"I'm Going Down" | ||||
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A-side label of U.S. vinyl single
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Single by Rose Royce | ||||
from the album Car Wash: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | ||||
B-side | "Yo Yo" | |||
Released | September 1976 | |||
Format | 7" single | |||
Recorded | 1976 | |||
Genre | R&B, soul | |||
Length | 3:37 | |||
Label | Whitfield | |||
Writer(s) | Norman Whitfield | |||
Producer(s) | Norman Whitfield | |||
Rose Royce singles chronology | ||||
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"I'm Goin' Down" | ||||
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Standard artwork (U.S. commercial cassette single pictured)
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Single by Mary J. Blige | ||||
from the album My Life | ||||
Released | January 18, 1995 | |||
Format | CD single, maxi single, promo single | |||
Recorded | 1994 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:44 | |||
Label | Uptown, MCA | |||
Writer(s) | Norman Whitfield | |||
Producer(s) | Sean "Puffy" Combs and Chucky Thompson for The Hitmen | |||
Mary J. Blige singles chronology | ||||
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"I'm Going Down" is a song written and produced by Norman Whitfield, and performed by Rose Royce. The single is from the film Car Wash and is featured on the film's soundtrack.
The Rose Royce (original) version received moderate success. It peaked at number seventy on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached number ten on the R&B singles chart. In the film Car Wash, the song serves as a double entendre, as it compliments the screen time of Maureen, a forlorn prostitute who desperately seeks a chance at true love with "Joe," even as she turns tricks.
In 1994, The song would gain more exposure and popularity when it was covered by R&B artist Mary J. Blige for her second album, My Life. She also changed the title from "I'm Going Down" to "I'm Goin' Down". Due to the heavy airplay that it received, Blige's version peaked at number thirteen on the Hot R&B Songs chart and number twenty-two on the US Billboard Hot 100. It became her fifth consecutive Top 40 hit as a lead artist. This song is also frequently performed at many of her concerts and as well as live sets, and receives much more airplay than the original to this day.
The music video for Blige's "I'm Goin' Down" was directed from January 14–15, 1995 by Matthew Rolston and was shot in black and white, with Blige singing in a club, and wearing an-all black suit with a matching hat, walking downstairs (being duplicated over and over again).