Will You Be There
Encyclopedia
"Will You Be There" is a song by Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

 which was released in 1993. The song is the eighth single from the 1991 album Dangerous. The song also appeared on the soundtrack to the film Free Willy
Free Willy
Free Willy is a 1993 family film directed by Simon Wincer, and released by Warner Bros. under its Family Entertainment label. The film stars Jason James Richter as a young boy who befriends an orca whale, named "Willy."...

, of which it is the main theme.

The song was one of the biggest hits from Dangerous, staying in the top 40 for over six weeks in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. The single achieved even greater success in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, where it sold over 500,000 copies and stayed in the top 10 for six weeks, peaking at number 7 and later being certified Gold. The single has sold 1,600,000 copies worldwide.

Song information

In a 2002 ITV interview, Jackson said that he wrote "Will You Be There" while sitting in a tree at his Neverland Ranch
Neverland Ranch
Neverland Valley Ranch is a developed property in Santa Barbara County, California, most famous for being a home of American entertainer Michael Jackson from 1988 to 2005. Jackson named the property after Neverland, the fantasy island in the story of Peter Pan, a boy who never grows up...

.

The full version of the song includes a prelude featuring the Cleveland Orchestra
Cleveland Orchestra
The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...

 and the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus performing a portion of Beethoven's ninth symphony
Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven)
The Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, is the final complete symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven. Completed in 1824, the symphony is one of the best known works of the Western classical repertoire, and has been adapted for use as the European Anthem...

. The segment is from the fourth movement and is a lesser known portion of the famous "Ode to Joy
Ode to Joy
"Ode to Joy" is an ode written in 1785 by the German poet, playwright and historian Friedrich Schiller, enthusiastically celebrating the brotherhood and unity of all mankind...

." The German lyrics were written by Friedrich Schiller
Friedrich Schiller
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller was a German poet, philosopher, historian, and playwright. During the last seventeen years of his life , Schiller struck up a productive, if complicated, friendship with already famous and influential Johann Wolfgang von Goethe...

.
German original
English translation
Ihr stürzt nieder, Millionen?
Ahnest du den Schöpfer, Welt?
Such' ihn über'm Sternenzelt!
Über Sternen muss er wohnen.
Do you bow down, millions?
Do you sense the Creator, world?
Seek Him beyond the starry canopy!
Beyond the stars must He dwell.


This classical introduction is then followed by a chorale interlude arranged by Andrae
Andrae Crouch
Andraé Crouch is a seven-time Grammy Award-winning American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, recording artist, record producer, and pastor.-Early years:Born Andraé Edward Crouch in San Francisco, California....

 and Sandra Crouch
Sandra Crouch
Sandra Crouch is an American Gospel music performer, drummer and songwriter.-Musical career:She won a Grammy Award in 1985 for "Best Soul Gospel Performance, Female"....

. The Andrae Crouch Singers are heard throughout the rest of the song as well.

Legal issues

"Will You Be There" was the subject of two lawsuits. The first was for copyright infringement of the Clevelend Orchestra's
Cleveland Orchestra
The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...

 recording and lack of credit to Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...

 for the use of his symphonic prelude. The suit was filed by the Cleveland Orchestra
Cleveland Orchestra
The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...

 for 7 million dollars and was settled out of court. Subsequent printings of Dangerous have included full credits in the album booklet. The second lawsuit was a claim of plagiarism by Italian songwriter Albano Carrisi
Albano Carrisi
Albano Carrisi , better known as Al Bano, is an Italian singer, actor and winemaker.-Biography:He was born in the town of Cellino San Marco , where he still lives....

 who claimed that "Will You Be There" was copied from his song "I Cigni di Balaka" ("The Swans of Balaka"). After seven years, an Italian court ruled in favor of Jackson, stating that while the two songs were very similar, they were both inspired by a traditional Indian song. Carrisi was ordered to pay all legal fees related to the case.

