I'm Your Baby Tonight

I'm Your Baby Tonight is the third studio album by American singer Whitney Houston. It was released on November 6, 1990, by Arista Records. The album was a response to music critics in the black music community, who accused Houston of neglecting her R&B and soul music roots following the release of the pop-heavy sound of her eponymous sophomore album, Whitney three years before. The album also signaled a change in Houston's musical direction as she attained creative control for the first time in her career and became the first album where she attained executive producer credits. The record incorporated the then-current popular sound of new jack swing music while keeping an R&B sound on the majority of the tracks, along with elements of hip-hop, funk and dance music which helped to shift Houston's focus from love ballads and occasional dance songs to creating a "firmer dance record". The album was further credited later as a "turning point" in Houston's career and which helped to cement her legacy in popular music.

Its themes also took a more mature direction than in Houston's previous albums with songs such as the title track, "My Name Is Not Susan" and "I Belong to You" taking on a more sexually aggressive approach. It was the first album to feature production from the team of Antonio "L.A." Reid and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, who would produce four of the album's songs including the title track, "Miracle" and "My Name Is Not Susan", while Houston maintained her previous producers Narada Michael Walden and Michael Masser on several other tracks, with smaller contributions from Houston's musical heroes, Luther Vandross and Stevie Wonder, the latter of whom Houston sung with on the album's only duet track, "We Didn't Know". In addition to vocally arranging every track, Houston also added to the production on the record on at least one track, the album closer, "I'm Knockin'".

Upon its release, I'm Your Baby Tonight received mixed to positive reviews from music critics, some of who complimented Houston's ability to adapt to singing harder forms of black music while others complained that her move to an urban direction was "superficial". The album became a global commercial success upon its release, reaching number three on the Billboard 200, whilst staying inside the top ten of that chart for 22 weeks. The same album topped the Top R&B Albums chart, Houston's first album to reach the pole position on that chart since her groundbreaking self-titled debut album, accumulating eight cumulative weeks atop the chart, outperforming the six-week run from her debut. Houston became the first female artist to have their first three albums reach the top three of the Billboard 200 as well as the R&B Albums chart. Her record on the pop charts was later broken by singer Britney Spears, who became the first female artist to send her first three albums to number one on the Billboard 200 after her album, Britney, topped the chart.

The album would go on to win four Billboard Music Awards, including Top R&B Album, at the second annual ceremony and earned the American Music Award nomination for Favorite Soul/R&B Album as well as the Soul Train Music Award nomination for Best Female R&B/Soul Album in 1992. With worldwide sales of over 10 million copies, I'm Your Baby Tonight is one of the best-selling female albums of all time and has been certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

I'm Your Baby Tonight produced six singles. Its lead single, the title track, hit number one in four countries, including the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top ten in 13 other countries and earning a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1991. "All the Man That I Need" followed the title track to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and helped to establish a chart record for Houston being the first woman to have multiple chart-toppers off three or more albums while also achieving international success, topping the Canadian RPM chart and hitting the top 20 in the UK; it would be nominated for the Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1992. "Miracle also achieved US success, peaking inside the top ten, while "My Name Is Not Susan" reached the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100. The remaining two singles — "I Belong to You" and "We Didn't Know" — was only released to R&B retail and radio where it found R&B chart success, both peaking inside the top 20 while the former reached the R&B top ten and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. To further promote the album, Houston embarked on her third concert tour, titled the I'm Your Baby Tonight World Tour, from March 1991 until October 1991. During promotion of the album, Houston's status was raised by her Super Bowl XXV appearance where she performed her rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" and the HBO-TV special, Welcome Home Heroes with Whitney Houston, which included songs from the album performed and viewed by over 50 million viewers.