I Have Nothing

"I Have Nothing" is a song by American singer and actress Whitney Houston, released on February 20, 1993, as the third single from The Bodyguard (1992) by Arista Records. The power ballad was written by David Foster and Linda Thompson, and produced by Foster.

The song was lyrically inspired by Thompson's earlier relationship with American rock singer Elvis Presley while musically, Foster was inspired by the music of Janis Joplin to compose the song. It was one of the first songs to be recorded for the soundtrack to The Bodyguard and was performed in the film itself.

The song became an instant hit following its release, peaking at number four on the US Billboard Hot 100, number one on the US Cash Box Top 100 and was certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The song also became a hit on the Billboard Hot R&B Singles chart, with a number four peak, and number-one peaks on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and Radio Songs chart.

Houston established another historic chart milestone in Billboard when the track joined the aforementioned previous two Bodyguard songs simultaneously in the top 11, making her the first artist to have three songs inside the top 20 of the Hot 100 chart in the same week since the chart began using Broadcast Data System and SoundScan data in 1991.

Internationally, the song reached number one in Canada, the top five in Ireland and the United Kingdom, the top ten in Denmark and Portugal, and peaked within the top forty in Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Switzerland. The song sold over 12 million copies worldwide and received various nominations, including for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media, and Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B Single (Female).

The song was promoted by Houston with live performances on her worldwide concert tour, The Bodyguard World Tour (1993–94) only, and also at various awards ceremonies and concerts such as the 4th Billboard Music Awards in 1993, the 21st American Music Awards in 1994, Whitney: The Concert for a New South Africa in 1994, and the 1st BET Awards in 2001. "I Have Nothing" also features on compilations like Whitney: The Greatest Hits (2000), I Will Always Love You: The Best of Whitney Houston (2012) and Whitney Houston Live: Her Greatest Performances (2014).

As with much of Houston's material, the song has been an extremely popular choice on many reality television series around the world, in particular American Idol, on which it has become the most performed song in the show's history; as of 2026, it had been covered fourteen times. "I Have Nothing" was also featured on the second half of the trailer, for the estate-approved documentary on Houston's life, Whitney. The power ballad is cited as one of Houston's signature songs.

As of May 2026, the music video for "I Have Nothing" has over 1 billion views on YouTube, making Houston the first artist to have two 1990s music videos to reach the milestone, along with "I Will Always Love You". The video for "I Have Nothing" is one of the most watched videos of all time.