Awards

"Will You Be There" won the MTV Movie Award
MTV Movie Awards
The MTV Movie Awards is a film awards show presented annually on MTV . It also contains movie parodies that used official movie footage with hosts and other celebrities and music performances. The nominees are decided by producers and executives at MTV. Winners are decided online by the general...

 for "Best Song in a Movie" in 1994. It was also included in the album All Time Greatest Movie Songs
All Time Greatest Movie Songs (Album)
All Time Greatest Movie Songs is a joint effort with Columbia Records of Sony Music UK to released movie compilations in 1999.-Track listing:#"My Heart Will Go On" - Celine Dion#"Men in Black" - Will Smith...

, released by Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....

 in 1999.

Music video

A music video was made for the song. It included Jackson performing the song during his Dangerous World Tour
Dangerous World Tour
The Dangerous World Tour was the second worldwide concert tour by American megasuperstar Michael Jackson. The tour, sponsored by Pepsi-Cola, included 69 performances to an audience of 3.5 million. All profits were donated to various charities including Jackson's own "Heal the World Foundation". The...

and footage from Free Willy
Free Willy
Free Willy is a 1993 family film directed by Simon Wincer, and released by Warner Bros. under its Family Entertainment label. The film stars Jason James Richter as a young boy who befriends an orca whale, named "Willy."...

. The video was included in the DVD Michael Jackson's Vision
Michael Jackson's Vision
Michael Jackson's Vision is a deluxe DVD box set released on November 22, 2010. It includes three DVDs, featuring 4.5 hours of content of 42 music videos by Michael Jackson, with newly restored color and remastered audio. Michael referred to each of these productions as a "short film" and not a...

.
An alternate video showing Jackson perform the song in a different scenery was included on the DVD release, Dangerous - The Short Films
Dangerous - The Short Films
Dangerous: The Short Films is a collection of music videos from the Dangerous album by Michael Jackson released initially on VHS, double Video CD in 1993 and reissued on DVD in 2001...

.

Live performances by Jackson

Michael Jackson performed "Will You Be There" live throughout the Dangerous World Tour
Dangerous World Tour
The Dangerous World Tour was the second worldwide concert tour by American megasuperstar Michael Jackson. The tour, sponsored by Pepsi-Cola, included 69 performances to an audience of 3.5 million. All profits were donated to various charities including Jackson's own "Heal the World Foundation". The...

. Outside of the tour, Jackson performed the song at the MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 10th anniversary show and at the NAACP Image Awards in 1993. Jackson would have performed the song for the "This Is It
This Is It (Michael Jackson concerts)
This Is It was a planned series of fifty concerts by Michael Jackson to be held at The O2 Arena in London. They were scheduled to begin in July 2009 and continue through to March 2010. However, with all concerts sold out, Jackson died less than three weeks before the first concert date...

" concerts which never took place due to his sudden death. It was not featured in the film This Is It (although it appears briefly on the DVD/Blu Ray bonus features), but was confirmed to have been part of the concert, along with "Bad," "Dirty Diana
Dirty Diana
"Dirty Diana" is a song by American songwriter and recording artist Michael Jackson that is featured on Jackson's seventh studio album, Bad. The song was released by Epic Records on April 18, 1988 as the fifth single from Bad. The song presented a harder rock sound similar to that of "Beat It" from...

," "Dangerous
Dangerous (Michael Jackson song)
"Dangerous" is an R&B-pop song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. The song appeared on Jackson's solo studio album of the same name, released in November 1991. Written and composed by Jackson, Bill Bottrell and Teddy Riley, the song was planned as the tenth single from the album...

," "Rock with You
Rock with You
"Rock With You" was written by Rod Temperton and recorded by Michael Jackson. It was released on November 3, 1979, as the second single from Michael Jackson's fifth album, Off the Wall. Written by Heatwave group member and songwriter Rod Temperton, who also wrote Jackson's 1984 song "Thriller"...

," "You Are Not Alone
You Are Not Alone
"You Are Not Alone", released on the 10th of August 1995, is the second single from Michael Jackson's album HIStory. The R&B ballad's composition has been attributed R. Kelly in response to difficult times in his personal life. He then forwarded a bare demo tape to Jackson, who liked the song and...

