"I Didn't Know My Own Strength" is a song performed by American singer

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...

, taken from her seventh studio album '' I Look to You'' (2009). The song was written by

Diane Warren Diane Eve Warren (born September 7, 1956) is an American songwriter. She has won an Academy Honorary Award, Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, two Golden Globe Awards and three consecutive ''Billboard'' Music Awards for Songwriter of the Year from 19 ...

, and produced by

David Foster David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian record producer, composer, arranger, and musician. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His career began as a keyboardist for the pop group Skylark in the early 1970s befor ...

, both of whom have written and produced for Houston before. The song was originally supposed to precede the album's U.K. release on August 31, 2009 and U.S. release on September 1, 2009 but was cancelled in favor of " I Look to You" and " Million Dollar Bill". However, the song was released on November 6, 2009 as a

promotional single A promotional recording, promo, or plug copy is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as mu ...

. Her live performance on ''

The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' is an American first-run syndicated talk show that was hosted by Oprah Winfrey. The show ran for twenty-five seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in which it broadcast 4,561 episodes. The show was taped i ...

'' was included in her 2014 live album, '' Whitney Houston Live: Her Greatest Performances''. The official lyric video was released on March 7, 2023.

Critical reception

When reviewing the album, ''

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...

'' described the song along with the title track "the album's pair of classic Whitney ballads."

Background

Though never officially released, the song was leaked to the Internet. However, music mogul

Clive Davis Clive Jay Davis (born April 4, 1932) is an American record producer, A&R executive, record executive, and lawyer. He has won five Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a non-performer, in 2000. From 1967 to 1 ...

said at the album's official launch party in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

that all of the tracks on the album remain unfinished. The song's release was originally confirmed by Diane Warren who told '' Vibe Magazine'' she had penned the single especially for Houston, and it would be released as the first single. At the album listening parties, Davis said the album track "Call You Tonight" was a candidate for the lead single. Following previous reports, this led to speculation that "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" would receive a limited release to generate buzz for the album, whilst a different song will be fully promoted and released to propel the album's release. Title song " I Look to You" was released as the U.S. lead single whilst " Million Dollar Bill" (the second U.S. release) became the international lead single. Houston performed the song on ''

'' on September 15, 2009 and live on the

2009 American Music Awards The 37th Annual American Music Awards took place on November 22, 2009 at the Peacock Theater, Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles, California. The nominees were announced on October 13, 2009. For the first time in history, there was no host fo ...

broadcast.

Track listing

Due to the popularity of the song, a remix-EP was released alongside remixes for the two official singles on November 6, 2009. #"I Didn't Know My Own Strength" (

Peter Rauhofer Peter Rauhofer (29 April 1965 – 7 May 2013) was an Austrian-American disc jockey (DJ), remixer and producer who formerly worked under the moniker Club 69 as well as Size Queen. A native of Vienna, Austria, he was famous for a variety of his ...

Radio Edit) – 3:04 #"I Didn't Know My Own Strength" (Peter Rauhofer Mixshow) – 5:15 #"I Didn't Know My Own Strength" ( Daddy's Groove Magic Island Radio Mix) – 3:11 #"I Didn't Know My Own Strength" (Daddy's Groove Magic Island Mixshow) – 5:19 #"I Didn't Know My Own Strength" (Daddy's Groove Magic Island Club Mix) – 7:23

Charts

References

{{authority control 2000s ballads 2009 songs 2009 singles Whitney Houston songs Songs written by Diane Warren Contemporary R&B ballads Song recordings produced by David Foster