Fame (Irene Cara song)
Encyclopedia
"Fame" is a pop
song, written by Michael Gore
(music) and Dean Pitchford
(lyrics) that was released in 1980, and achieved chart success as the theme song to the Fame film and TV series
. The song was performed by Irene Cara
, who played the role of Coco Hernandez in the original movie. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
in 1980, and the Golden Globe Award
for the same.
"Fame" rose to number four on the Billboard Hot 100
in August 1980. It also reached number one on the Billboard dance chart
for one week. The song was not released in the United Kingdom until 1982, so it would coincide with the UK premiere of the Fame television series. It hit number one in the UK Singles Chart
for three weeks.
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
song, written by Michael Gore
Michael Gore
Michael Gore is an American composer. He, along with lyricist Dean Pitchford, won the Oscar in 1980 for best original song for "Fame" from the film of the same title. He also won the award that year for best original score. Gore is the younger brother of singer/songwriter Lesley Gore.Gore wrote...
(music) and Dean Pitchford
Dean Pitchford
Dean Pitchford is an American songwriter, screenwriter, director, actor, and novelist. His work has earned him an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for three additional Oscars, two more Golden Globes, seven Grammy Awards and two Tony Awards.-Early life:Pitchford was born in...
(lyrics) that was released in 1980, and achieved chart success as the theme song to the Fame film and TV series
Fame (1982 TV series)
Fame is an American television series originally produced between 1982 and 1987. The show was based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts. Although...
. The song was performed by Irene Cara
Irene Cara
Irene Cara is an American singer and actress. Cara won an Academy Award in 1984 in the category of Best Original Song for co-writing "Flashdance... What a Feeling." She is also known for her recording of the song "Fame", and she also starred in the 1980 film Fame.She married Hollywood stuntman...
, who played the role of Coco Hernandez in the original movie. It won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
in 1980, and the Golden Globe Award
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Award is an accolade bestowed by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association recognizing excellence in film and television, both domestic and foreign...
for the same.
"Fame" rose to number four on the 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...
in August 1980. It also reached number one on the Billboard dance chart
Hot Dance Club Play
The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
for one week. The song was not released in the United Kingdom until 1982, so it would coincide with the UK premiere of the Fame television series. It hit number one in the 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 ...
for three weeks.
Cover versions
- The tune was also the theme song for the FameFame (1982 TV series)Fame is an American television series originally produced between 1982 and 1987. The show was based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts. Although...
television series, which aired from 1982 to 1987. It was performed by Erica GimpelErica GimpelErica Fawn Gimpel , American television actress. She is best known for her roles on television shows Fame as Coco Hernandez and on Profiler as Angel Brown. She is also known for her major recurring roles on the television shows ER as Adele Newman and on Veronica Mars as Alicia Fennel...
(who portrayed Coco Hernandez), and later by Loretta Chandler (who portrayed Dusty Tyler). - Alvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the ChipmunksAlvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...
recorded a cover of this song for their 1982 album The Chipmunks Go HollywoodThe Chipmunks Go HollywoodThe Chipmunks Go Hollywood is a 1982 album by Alvin and the Chipmunks, released by RCA Records.- Side one :#"Eye of the Tiger" #"Tomorrow"...
. - A Finnish language cover version, "Me Emme Laske Viiteen", was included on Mona Carita's 1983 album, Mikä Fiilis!.
- In 2000, a eurodanceEurodanceEurodance is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s or early 1990s primarily in Europe. It combines many elements from House, Techno, Hi-NRG and especially Italo-Disco...
cover was recorded by Swedish session singer Nana HedinNana HedinNana Hedin, also known as Na Na and Nana d'Aquini, is a Swedish singer born May 24, 1968 in Eskilstuna, Södermanland County, Sweden.- Career :...
. An audio sample can be heard on her official website. - A danceDance musicDance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
cover versionCover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
was released by a European girl group called Models. - FrenchFrench peopleThe French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
progressive-metal band AdagioAdagio (band)Adagio is a French progressive metal band formed in 2001 by guitarist Stephan Forté. Adagio's music is known by its technical precision and dark orchestration. Adagio keeps unqiue complex lead workings which are complimented with a powerful and driving rhythm section...
covered the song on their 2005 release titled Dominate. - Japanese pop duo Pink LadyPink Lady (band)is a Japanese female pop music duo of the late 1970s and early 1980s, featuring Mitsuyo Nemoto and Keiko Masuda...
covered the song in JapaneseJapanese languageis a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, retitling it "RememberRemember (Pink Lady song)"Remember" is the 20th single of duo Pink Lady. It was released on December 5, 1980. This was a cover version in Japanese of the song "Fame" by Irene Cara.- Track listing :# "Remember"* Written by M. Gore and D...
