Heartbreak Hotel

Album: My Love Is Your Love (1998)
Charted: 25 2
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This is a very different song than Elvis Presley's rock and roll classic of the same name, but it borrows the same theme. In the song, Whitney Houston gets stood up, so she writes the guy a letter so he'll know exactly how she feels.

    Songs about dealing with difficult men were trending around this time, and Houston jumped on board for her My Love Is Your Love album. "Heartbreak Hotel" was followed as a single by "It's Not Right But It's Okay," which finds her making a break from a lowdown cheat.
  • The song was produced by Soulshock and Karlin, the Danish team of Kenneth Karlin and Carsten Schack. They wrote it with Tamara Savage, who also had a hand in Monica's #1 hit "The First Night."
  • The song features R&B singers Faith Evans and Kelly Price, who offer empathetic vocals alongside the heartbroken Whitney. Faith Evans is best known for her contribution to Puff Daddy's tribute to her late husband, Notorious B.I.G, "I'll Be Missing You." Kelly Price also has a connection with the fallen rapper, having provided the female vocals on Biggie's hit single "Mo Money Mo Problems."
  • Whitney performed the song with Faith Evans and Kelly Price for the first time live on the November 23, 1998 episode of The Rosie O'Donnell Show.

Comments: 1

  • Trinilicious from NcMy friend Irene said she wrote Whitney Houston Song Heartbreak Hotel and sold it for $1000 back in the days because she was poor and needed the money!
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Gavin Rossdale On Lyric Inspirations and Bush's Album The Kingdom

Gavin Rossdale On Lyric Inspirations and Bush's Album The KingdomSongwriter Interviews

The Bush frontman on where he finds inspiration for lyrics, if his "machine head" is a guitar tuner, and the stories behind songs from the album The Kingdom.

Phil Hurtt ("I'll Be Around")

Phil Hurtt ("I'll Be Around")Songwriter Interviews

Phil was a songwriter, producer and voice behind many Philadelphia soul classics. When disco hit, he got an interesting project: The Village People.

Brian Kehew: The Man Behind The Remasters

Brian Kehew: The Man Behind The RemastersSong Writing

Brian has unearthed outtakes by Fleetwood Mac, Aretha Franklin, Elvis Costello and hundreds of other artists for reissues. Here's how he does it.

Reverend Horton Heat

Reverend Horton HeatSongwriter Interviews

The Reverend rants on psychobilly and the egghead academics he bashes in one of his more popular songs.

British Invasion

British InvasionFact or Fiction

Go beyond The Beatles to see what you know about the British Invasion.

Chris Rea

Chris ReaSongwriter Interviews

It took him seven years to recover from his American hit "Fool (If You Think It's Over)," but Chris Rea became one of the top singer-songwriters in his native UK.