"The Power" is a song by German

Eurodance Euro-Dance (sometimes referred to as Euro-NRG, Euro-electronica or Euro) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s in Europe. It combines many elements of hip hop, techno, Hi-NRG, house music, and Euro-Disco. Thi ...

group Snap! as their debut single. It was released on 3 January 1990 as the lead single from their debut studio album, ''

World Power A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power inf ...

'' (1990). The song reached number one in Greece, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and Zimbabwe, as well as on the US ''

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 advertis ...

Hot Dance Club Play Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as th ...

and Hot Rap charts. On the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, "The Power" managed to reach number two for one week, behind "

Vision of Love "Vision of Love" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey for her Mariah Carey (album), eponymous debut studio album (1990). It was written by Carey and Ben Margulies. After being featured on Carey's demo tape for Columbia R ...

" by

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the wh ...

Background

Written and produced by Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti (under the pseudonyms Benito Benites and John "Virgo" Garrett III), "The Power" went through several renditions. The original version was released on 3 January 1990 through Logic Records in Germany and contains samples from "Let the Words Flow" by Chill Rob G, " Love's Gonna Get You" by

Jocelyn Brown Jocelyn Lorette Brown (born November 25, 1950), sometimes credited as Jocelyn Shaw, is an American R&B and dance singer. Although she has only one ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart entry solely in her name, she has an extensive background in the musi ...

, and "King of the Beats" by

Mantronix Mantronix was an influential 1980s hip hop and electro funk music group from New York City. The band was formed by DJ Kurtis Mantronik (Kurtis el Khaleel) and rapper MC Tee (Touré Embden). The group is primarily remembered for its pioneeri ...

. Despite it becoming an early 1990 hit in Germany and appearing on the Dance Singles chart in the UK, none of the credited vocals were cleared, and Stu Fine, former owner of

Wild Pitch Records Wild Pitch Records was an American hip hop record label, started in 1987 by Stuart Fine, that was eventually distributed by EMI. Artists who released records on the label included Main Source, Lord Finesse, Ultramagnetic MCs, Chill Rob G, Gan ...

, wanted to release the song in the United States. Rob G, who was signed to Wild Pitch, consented, initially thinking the deal could be lucrative for his career. Wild Pitch issued a stateside single and video with his lyrics from "Let the Words Flow" on 5 March 1990. However, this version was credited under Power Jam and not Snap! Simultaneously, Arista Records wished to release their own edition in the US, but because it was not legally possible for the label to simply reissue the original German single, it was decided to re-record the entire track with new lyrics by rapper Durron Butler, known as Turbo B, and additional vocals by

Penny Ford Penny Ford (also known as Pennye Ford, born June 11, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, she rose to fame in the 1980s after signing a recording contract with T ...

. The samples were then all legally cleared and the song was finally re-released under the new name Snap! on 12 March 1990 in the UK and 6 April 1990 in the US, despite the fact that

had commenced legal action because of the unauthorized sampling of her vocals. This song is written in the key of B minor, and opens with the spoken

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries * Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and p ...

"Американская фирма Transceptor Technology приступила к производству компьютеров „Персональный спутник" (meaning "The American company Transceptor Technology has started production of the 'Personal Companion' computer"). "Personal Companion" was a computer-like device for the blind and visually impaired. Released in 1990, it was controlled by voice and could, among other functions, automatically download articles from ''

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'' by a built-in modem. It was made by Transceptor Technologies of

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Critical reception

Bill Coleman from ''

'' wrote that "thanks to a healthy buzz generated via underground import attention, this hypnotic, street-

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jam should have no trouble duplicating its smash U.K. success. Expect big crossover action." Ernest Hardy from ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said the song is "set against a basic hip-hop beat, but all sorts of computer-generated enhancements are added, as well as a great bassline, soul-drenched female vocals, a male rap that sounds a bit like

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, and, depending on the mix, elements of

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

. Yet none of it seems forced or contrived, and it doesn't sound quite like anything else that's out there right now. This one will be huge." '' Complex'' magazine described it as "a more industrial take on the hip-house scene that blew up" at that time the song was released. Tom Ewing of

Freaky Trigger ''Freaky Trigger'' is an Internet publication and e-zine that focuses on popular culture with topics varying from music to cinema. It was founded by the music critic Tom Ewing in 1999 and features Pete Baran and Mark Sinker as editors. From 2000 ...

noted that the song "juggles aggression and melancholy, and makes both immediately appealing – the juddering riff which opens "The Power" set against the slow pace and lonesome spaciousness of the production and Pennye Ford's vocals. The riff is more distinctive than the singing, to be honest, but the contrast works." Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later m ...

