Don't Let Go (Love)

"Don't Let Go (Love)"
Single by En Vogue
from the album Set It Off soundtrack and EV3
Released October 22, 1996
Format
Recorded August 1996
Genre
Length 4:52
Label East West
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Organized Noize
En Vogue singles chronology
"Whatta Man"
(1993)		 "Don't Let Go (Love)"
(1996)		 "Whatever"
(1997)

"Whatta Man"
(1993)		 "Don't Let Go (Love)"
(1996)		 "Whatever"
(1997)
Music video
"Don't Let Go (Love)" on YouTube

"Don't Let Go (Love)" is a song by the American R&B group En Vogue. It was written by Ivan Matias, Andrea Martin, Marqueze Etheridge and produced by Organized Noize and Ivan Matias for the Set It Off soundtrack (1996), also appearing on the group's third album, EV3 (1997). The song was the band's last released single with Dawn Robinson and was En Vogue's biggest international single, peaking in the top ten of many countries. According to Billboard, the single ranked as the 83rd most successful single of the 1990s.

Background

"Don't Let Go (Love)" was written by Andrea Martin, Ivan Matias, Marqueze Ethridge, and Organized Noize members Sleepy Brown, Rico Wade, and Ray Murray, while production was by Organized Noize.[1] Vocal production was overseen by Matias.[1] Martin Terry and Tommy Martin played the guitars on the song, while drums were played by Lil' John.[1] Marvin "Chanz" Parkman played the grand piano.[1]

Commercial performance

"Don't Let Go (Love)" became the third En Vogue track to peak at #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 where it was the group's fifth and final Top Ten hit. It was blocked from the top spot by Toni Braxton's "Un-Break My Heart". The song was a #1 R&B song for one week becoming En Vogue's sixth and final #1 R&B Hit. It reached #5 in the UK in early 1997 and spent 13 weeks in the UK top 40, eight of them in the top ten. The single re-entered the UK chart at number 23 in 2011 after the girl group Little Mix performed the song on the eighth series of the British television talent contest, The X Factor, on November 19, 2011. The En Vogue track reached #23 on the UK chart and also returned to the Irish charts at #50. In 1997, "Don't Let Go (Love)" went to number one on the Norwegian top 20 singles chart (VG-Lista Topp 20) and stayed there for six consecutive weeks. In total, it was in the top 20 for 16 weeks.

The single sold 1.3 million copies in the United States and was certified platinum by the RIAA.[2][3][4] In October 2011, NME placed it at number 127 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[5] The song was used in the 1996 movie Set It Off.

Music video

As with Set It Off (1996) the music video for "Don't Let Go (Love)" was set in New York City.

A music video for "Don't Let Go (Love)" was directed by Matthew Rolston using the Alan Smithee pseudonym. It was En Vogue's third collaboration with Rolston following "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" and "Whatta Man".[6]

As with Set It Off, the clip is set in New York City. It shows all four band members singing in front of an audience in black outfits while some clips of the movie are inserted. A second video was released using the same footage of En Vogue singing in front of an audience, but the scenes from Set It Off are replaced with images that followed a new storyline. In this version, Mekhi Phifer plays a man who has been secretly dating all four members of En Vogue. The four women find out about each other and confront Phifer's character through their performance at a party.[6]

Charts

Certifications

[46]

Region CertificationCertified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[47] Gold 35,000^
Belgium (BEA)[48] Gold 0*
New Zealand (RMNZ)[49] Gold 5,000*
Germany (BVMI)[50] Gold 250,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[51] Gold 25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[52] Platinum 600,000^
United States (RIAA)[4] Platinum 1,300,000[2][3]