," "You Rock My World
You Rock My World
"You Rock My World" is a song by American recording artist Michael Jackson from his tenth, and final, studio album Invincible . The song was released as the lead single from the album in August 2001 by Epic Records. The lyrics pertain to being in love and trying to gain a woman's affection...

", "We Are the World
We Are the World
"We Are the World" is a song and charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World...

", "Heal the World
Heal the World
"Heal the World" is a song from Michael Jackson's hit album, Dangerous, released in 1991. The music video features children living in countries suffering from unrest, especially Burundi. It is also one of only a handful of Michael Jackson's videos not to feature Jackson himself, the others being...

", "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough
Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough
"Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" is a single by American recording artist Michael Jackson. Released under Epic Records on July 28, 1979, the song is the first single from Jackson's fifth studio album, entitled Off the Wall. Written by Jackson, it is in the key of B major and in common time...

", and "Stranger in Moscow
Stranger in Moscow
"Stranger in Moscow" is the fifth and final single from Michael Jackson's album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. The song was released worldwide in November 1996 but was not released in the United States until August 1997...

", which were also not seen in the film.

Other performances

Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Kate Hudson is an American recording artist, actress and spokesperson. She came to prominence in 2004 as one of the finalists on the third season of American Idol coming in seventh place...

 performed the song at Michael Jackson's memorial service
Michael Jackson memorial service
A public memorial service for Michael Jackson was held on July 7, 2009 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California 12 days after his death on June 25...

 on July 7, 2009.

The song was also covered by the band Boyce Avenue on their 2010 album Influential Sessions. Sales of this song on iTunes are currently being used to raise money for relief of the 2010 Haiti earthquake
2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake, with an epicentre near the town of Léogâne, approximately west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake occurred at 16:53 local time on Tuesday, 12 January 2010.By 24 January, at least 52 aftershocks...

 through the American Red Cross. Band member Alejandro Manzano said "...though we knew that any cover of [Michael Jackson's] music would pale in comparison to the original, we were still compelled to give a shout out to the late great in this time of need, by doing our rendition of one of our favorite songs of his, 'Will You Be There.'"

Michael Lynche
Michael Lynche
Michael Alexander Lynche is an American singer from St. Petersburg, Florida who was the fourth place finalist on the ninth season of American Idol. He is the second finalist ever to receive the judges' save, which was introduced in season eight.-Early life:Lynche was born to Michele and Marque...

 performed the song on the ninth season of American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...

 on May 11, 2010 prior to being eliminated from the Final 4.

Track listing

  • CD Single and 12":
  1. Will You Be There (Radio Edit) - 3:40
  2. Man In The Mirror - 5:20
  3. Girlfriend - 3:04
  4. Will You Be There (Album Version) - 7:40

  • CD Promo:
  1. Will You Be There (Radio Edit) - 3:40

  • 7" and Cassette:
  1. Will You Be There (Radio Edit) - 3:40
  2. Will You Be There (Instrumental) - 3:40

  • 3 Inch:
  1. Will You Be There (Radio Edit) - 3:40
  2. Girlfriend - 3:04

Peak positions

Chart (1993) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 58
Austrian Singles Chart 10
Canadian Singles Chart
Canadian Singles Chart
The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....

3
Dutch Singles Chart 3
Eurochart Hot 100 Singles
Eurochart Hot 100 Singles
The European Hot 100 Singles has been compiled by Billboard and Music & Media magazine since March, 1984. The chart is based on national singles sales charts in 15 European countries: Austria, Belgium , Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden,...

3
French Singles Chart 29
German Singles Chart 12
Irish Singles Chart
Irish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...

3
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...

2
Swiss Singles Chart 11
UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

8
US Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

7
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...

