Thirty Years of Waiting to Exhale: The Film and Soundtrack Redefined Black Women’s Stories

Waiting to Exhale was released in theaters 30 years ago on December 22, 1995.

Paired with one of the most successful soundtracks in recording history, Waiting to Exhale was a rare cultural phenomenon: a film and album working in tandem to articulate the inner lives, frustrations, desires, and resilience of Black women at a scale Hollywood had rarely attempted before—and has seldom matched since.

Together, the film and its music didn’t just succeed. They shifted the center of popular culture.

A Story Hollywood Wasn’t Used to Telling

Directed by Forest Whitaker in his feature directorial debut and adapted from the novel by Terry McMillan, Waiting to Exhale centered four Black women—Savannah, Bernadine, Robin, and Gloria—living in the Phoenix area and navigating love, betrayal, ambition, motherhood, and friendship.

At its core, the film wasn’t about finding “the right man.” It was about finding oneself amid disappointment and social expectation.

• Savannah (played by Whitney Houston) is a successful television producer trapped in an emotionally empty affair with a married man.

• Bernadine (portrayed with volcanic intensity by Angela Bassett) gives up her dreams to support her husband—only to be abandoned for another woman, igniting one of the most iconic on-screen meltdowns of the 1990s.

• Robin (Lela Rochon) is a high-powered executive struggling to break free from being a long-term mistress.

• Gloria (Loretta Devine) is a single mother learning to choose herself after years of self-sacrifice.

What united them was friendship—not romance—as the emotional backbone of the story. Their weekly gatherings, laughter, and venting sessions felt revolutionary in their ordinariness.

The film opened at No. 1 at the North American box office, earning $14.1 million in its first weekend. Against a modest $16 million budget, it ultimately grossed over $82 million worldwide, becoming the 26th highest-grossing film of the year.

Its success proved a long-ignored truth: films centered on Black women—without spectacle, superheroes, or stereotypes—could draw massive audiences.

Though critics were divided, audiences showed up. The Los Angeles Times dubbed it a “social phenomenon,” and its all–African-American principal cast was itself a milestone for a major studio release from 20th Century Fox.

Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine & Lela Rochon recently reunited to celebrate 30 years of ‘Waiting to Exhale’ on ‘CBS Mornings’ and a other TV shows.

The Soundtrack That Became the Star

If the film told the story visually, the soundtrack told it emotionally—and arguably with even greater impact.

The soundtrack topped both the Billboard 200 and the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, went 7× Platinum, sold more than 12 million copies worldwide, and became Billboard’s No. 1 Soundtrack Album of 1996.

The Waiting to Exhale soundtrack spawned an unprecedented run of hit singles between late 1995 and 1996, led by Exhale (Shoop Shoop) by Whitney Houston. Released in November 1995, the song debuted at No. 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot R&B Singles charts, selling 125,000 copies in its first week—a historic feat previously achieved by only two singles. While it spent just one week at No. 1 on the Hot 100, it set a record by remaining at No. 2 for eleven consecutive weeks. On the R&B chart, it dominated for eight weeks and went Platinum, selling over 1.5 million copies.

The momentum continued with Sittin’ Up in My Room by Brandy, which peaked at No. 2 on both the Hot 100 and Hot R&B charts and earned Platinum certification. In January 1996, Not Gon’ Cry by Mary J. Blige became a defining anthem, topping the R&B chart for five weeks and peaking at No. 2 on the Hot 100. Its success, alongside the first two singles, made Waiting to Exhale the first soundtrack in Billboard history to produce three simultaneous Top 10 hits.

Subsequent releases sustained the soundtrack’s dominance. Count on Me reached the Top 10 across multiple charts and went Platinum, while Let It Flow by Toni Braxton became a chart-topping hit and the No. 1 R&B single of 1996. Later singles, including It Hurts Like Hell and Why Does It Hurt So Bad, received strong critical praise even with more modest chart performance. Additional tracks by TLC, Faith Evans, and Chaka Khan also gained radio traction, underscoring the soundtrack’s extraordinary depth, influence, and sustained cultural impact.

Critics praised its cohesion and emotional intelligence. The New York Times called it one of the artistic and commercial peaks of modern R&B, with Babyface lauded for writing women’s emotional realities with rare empathy.

One Cultural Conversation, Two Mediums

What made Waiting to Exhale unprecedented was how seamlessly the film and soundtrack functioned together. The songs didn’t simply decorate scenes—they extended them. Mary J. Blige’s “Not Gon’ Cry” became Bernadine’s unspoken monologue. Whitney Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” captured Savannah’s slow emotional awakening. The music filled the silences the script intentionally left open.

Together, film and album articulated a truth rarely granted mainstream space: Black women could be vulnerable, messy, ambitious, angry, joyful, and unresolved—and still be worthy of center stage.