"I'm Your Angel" is a

duet A duet is a musical composition for two performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a harmony, as the performers take turns performing a solo ...

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

and

R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwi ...

from Dion's ''

These Are Special Times ''These Are Special Times'' is the seventeenth studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, and her first English-language Christmas album. It was first released in Europe on 30 October 1998, by Columbia Records. In the United States, it ...

'' album and Kelly's '' R.'' album. It was released on 13 October 1998. The song was written and produced by R. Kelly. The single was very successful, reaching number one in the United States and was certified platinum by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. The single also reached the top five in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Commercial performance

The single was very successful in the United States and worldwide. It peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for six weeks. This was the first number one on ''Billboard''s new charting method of including airplay only tracks. The song remains both artists' latest U.S. number one single to date. It spent also twelve weeks at number one on the

Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stat ...

. The song also reached number one on the

Hot 100 Singles Sales The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

for six weeks and number 22 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Airplay. The single also became a top 10 hit in various European countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Sweden. "I'm Your Angel" has sold over 1,550,000 copies in the United States alone and was certified platinum by the RIAA. In addition, the single was certified gold in Australia for 35,000 copies shipped and silver in the United Kingdom for 200,000 copies shipped. The single was nominated at the

41st Annual Grammy Awards The 41st Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 24, 1999, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1998. Lauryn Hill received the most nominations with 10, setting a record for the most no ...

for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, but lost to "I Still Have That Other Girl", by

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...

and

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; born May 12, 1928) is an American composer, songwriter, record producer and pianist who composed hundreds of pop songs from the late 1950s through the 1980s, many in collaboration with lyricist Hal David. A six-time Gra ...

. The song was included later on Dion's greatest hits albums; '' All the Way... A Decade of Song'' and '' My Love: Essential Collection''. It was also performed by her live during the

Let's Talk About Love World Tour The Let's Talk About Love World Tour is the eighth concert tour by Canadian recording artist Celine Dion. Visiting North America, Asia and Europe; the trek supported Dion's fifth English and fifteenth studio album ''Let's Talk About Love'' (1997) ...

(included on the ''

Au cœur du stade ''Au cœur du stade'' (meaning ''At the Heart of the Stadium'') is the fourth live album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, released by Columbia Records on 27 August 1999. It was recorded during two sold-out concerts at the Stade de France in Par ...

'' DVD) and the

Taking Chances World Tour The Taking Chances World Tour is the ninth concert tour by Canadian singer Celine Dion, in support of her thirteenth French-language and twenty-second studio album '' D'elles'' (2007). tenth English-language and twenty-third studio album ''Takin ...

. "I'm Your Angel" appeared also on R. Kelly's compilation album, '' The R. in R&B Collection, Vol. 1'' in 2003. On 14 January 2019, following

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

’s removal of "

Do What U Want "Do What U Want" is a song by American singer Lady Gaga, featuring guest vocals from R. Kelly. The song was released on October 21, 2013, as the second single from Gaga's third studio album ''Artpop'' (2013). The singers wrote the song with DJ ...

", Dion, through her management, had the song on her own releases and its video pulled from streaming services due to renewed allegations of sexual misconduct and abuse against R. Kelly. However, the song remains on streaming services on R. Kelly's own releases.

Music video

"I'm Your Angel" music video directed by

Bille Woodruff Bille Woodruff is a director of film, television and music videos, noted for directing many videos for a number of R&B and hip-hop artists since the mid-1990s. These artists include Joe (singer), Joe, for whom Woodruff has directed 9 music video ...

, premiered on 19 October 1998. There are two versions: with or without both artists in the recording studio. The video without recording sessions was included on Dion's '' All the Way... A Decade of Song & Video'' DVD. R. Kelly's daughter Joann Kelly is featured in the video.

Critical reception

Chuck Taylor from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' praised "I'm Your Angel," a duet with R. Kelly. He wrote that "this wonderfully restrained ballad delights with the most graceful vocal performances either of these artists has ever offered to radio". Taylor commented, "what raises the roof is the tune's elegant, epic instrumental base, which includes sweeping strings, a soulful choir, and gentle but determined percussive drive". He continued, that "I'm Your Angel" "sells big at the bridge, where the instrumentation drops and Kelly and Dion harmonize in a gorgeous minor key – it truly makes the song". LAUNCH Yahoo wrote: "The ballad to beat all ballads is his duet with Celine Dion, "I'm Your Angel," which, were it not released the same week, could no doubt top the charts". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic highlighted this song in R. album and called it "soaring ballad". A mixed review came from EW editor Chris Willman: "Dion's earnest take on Vietnam-era Lennon is howler No. 1. No. 2 is her duet with R. Kelly, "I'm Your Angel," a slice of squishy-hearted pseudo gospel that might better be called "Touched by a Marketing VP". David Browne of EW wrote: "By the time R. winds up — with "I Believe I Can Fly" and "I'm Your Angel," a belt-by-numbers duet with Dion — Kelly has realized his crossover dream". Rob Sheffield of ''Rolling Stone'' wrote: "Every guest star who enters Kelly's parlor emerges better for the experience — even Celine Dion, the human anti-NAFTA petition whose dancing on the VH1 Divas special cried out for stricter work-visa controls".

Formats and track listings

Australian CD single #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" – 5:31 #"Christmas Eve" – 4:16 #"S'il suffisait d'aimer" – 3:35 European CD single #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"

S'il suffisait d'aimer ''S'il suffisait d'aimer'' (retitled ''S'il suffisait d'aimer (If Only Love Could Be Enough)'' for the US release) is the sixteenth studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, and her eleventh French-language studio album. It was released by C ...

" – 3:35 European CD maxi-single #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"S'il suffisait d'aimer" – 3:35 #"I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" – 5:31 Japanese CD single #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" – 5:31 #"Christmas Eve" – 4:16 UK cassette single #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" – 5:31 #" Je crois toi" – 5:05 UK CD single #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"Je crois toi" – 5:05 #"

My Heart Will Go On "My Heart Will Go On" is a 1997 song recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion. The song serves as the main theme to James Cameron's blockbuster film ''Titanic'', based on an account of the transatlantic ocean liner of the same name which san ...

" – 4:40 UK CD single #2 #"I'm Your Angel" (Radio Version) – 4:49 #"I Can't Sleep Baby (If I)" – 5:31 #"

To Love You More "To Love You More" is a song by Canadian singer Celine Dion, written by David Foster and Edgar Bronfman Jr., writing under the pen-name Junior Miles. It was released as a single in Japan on 21 October 1995 and became a hit, reaching number one ...

" (

Tony Moran Anthony "Tony" Moran is a DJ, record producer, remixer, singer and songwriter known for remixing popular songs. In 2007, he hit number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play chart twice with " Walk Away" featuring Kristine W and "Kee ...

I'll be Waiting... Vocal Mix) – 9:27 US CD single #"I'm Your Angel" (Album Version) – 5:31

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

External links

* {{authority control 1998 singles 1998 songs 1990s ballads American Christmas songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Celine Dion songs Contemporary R&B ballads Epic Records singles Jive Records singles Music videos directed by Bille Woodruff Pop ballads R. Kelly songs Songs written by R. Kelly Soul ballads Male–female vocal duets