Hear Whitney Houston’s Previously Unreleased “Love Is”

by · Stereogum

In celebration of the 30th anniversary of Whitney Houston’s visit to South Africa, there’s a new live album out today with a special bonus tacked on. Whitney Houston: The Concert For A New South African (Durban) mostly documents Houston’s first concert in South Africa, Nov. 8, 1994 at Kings Park Stadium in Durban. (She played another show there four days later and then one at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town on Nov. 19.) But the album also features a previously unreleased studio track from the late music legend.

The unearthed song, “Love Is,” was written by Carvin Winans and produced by Nat Adderley and Houston. Winans, the first in his musical family to meet Houston, first shared the song with her in 1987, and she recorded it in 1990. In addition to the original recorded, Winans has created a new remix of the track for inclusion as a digital-only bonus track.

Per Winans, “‘Love Is’ talks about how strong love can be if we put it into action, and no one brings that message across more convincingly than the greatest female singer to ever live, Whitney Houston.” Listen below.

Whitney Houston: The Concert For A New South African (Durban) is out now on RCA.