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Cover versions

  • The American rock band Deepfield covered this song on their first album, Archetypes and Repetition.
  • The British girl group Sugababes performed this song during their Change Tour in 2008.
  • The song was sampled in the 2009 recording, also titled "Don't Let Go", by the British hip-hop artist Professor Green.
  • The Korean girl group Bella covered this song in the Korean language as their first single in 2011.
  • On November 19, 2011, girl group contestants Little Mix performed the song on the eighth series of the British television talent contest The X Factor, leading to En Vogue's version re-entering the UK chart at number 23. In the final, Little Mix performed the song for a second time and they won the show on 11 December. The song is a bonus track on the group's winner's single, "Cannonball". Following the group's win and their single, the song re-entered the charts again a few weeks later at number 27. On January 25, 2012, they performed the song at The National Television Awards.
  • On June 15, 2013, the contestant Cleo Higgins performed the song on the second season of British television talent contest The Voice.
  • The Australian singer Delta Goodrem performed the song on her 2016 Wings of the Wild Tour.
  • The Australian singer Greg Gould released an acoustic version of the song on his EP Don't Let Go on February 10, 2017. In June 2017, he released a duet version of the song, with newly recorded vocals from the original En Vogue member Maxine Jones.
  • The house music producer James Hype released a house cover of the song titled "More Than Friends", with vocals by the south London artist Kelli-Leigh. "More Than Friends" reached #8 on the UK Singles Chart in August 2017.
  • On the March 20, 2018, episode of reality television singing competition show The Voice, Team Alicia (Keys) contestants Jordyn Simone and Kelsea Johnson performed an arrangement of the song in a Battle round.

Awards and nominations

YearAwardResult
1997Grammy Award for Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or GroupNominated
1997Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for Best R&B, Rap or Soul Single by Group, Band or DuoWon
1997Billboard Music Award for Top Soundtrack SingleNominated

See also

Sources

  1. 1 2 3 4 EV3 (Media notes). En Vogue. Elektra Records. 1997.
  2. 1 2 "Best-Selling Records of 1996". Billboard. BPI Communications Inc. 109 (3): 61. January 18, 1997. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Best-Selling Records of 1997". Billboard. BPI Communications Inc. 110 (5): 76. January 31, 1998. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
  4. 1 2 "American single certifications – En Vogue – Don%27t Let Go". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  5. ↑ "150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years". NME. 6 October 2011.
  6. 1 2 "En Vogue – Don't Let Go Interview". YouTube. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  9. ↑ "Ultratop.be – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  10. ↑ "Ultratop.be – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 9879." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  12. ↑ "Top 10 Denmark" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
  13. ↑ "Music & Media: Eurochart Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  14. ↑ "En Vogue: Don't Let Go (Love)" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Lescharts.com – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  16. ↑ "Musicline.de – En Vogue Single-Chartverfolgung" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  17. ↑ "Íslenski Listinn NR. 208 Vikuna 13.2. '97 - 19.2. '97" (PDF). Dagblaðið Vísir. February 14, 1997. p. 16. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  18. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Don't Let Go (Love)". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – En Vogue" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  20. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  21. ↑ "Charts.nz – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)". VG-lista. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  23. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  24. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)". Singles Top 100. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  25. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – En Vogue – Don't Let Go (Love)". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  26. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  27. ↑ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". officialcharts.com.
  28. ↑ "Official R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  29. ↑ "En Vogue Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  30. ↑ "En Vogue Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  31. ↑ "En Vogue Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  32. ↑ "En Vogue Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  33. ↑ "En Vogue Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  34. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 47, 2011". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  35. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  36. ↑ "ARIA Charts – End of Year Charts – Top 100 Singles 1997". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  37. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 1997" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  38. ↑ "Rapports Annuel 1997" (in French). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  39. ↑ "Classement Singles – année 1997" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on December 12, 2013. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  40. ↑ "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  41. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1997" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. GfK. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  42. ↑ "Swiss Year-End Charts 1997" (in German). Swiss Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  43. ↑ "Yearly Best Selling Singles". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  44. ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1997". Archived from the original on June 11, 2009. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
  45. ↑ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. Retrieved October 15, 2010.
  46. ↑ Musikindustrie, Bundesverband. "BVMI - Datenbank". www.musikindustrie.de.
  47. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2011-09-28.
  48. ↑ "Ultratop 50 Albums Wallonie 1997". Ultratop. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
  49. ↑ "Top 50 Singles Chart, 4 May 1997". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
  50. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (En Vogue)" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  51. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (En Vogue)". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved September 28, 2011.
  52. ↑ "British single certifications – En Vogue". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 24, 2016. Select singles in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type En Vogue in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.


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