"Stronger" is a 2009 song by American R&B singer Mary J. Blige

Mary J. Blige

Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...

. It was written by American songwriter Ester Dean

Ester Dean

Ester Renay Dean is an American singer and songwriter, and record producer signed to Zone 4 Records/Interscope Records. She is most notable for her dual appearance on Rio: Music From The Motion Picture and her 2009 US hit single "Drop It Low", which featured singer Chris Brown...

. It was co-written and produced by record producer Polow da Don

Polow Da Don

Polow-Freache Jamal Fincher Jones , better known by known by professional name Polow da Don or Awesome Jones, is an American record producer, songwriter, rapper, and singer. His cousin is Atlanta singer Monica. He has produced for a variety of artists including Usher, Nelly, Christina Aguilera, T.I...

. It was also co-written by Keri Hilson, Chauncy Hollis, Dwayne Dalton and American R&B singer Chris Brown, who provides backing vocals. The original leaked version is performed by Keri Hilson

Keri Hilson

Keri Lynn Hilson is an American R&B singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Decatur, Georgia, Hilson began her music career as a songwriter, penning tracks for several artists in the mid-2000s as part of the five-person production and songwriting team, The Clutch...

.

Recorded by Blige, it is featured on the soundtrack for the LeBron James

LeBron James

LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...

 documentary film More Than a Game

More Than a Game

More Than a Game is a 2009 American documentary film that follows NBA superstar LeBron James and four of his teammates through the trials and tribulations of high school basketball in Akron, Ohio, and James's journey to fame. The film trailer was released in April featuring the single "Stronger" by...

, and was included on the international version of her ninth studio album, Stronger with Each Tear, released in March 2010.

It was released as the first single from the soundtrack to iTunes and Amazon on August 18, 2009. Additionally it was sent to US radio on September 8, 2009.

Background and release

The song deals with issues surrounding people standing by one another through the difficult times. Blige sings "Now we're stronger... stronger... stronger..." referencing that relationships have more strength once they have been tested and people stand by each other. The song was produced by Polow da Don

Polow Da Don

Polow-Freache Jamal Fincher Jones , better known by known by professional name Polow da Don or Awesome Jones, is an American record producer, songwriter, rapper, and singer. His cousin is Atlanta singer Monica. He has produced for a variety of artists including Usher, Nelly, Christina Aguilera, T.I...

 and Hit-Boy especially for the Music Inspired by More Than a Game

Music Inspired by More Than a Game

Music Inspired by More Than a Game is the official album name for music taken from and inspired by the film More Than a Game. The film is centered around the life of LeBron James and was released in October 2009. The soundtrack and film were both executive produced by Harvey Mason, Jr. on behalf of...

which is the official soundtrack album to the film More Than a Game

More Than a Game

More Than a Game is a 2009 American documentary film that follows NBA superstar LeBron James and four of his teammates through the trials and tribulations of high school basketball in Akron, Ohio, and James's journey to fame. The film trailer was released in April featuring the single "Stronger" by...

. Stronger was confused as the second single from Stronger with Each Tear in August of 2009, but this proved false as the song was not included on the U.S. version of Blige's ninth album because her label chose not to include it. However, the single was included on the international version of the album, first released on March 15, 2010.

Promotion

Blige performed the song on Good Morning America

Good Morning America

Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...

on September 11, 2009.. She also performed it on the Late Show with David Letterman

Late Show with David Letterman

Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...

on September 23, 2009.

Music video

The music video, which premiered on August 21, 2009, features Blige singing in a quarry and amidst clouds. Footage from More Than a Game is interspersed throughout, and the video begins and ends with quotations by LeBron James

LeBron James

LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...

. The video was directed by Anthony Mandler

Anthony Mandler

Anthony Mandler is a commercial and music video director, who has written and directed music videos for several artists. His most notable and frequent collaborator is Rihanna...

.

Charts

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Chart (2009)	Peak position