"I Have Nothing" is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston, released as the third single from The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album (1992) on February 20, 1993, by Arista Records. The song was written by David Foster and Linda Thompson, and produced by Foster.
After the back-to-back successes of Houston's "I Will Always Love You" and "I'm Every Woman," "I Have Nothing" became yet another hit, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and being certified 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 a number-one peak on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. Houston established another historic milestone in Billboard chart history with the two previous singles off the soundtrack and this song, becoming the first artist to have three songs inside the top 11 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 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) 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 one of the most performed songs ever, having been covered eleven times since 2003. "I Have Nothing" was also featured on the second half of the trailer, for the estate-approved documentary on Houston's life, Whitney.
Last Updated: August 30, 2021
