"Thinking About You" is the fifth single by American singer Whitney Houston. It was written by Kashif and La Forrest "La La" Cope for Houston's debut studio album Whitney Houston (1985), while production was helmed by the former. Initially released as a promotional single on January 11, 1985 by Houston's label Arista Records, the label later released it as a radio-only single to R&B stations and as a vinyl single for American dance clubs in October 1985.[3]
Whitney Houston began working with R&B producer Kashif in the late summer of 1983 after the producer decided on working with the teenage singer after catching her performance on The Merv Griffin Show. The producer and fellow Arista label mate, who had worked with singers such as Evelyn "Champagne" King and Melba Moore[4], had initially turned Houston down due to her performances in which Houston performed "lounge music" but changed his mind.
Kashif had begun collaborating with singer-songwriter La Forrest 'La La' Cope after Cope signed to Kashif's publishing company. Through Cope, Kashif presented Arista executive Gerry Griffith the mid-tempo R&B song "You Give Good Love", which he approved and Houston subsequently recorded.[5] Kashif and Cope decided on collaborating on a second track for Houston they came up with called "Thinking About You", which Kashif admitted was "loosely put together".[6]
The uptempo synth-heavy track featured Houston doing both lead and background vocals and featured Kashif himself as an uncredited male vocalist on the song during its chorus. Kashif added in a rock guitar part and bass marimbas during the song's post-production.[6]
Houston later added background vocals on the producer's own Send Me Your Love album, particularly on the top 30 R&B chart hit "Are You the Woman". Initially not credited to Houston, in later editions of his album, Houston's name was added.
Arista boss Clive Davis included both "Thinking About You" and "You Give Good Love" on the final track listing of Houston's debut album.
Release and chart performance
"Thinking About You" was released first as a promotional single on January 11, 1985. A month later, "You Give Good Love" became Houston's official leading single off her debut album, Whitney Houston. After Houston found crossover success with "You Give Good Love" and "Saving All My Love for You", Arista decided to re-release "Thinking About You" in October 2025, primarily to R&B radio, while vinyl copies were sent to dance clubs across the country.
The song debuted at number 76 on the Hot Black Singles chart on October 19, 1985.[7] On December 14, 1985, the song reached its peak position of number 10. It spent 15 weeks on the chart.[8] It was Houston's fourth consecutive top ten single on the R&B chart and her fourth R&B hit from her self-titled debut album.
The same song debuted at number 50 on the Hot Dance/Disco Club Play chart on November 16, 1985.[9] On December 7, 1985, the song reached its peak position of number 24, becoming her first top 40 entry. It spent six weeks on the chart.
Critical reception
In the October 19, 1985 issue of Billboard, it stated "new star [Houston] should have no trouble parlaying her pop prominence into club action with this crisp, cool Kashif production; upbeat rhythms in an elegant manner."[10]
Thirty years later, Billboard reviewed the song among all of the ten songs on Houston's debut and claimed Houston was "channel[ing] (Chaka) Khan as she layers on the confident swagger" and compared her spoken monologue in the song to Diana Ross' "Ain't No Mountain High Enough".[11]
AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine called the track "unheralded" and one of the lighter songs on the album, as well as "a dance/R&B hit [...] that remains one of Whitney's purest pop pleasures".[12]
Accolades
In their list of "40 Best Whitney Houston Songs", BET ranked the song 29th place, writing that Houston "knew how to counterbalance her pop grandiloquence with some good old-fashioned rhythm and blues from the very beginning."[13]
Slant ranked "Thinking About You" as Houston's 11th best song, writing that it was a "deeply seductive gem—and one of the most teasingly erotic of all her dance-floor jams."[14]
It was ranked the 35th best Whitney Houston song on GoldDerby's list.[15] The site stated the song was Mariah Carey's favorite song of Houston's.[15]
Covers and samples
In 2013, British singer and deejay Yasmin covered the song and first released it on her Soundcloud account.[16] Later, the song was remixed by another London-based producer Billon.[17] The song has been sampled by several musicians such as Eli Escobar, Cyberlust, Moon Boots and Coco & Breezy ft. Sam White.
↑Justin Kantor (February 12, 2012). "The Career and Impact of Whitney Houston: Still "The Greatest Love of All"". Blogcritics. Retrieved December 6, 2025. Subsequently, fans got a taste of Whitney's prowess with uptempo grooves—first with "Thinking About You," a funky number pushed mostly to R&B radio; then with the ebullient, hook-laden "How Will I Know," another #1 success on both the pop and R&B charts.
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