53
US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...

5
Chart (2009) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart 42
Austrian Singles Chart 21
Danish Singles Chart 14
German Singles Chart 26
New Zealand Singles Chart 29
Swedish Singles Chart 22
Swiss Singles Chart 3
UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

51
U.S. Billboard Hot Digital Songs
Hot Digital Songs
The Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...

10


End of year charts

End of year chart (1993) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 47


Personnel

  • Written, composed, produced, solo and background vocals by Michael Jackson
  • Co-Produced by Bruce Swedien
    Bruce Swedien
    Bruce Swedien is a Grammy Award-winning audio engineer and music producer. He is known for his work with Quincy Jones.Swedien is a five-time Grammy winner and has been nominated 13 times. He recorded, mixed, and assisted in producing the best-sold album in the world, Thriller by Michael Jackson...

  • Recorded and mixed
    Audio engineering
    An audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...

     by Bruce Swedien and Matt Forger
  • Rhythm arrangement
    Arrangement
    The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...

     by Michael Jackson and Greg Phillinganes
    Greg Phillinganes
    Greg Phillinganes is an active session keyboardist in Los Angeles, California. He is a graduate of Cass Technical High School, Detroit Michigan....

  • Orchestra
    Orchestra
    An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...

     arranged and conducted
    Conducting
    Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...

     by Johnny Mandel
    Johnny Mandel
    Johnny Mandel is an American composer and arranger of popular songs, film music and jazz. Among the musicians he has worked with are Count Basie, Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee, Anita O'Day, Barbra Streisand, and Shirley Horn.-Life:...

  • Vocal arrangement by Michael Jackson
  • Choir
    Choir
    A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...

     arrangement by Andrae
    Andrae Crouch
    Andraé Crouch is a seven-time Grammy Award-winning American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, recording artist, record producer, and pastor.-Early years:Born Andraé Edward Crouch in San Francisco, California....

     and Sandra Crouch
    Sandra Crouch
    Sandra Crouch is an American Gospel music performer, drummer and songwriter.-Musical career:She won a Grammy Award in 1985 for "Best Soul Gospel Performance, Female"....

    , featuring the Andrae Crouch Singers.
  • Greg Phillinganes and Brad Buxer: Keyboards
  • Michael Boddicker: Synthesizers

  • Rhett Lawrence
    Rhett Lawrence
    Rhett Lawrence is a record producer and songwriter. He is originally famous for producing the Grammy Award–winning, Billboard #1 Hot 100 and #1 R&B single "Vision of Love" for Mariah Carey. He produced and co-wrote the Kelly Clarkson pop rock hit "Miss Independent” which was #1 for 6 weeks at Top...

    : Synthesizers and synthesizer programming
  • Brad Buxer, Bruce Swedien: Drums and percussion
  • Paulinho Da Costa
    Paulinho Da Costa
    Paulinho da Costa is a Brazilian percussionist born in Rio de Janeiro, considered one of the most recorded musicians of modern times. Playing over two hundred percussion instruments, he has participated in thousands of recording sessions, Grammy Award-winning albums, hit songs, soundtracks, radio...

    : Percussion
  • Prelude
    Prelude (music)
    A prelude is a short piece of music, the form of which may vary from piece to piece. The prelude can be thought of as a preface. It may stand on its own or introduce another work...

     - Beethoven
    Ludwig van Beethoven
    Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...

    : Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Opus 125
    Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven)
    The Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, is the final complete symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven. Completed in 1824, the symphony is one of the best known works of the Western classical repertoire, and has been adapted for use as the European Anthem...

    : Presto
    • Performed by the Cleveland Orchestra
      Cleveland Orchestra
      The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the "Big Five". Founded in 1918, the orchestra plays most of its concerts at Severance Hall...

       Chorus
    • Directed
      Music director
      A music director may be the director of an orchestra, the director of music for a film, the director of music at a radio station, the head of the music department in a school, the co-ordinator of the musical ensembles in a university or college , the head bandmaster of a military band, the head...

       by Robert Shaw
      Robert Shaw (conductor)
      Robert Shaw was an American conductor most famous for his work with his namesake Chorale, with the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Shaw received 14 Grammy awards, four ASCAP awards for service to contemporary music, the first Guggenheim Fellowship...

    • Performed by the Cleveland Orchestra
    • Conducted by George Szell
      George Szell
      George Szell , originally György Széll, György Endre Szél, or Georg Szell, was a Hungarian-born American conductor and composer...



External links

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