hear?"
5. "Moment of Truth"

Chart performance

Houston entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 at the #1 position with "Exhale", becoming only the third single in U.S. history to enter at number one and Houston's eleventh and to date last number one single on the Billboard Hot 100. It stayed at number-one for just one week as Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men's duet "One Sweet Day" debuted at the summit the next week. This in turn led to "Exhale" settling into the number-two position where it resided for eleven weeks, becoming the single with the longest stay at number two on the U.S. Hot 100 in Billboard history. The single was certified platinum, and remained in the Top 40 for twenty weeks.

The song was also successful on other Billboard charts, logging eight consecutive weeks at number one on the U.S. R&B chart. The song also reached number five on the Adult Contemporary chart.

The song performed well in a few other major markets outside the U.S., reaching number one in Canada, the top ten in both Italy and Switzerland, and the top twenty in the UK and France.