| (Something Inside) So Strong | |
| Cover: | Something Inside So Strong - Labi Siffre.jpeg |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Labi Siffre |
| Album: | So Strong |
| B-Side: | I'm Alright |
| Released: | February 1987 |
| Genre: | R&B, gospel |
| Label: | China |
| Producer: | Glyn Johns |
| Prev Title: | Nightmare |
| Prev Year: | 1982 |
| Next Title: | Nothin's Gonna Change |
| Next Year: | 1987 |
"(Something Inside) So Strong" is a song written and recorded by British singer-songwriter Labi Siffre. Released as a single in 1987, it was one of the biggest successes of his career, peaking at number four on the UK Singles Chart.[1]
The song was written in 1984, inspired by a television documentary on apartheid in South Africa seen by Siffre in which white soldiers were filmed shooting at black civilians in the street.[2] He told the BBC's Soul Music programme in 2014 that the song was also influenced by his experience as a homosexual child, adolescent, and adult.[3] Siffre originally intended to give the song to another artist to sing, but could find no one suitable and was persuaded to release it himself.[2]
The song has remained enduringly popular and is an example of the political and sociological thread running through much of Siffre's lyrics and poetry. It won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically,[4] and has been used in Amnesty International campaigns.[5]
| Chart (1987) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[6] | 76 | |
| Ireland (Irish Singles Chart)[7] | 2 | |
| Netherlands (Nederlandse Top 40) | 3 | |
| United Kingdom (Official Charts Company) | 4 |
Kenny Rogers performed a version on his 1989 album Something Inside So Strong.[8]
In 1995, Verity Records released Verity Records Presents: A Tribute to Mrs. Rosa Parks. A cover version performed by a chorus of gospel singers, including Fred Hammond (who produced the track), Yolanda Adams, Shirley Caesar, Daryl Coley and Vanessa Bell Armstrong, was the first track.
Pop Idol contestant Rik Waller reached number 25 on the UK Singles Chart with his cover version in July 2002.[9]
In 2014, British actor Shaun Williamson performed the song live at the 2014 World Indoor Bowls Championship.[10] [11] After being televised live nationally, it became a meme and was mashed up in video form with two successive U.S. presidential inauguration ceremonies.[12] [13] [14] [15] [16]