I Gotta Feeling

"I Gotta Feeling" is the second single from The Black Eyed Peas' fifth album The E.N.D., produced by the French DJ David Guetta. The song was released on June 23, 2009 and debuted at number two on the Canadian and Billboard Hot 100 on the week of June 27, 2009, behind the group's "Boom Boom Pow", making the group one of 11 artists who have occupied the top two positions of the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time. The song later reached number one on the US charts and 20 charts worldwide.

The song was nominated for Record of the Year at the 52nd Grammy Awards and won the Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. "I Gotta Feeling" was 5th on the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade. The song was also nominated as Song of the Year at the 2009 World Music Awards. In March 2011, it became the first song in digital history to sell over 7 million digital copies in the United States. As of April 2015, it has sold over 8.6 million downloads in this country. This also makes it the highest selling digital as well as non-charity single in the US ever.

Irene Cara

Irene Cara (born Irene Cara Escalera; March 18, 1959) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She became famous for her role as Coco Hernandez in the 1980 film Fame, earning her a Golden Globe nomination, and her recording of the song "Fame" became an international hit. Cara won an Academy Award in 1984 in the category of Best Original Song for co-writing "Flashdance... What a Feeling", which also became an international hit.

Early life

Cara was born in New York City. Her father, Gaspar Cara, was Afro-Puerto Rican, and her mother, Louise, was an American of Cuban descent. Cara has two sisters and two brothers.

At the age of three, Irene Cara was one of five finalists for the "Little Miss America" pageant. She began to play the piano "by ear," then studied music, acting, and dance seriously. Her performing career started on Spanish-language television, professionally singing and dancing. She made early TV appearances on the Original Amateur Hour (singing in Spanish) and Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show. In 1971–72, she was a regular on PBS's educational program The Electric Company. As a child, Cara recorded a Latin-market Spanish-language record and an English Christmas album. She also appeared in a major concert tribute to Duke Ellington that also featured Stevie Wonder, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Roberta Flack.

Blue Swede

Blue Swede was a Swedish rock band fronted by Björn Skifs which was active between 1973-1975. Blue Swede released two albums of cover versions, including a rendition of "Hooked on a Feeling", which brought them international chart success. The band consisted of Anders Berglund (piano), Björn Skifs (lead vocals), Bosse Liljedahl (bass), Hinke Ekestubbe (saxophone), Jan Guldbäck (drums), Michael Areklew (guitar) and Tommy Berglund (trumpet). They disbanded after Skifs decided to embark on his solo career.

Career

Blue Swede was first formed in 1973, when Björn Skifs, a top vocalist in Sweden, was looking for a band to accompany him during his concerts. The band was originally called "Blåblus" (Swedish for "blue blouse" or "blue jeans", a pun on the word "blues") and featured Skifs singing the lead vocals. The band got their international breakthrough in 1974 with their cover of the 1968 B. J. Thomas song "Hooked on a Feeling." Blue Swede recorded Thomas' song in 1973, but based its rendition of the song on a 1971 version released by British pop eccentric Jonathan King, which created the "ooga-chaka ooga-chaka" introduction. Blue Swede released "Hooked on a Feeling" in Sweden in May 1973 and in the United States in February 1974. The song reached number-one in the U.S. for one week in April 1974 and stayed in the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 18 weeks. The track also topped charts in Australia, Canada, and the Netherlands, where it reached a peak chart position of 26. To capitalize on the success of the song, Blue Swede released an album of the same name that same year.