". - Nerdcore/hip hopHip hopHip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
artist Shael Riley recorded a cover which is available for download on the internetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. - Naturi NaughtonNaturi NaughtonNaturi Cora Maria Naughton is an American singer, rapper and actress best known for formerly being one-third of the R&B trio 3LW, and the starring role of Denise in the remake of Fame.- Early life :...
covered the song for the 2009 film FameFame (2009 film)Fame is a 2009 musical film and a loose remake of the 1980 film of the same title. It was directed by Kevin Tancharoen and written by Allison Burnett. It was released on September 25, 2009 in the USA, Canada, Ireland, and the UK.-Freshman year:...
, reaching #33 in the UK chart. - A Turkish language cover version, "Unutma / Don't forget", was included on group HepsiHepsiGroup Hepsi, commonly known as Hepsi, are a famous Turkish pop/R&B girl group. They consist of "Eren Bakıcı", "Cemre Kemer" and "Yasemin Yürük", and formerly of "Gülçin Ergül", 2009, all the members of the group are from the city of Istanbul...
's 2010 album, "Geri Dönüşüm".
Live cover performances
- Kristen BellKristen BellKristen Anne Bell is an American actress. Although her first film role was an uncredited appearance in Polish Wedding, Bell previously acted in stage and musical productions. In 2001, she made her Broadway debut as Becky Thatcher in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer...
, star of Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
, performed "Fame" at the 2005 Emmy Awards. - Willa FordWilla FordAmanda Lee Modano , known professionally as Willa Ford and often as Mandy Modano, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, model, television personality and film actress. She released her debut album, Willa Was Here, in 2001...
, pop singer and reality star, performed "Fame" on the November 1, 2006 result show of the ABC show Dancing with the StarsDancing with the Stars (US TV series)Dancing with the Stars is a reality show airing on ABC in the United States, and CTV in Canada in 2011. The show is the American version of the British BBC television series Strictly Come Dancing...
.
Appearances in other media
- The song was featured as the theme song to the 2003 NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
reality talent show FameFame (2003 TV series)Fame is a television series that ran on NBC in the summer of 2003. The show was essentially NBC's attempt to duplicate the success of mega-hit American Idol, right down to their selection of judges...
under a new vocal. - The song is licensed to reality talent show format Star AcademyStar AcademyStar Academy is a highly successful television show format based on the Spanish format "Operación Triunfo" produced by Endemol, that has been broadcast in over 50 countries...
, where it has been featured as a theme song in some of its franchises, including Fame AcademyFame AcademyFame Academy is a televised competition to search for and educate new musical talents. The winner received a chance to become a successful music artist. The prize consisted of a £1m recording contract with a major record company, plus the use of a luxury apartment in London and a sports car for one...
in the UK, Fame StoryFame StoryFame Story was a Greek reality TV show that was a licensed version of Endemol's Star Academy on the ANT1 network. It has been one of the most successful Greek TV shows over the last years. The contestants gave a weekly performance in a 2½–3 hour episode in which the contestants were judged...
in Greece, and Star AcademyStar Academy BulgariaStar Academy was a Bulgarian reality television show produced by the Dutch company Endemol, based on the Spanish format called Operación Triunfo. It consisted of a contest of young singers. It was broadcasted on Nova Television...
in Bulgaria. - "Fame" was one of the song stages featured in the Nintendo DSNintendo DSThe is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
game, Maestro! Jump in MusicMaestro! Jump in MusicMaestro! Jump In Music is a rhythm action game for the Nintendo DS and iPhone OS. It is published by BigBen Interactive and developed by Pastagames and Neko Entertainment. The game was released for the Nintendo DS in Europe on November 6, 2009...
. - "Fame" was one of the songs covered by The Dan BandThe Dan BandThe Dan Band is a comedy band from Los Angeles, California, created by actor/comedian Dan Finnerty.The band is well known for its covers of originally female-performed pop songs, with added obscenities and swearing...
in the 2009 comedy film, The HangoverThe HangoverThe Hangover is the second solo album by former Guns N' Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke, released in 1997.-Track listing:All tracks by Clarke unless otherwise stated.# "Wasn't Yesterday Great" – 2:45# "It's Good Enough for Rock N' Roll" – 3:12...
. - "Fame" is a playable song the 2009 video game, "Just Dance (video game)Just Dance (video game)Just Dance is a music video game developed and published by Ubisoft for the Wii. It was released on November 17, 2009 in North America, November 26 in Australia, and November 27 in Europe. It is similar to the Dance Dance Revolution games in that dancers match moves on screen in order to earn...
". - The late Randy SavageRandy SavageRandall Mario Poffo , better known by his ring name "Macho Man" Randy Savage, was an American professional wrestler, best known for his time with the World Wrestling Federation and World Championship Wrestling .Savage held twenty championships during his professional wrestling career and was a...
used "Fame" as his theme song during his tenure in IWC.
See also
- List of number-one dance singles of 1980 (U.S.)
- List of number-one singles in 1982 (New Zealand)
- List of number-one singles from the 1980s (UK)
- List of Dutch Top 40 number-one singles of 1983