'' commented that a "funky hip-hop rhythm, sampled from

Doug Lazy Doug Lazy (real name Gene Douglas Finley) is an American hip hop and dance music producer and DJ from Washington, D.C. Lazy scored a number of hip house hits in the late 1980s and early 1990s on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, including ...

's Let It Roll has been matched with some forceful rapping by Turbo B and inspired

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vocals on the chorus. Excellent warm production by Benito Benites, John Garrett III and Snap. Could be the next big thing from the Continent." A reviewer from ''The Network Forty'' described it as "a very hip and cool" rap song, "with a modern edge". The magazine also added that the "power charged rap-dance" does "crackles and pops with enough irresistible energy".

Chart performance

"The Power" proved to be very successful on the charts worldwide. It peaked at number-one on both the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensi ...

'' Dance/Urban chart in Canada and the ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play chart in the US. In Europe, the single peaked at number-one in Greece, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland and the UK, as well as on the

Eurochart Hot 100 The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...

. In the UK, it hit the top spot in its second week at the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top ...

, on March 25, 1990. It spent two weeks at the top of the chart. Additionally, "The Power" made it into the top 10 also in Austria, Belgium, Finland, West Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal and Sweden. Outside Europe, it peaked at number-one in Zimbabwe, number two on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the ''Cash Box'' Top 100 in the US, number six in New Zealand and number thirteen in Australia. The single earned a

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in Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland, and a silver record in the UK. In Spain and the US, it was awarded with a platinum record.

Impact and legacy

In 2010, ''

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'' included the song in their list of "Ten Actually Good 90s Jock Jams". In 2017, ''

BuzzFeed BuzzFeed, Inc. is an American Internet media, news and entertainment company with a focus on digital media. Based in New York City, BuzzFeed was founded in 2006 by Jonah Peretti and John S. Johnson III to focus on tracking viral content. K ...

'' ranked "The Power" number 38 in their list of "The 101 Greatest Dance Songs of the '90s". In 2019, ''

'' placed it at number 179 in their list of "''Billboard''s Top Songs of the '90s". In July 2020, digital publication '' The Pudding'' carried out a study on the most iconic songs from the '90s and songs that are most known by

Millennials Millennials, also known as Generation Y or Gen Y, are the Western demographic cohort following Generation X and preceding Generation Z. Researchers and popular media use the early 1980s as starting birth years and the mid-1990s to early 2 ...

and the people of

Generation Z Generation Z (or more commonly Gen Z for short), colloquially known as zoomers, is the Western demographic cohort succeeding Millennials and preceding Generation Alpha. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1990s as starting bir ...

. "The Power" was the seventh song with the highest recognisability rate. In 2022, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its cov ...

'' ranked it number 188 in their list of "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".

Track listings

;1990 version *12" maxi #"The Power" (ful mix) (6:00) #"The Power" (switch mix) (6:21) #"The Power" (potential mix) (5:42) *7" single #"The Power" (3:47) #"The Power" (dub) (5:35) *CD version #"The Power" (ful mix) (6:00) #"The Power" (jungle fever mix) (7:23) #"The Power" (potential mix) (5:42) #"The Power" (7" version) (3:44) ;1996 version *CD version #"The Power '96" (silk 7") (3:53) #"The Power '96" (E=mc2 12") (6:44) #"The Power '96" (original dub 12") (4:57) #"Ex-Terminator" (from the class 'X) (5:21)

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Covers, samples and remixes

The song was covered in 2002 by H-Blockx. Turbo B featured in the song taking turns to rap lyrics with H-Blockx's then frontman Dave Gappa. Of note, Turbo B replaces the word 'Snap!' with 'H-blockx' in the line "''If they are Snap! don't need the police to try to save them''". The single charted at number 48 in Germany, number 51 in Austria and number 34 in Australia. In Australia, this version was used to promote the

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

's coverage of the

2002 Commonwealth Games The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002 were held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August, 2002. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coin ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Power 1990 debut singles 1990 songs Dutch Top 40 number-one singles European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Number-one singles in Greece Number-one singles in Spain Number-one singles in Switzerland Number-one singles in Zimbabwe Snap! songs UK Singles Chart number-one singles