Winner in You

Singles

The first single to be released off of Winner in You was "On My Own", featuring Michael McDonald. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 as well as the Billboard Hot R&B Songs and Adult Contemporary Songs. It also charted internationally, peaking at number two in the UK Singles Chart, number one on the Canadian Singles Chart, number one in the Dutch Singles Chart, number four in the New Zealand Singles Chart, number fifteen in the Swedish Singles Chart, and number twenty on the Austrian Singles Chart.

The second single to be released was "Oh, People". It peaked at number twenty-nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and number seven on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It was the second single to chart internationally, peaking at thirty-one on the Dutch Singles Chart, and number thirty-six on the New Zealand Singles Chart. The third single to be released was "Kiss Away the Pain". It was not as successful as the two prior singles, only reaching number thirteen on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. The final single to be released was "Something Special (Is Gonna Happen Tonight)", and it performed as well as "Kiss Away the Pain", reaching number thirteen on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles.

Winner in You Tour

From 1986 to 1987, LaBelle toured Europe to promote her album.

Commercial performance

The album peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200. The album also entered at number thirty-one on Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. It spent 29 weeks on the Billboard 200 and spent 33 weeks on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. On June 27, 1986, Winner in You was certified 3x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of one million copies in the US. Winner in You attained respectable international charting. In the Netherlands, it entered at number twenty-eight on the Mega Album Top 100. In New Zealand, it entered at number ten on the Top 40 Albums. In Sweden, it entered at number seventeen on the Albums Top 60. In the United Kingdom, it entered at number thirty-four and peaked at number 30 on the UK Albums Chart.

Critical response

Winner in You received average reviews from critics. Ron Wynn on Allmusic gave the album three out of five stars. Wynn claims this is the album that made LaBelle's solo career. He enjoys the songs "Oh, People" and "Kiss Away the Pain", which he believed needed to chart higher on the Billboard Top 40. Robert Christgau gave the album a B, praising the duet with Michael McDonald as well as LaBelle's singing abilities. Christgau also compliments her and her family's songwriting abilities. He believes this is how LaBelle became a multi-platinum solo artist. Christgau did not like the earlier part of the album, claiming she "doesn't start out with such surefire goods". Overall, he says the "beats and tunes kick in till you could care less what organ she's singing through." Kim Farber of Billboard gave the album a mixed review, claiming it to be inconsistent. He believes album was not a "hands-down winner so many anticipated," saying how none of the fast tracks have a "jump." Ferber, although, praises her singing ability and says that is the only thing that saved the album. He said the ballads were well written, and enjoyed "On My Own", saying the song is "something real" and likes the song "Oh, People" even more.

Personnel and Production

Recording Studios