Actors - How Will I Know

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	Actors - How Will I Know

"How Will I Know" is the third single from Whitney Houston's self-titled first album. The single was released in January 1986. It was written by George Merill and Shannon Rubicam of Boy Meets Girl fame. The song was originally meant to be for Janet Jackson. The song is an electric dance tune about Houston trying to decide if a boy she likes will ever like her.

Chart information

"How Will I Know" became arguably Houston's first major hit in the United States, even though her previous single reached #1, this single showed more longetivity and success over different charts. It reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1986, displacing Dionne Warwick's "That's What Friends Are For", becoming only the third time (and first by female artists) for relatives to replace themselves at number one, as Houston and Warwick are first cousins. It remained at number one for 2 weeks, and spent fifteen weeks in the top forty.

The song performed extremely well on other Billboard charts, climbing to number one on the Adult Contemporary along with the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles and Tracks chart, and Hot Club/Dance Play chart, showing Houston's success was not limited to any single genre.

Internationally, the single made Houston a noticeable star, but failed to match the success it had in the United States, reaching number five in the United Kingdom, number two in Australia, number eleven in Switzerland, and number twenty-one in Germany.

Music video

The music video for "How Will I Know" is set against a fantasy, vividly colored background, with dancers in black outfits and wearing French-style makeup. The video is recognized mainly for the background, Houston's frizzy hair, and solid charcoal dress.

Later in her life, when Houston was asked if she regretted anything in her career, she pointed to the music video for "How Will I Know", stating that she hated the hair and clothing choices. The video won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video in 1986, however.

Trivia: In the video, when Whitney sings "I'm asking you 'cause know about these things", there's a brief screencap of the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, Whitney's godmother.

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