Got to Be Real

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"Got to Be Real" is a song by American singer Cheryl Lynn from her 1978 self-titled debut studio album. The song, which was released in August 1978 as Lynn's debut single, was written by Lynn, David Paich and David Foster.

Composition

Sheet music for "Got to Be Real" gives the key of G minor, with a modulation to A minor. Vocals range from G3 to B♭5.[1][2]

Recording

For the recording, David Shields played bass, David Paich played keyboards, James Gadson played drums and Ray Parker Jr. was the session guitarist.

Chart performance

In the United States, "Got to Be Real" hit number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and hit number one on the Hot Soul Singles chart in early 1979.[3] Along with the album tracks "Star Love" and "You Saved My Day", "Got to Be Real" peaked at number eleven on the National Disco Action Top 40 chart.[4] In the UK the song did not chart upon its original release - in 2010 it was used for a TV advertising campaign for Marks & Spencer, a department store, and it entered the main charts for the first time at number 78 for the week ending April 4, the next week peaking at number 70.[5][6]

Legacy

In 2025, Billboard magazine ranked "Got to Be Real" number 29 in their list of "The 100 Greatest LGBTQ+ Anthems of All Time".[7]

Track listing and formats

  • US 7-inch vinyl single
  1. "Got to Be Real" – 3:42
  2. "Come in from the Rain" – 3:35
  • US 12-inch vinyl single
  1. "Got to Be Real" – 5:10
  2. "Come in from the Rain" – 3:35

Charts and certifications

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Erik version

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In 1993, British singer Erik released a cover of "Got to Be Real", produced by Pete Waterman and Dave Ford. To date, it is her most well-known song, resulting in a UK club hit[13] and peaking at number 42 on the UK Singles Chart.[14]

Critical reception

Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "It's the second time around for this pop/dance ditty from the late 70's. With three mixes to choose from, hit potential is greatly enhanced."[15] Andy Beevers from Music Week gave the song a score of four out of five and named it Pick of the Week in the category of Dance, writing, "Erik has taken Cheryl Lynn's late Seventies dancefloor anthem and interpreted it in a bang up-to-date disco house style. The result has been solid club support and its abundance of catchy hooks should earn some radio plays."[16]

Track listing

  • 7", UK (1993)
  1. "Got to Be Real"
  2. "I Can't Take Any More"
  • 12", UK (1993)
  1. "Got to Be Real" (Silver City Mix)
  2. "Got to Be Real" (Hot Tip 12)
  3. "Got to Be Real" (TK Groove)
  4. "Got to Be Real" (J & S Disco Bunny)
  • CD single, UK (1994)
  1. "Got to Be Real" (Hot Tip 7)4:12
  2. "Got to Be Real" (TK Groove)7:24
  3. "Got to Be Real" (J&S Disco Bunny)7:24
  4. "I Can't Take Any More" 3:51

Charts

Chart (1994) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC) 42
UK Top 20 Breakers (Music Week)[17] 1
UK Dance (Music Week)[18] 9
UK Club Chart (Music Week)[19] 21

Mary J. Blige and Will Smith version

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Shark Tale: Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on September 21, 2004 as the soundtrack of Shark Tale. The soundtrack features newly recorded music by various artists, including Christina Aguilera, Sean Paul, Timbaland, the Pussycat Dolls, Ludacris, Missy Elliott, and Justin Timberlake. As part of the album, "Got to Be Real" was covered by Mary J. Blige and Will Smith.

Legacy

"Got to Be Real" was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame on September 19, 2005. In 2017, ShortList's Dave Fawbert listed the song as containing "one of the greatest key changes in music history".[20]

Cheryl Lynn's recording of "Got to Be Real" was used on the soundtrack of the documentary film Paris Is Burning (1990), and has been noted as echoing the different themes presented within it; New York-based DJ Prince Language commented to NPR in 1992 that "The music that animates the movements of the dancers in the film, especially the lyrics, provides a subversive and sometimes even shady commentary on the politics and aesthetics of drag and ball culture. The use of Cheryl Lynn's 'Got To Be Real' is the ultimate example of this, brilliantly touching on drag's invocations of and insistence on 'realness,' and the film shows how balls and dancers ultimately question the very notion of what is 'real' in the context of identity, and how we each create and construct our own 'real' selves."[21]

"Got to Be Real" was sampled in Father MC's 1990 rap hit "I'll Do 4 U".[22]

In June 1998, Patti LaBelle featured Mariah Carey on a live duet of "Got to Be Real", during the recording of LaBelle's Live! One Night Only performance at the Hammerstein Ballroom, New York. The special duet features Carey singing in her whistle register on the bridge, reaching an "A" in her sixth octave.[23] The performance would eventually go on to become the title and theme song of the voiceover digital parody series Got 2B Real (2011).[24]

"Got to Be Real" has been featured on the soundtracks of numerous films, including Carlito's Way (1993),Undercover Brother (2002), The Pink Panther (2006), The Holiday (2006) and Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (2014), as well as television series, such as That’s So Raven (2003-2007), Scandal (2012-2018), Sex and the City (1998-2004), American Dad! (2005-present),[25] RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2012-present)[26] and AJ and the Queen (2020).

See also

References

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External links

Template:Cheryl Lynn

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  5. ↑ "Got to Be Real Official Charts Company history". OfficialCharts.com. Retrieved 2011–29–5.
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  8. ↑ Flavour of New Zealand, 15 April 1979
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