Memoires of Another Kind

I Will Survive is a song first performed by Gloria Gaynor, released in October 1978. It was written by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris. The song's lyrics describe a narrator who finds personal strength while recovering from a break-up; it has often been used as an anthem of female empowerment, a gay anthem, and later on HIV/AIDS awareness--and is a firm favorite on the karaoke circuit. It is one of the most famous disco songs of all time, and easily Gaynor's biggest hit; it received massive airplay in 1979, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, also in the UK the next day. The song was originally released as the B-side to a Gaynor song called Substitute, a track thought to have more potential for mainstream success by her record label. Disc jockeys began flipping the single over and eventually copies of the record were pressed with I Will Survive as the A-side (Substitute managed to peak at No. 107 on Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart). The song was rated No. 9 on George Carlin's 10 Most Embarrassing Songs of All Time. It received the Grammy Award for Best Disco Recording in 1980, the only year that the award was given. It is ranked No. 489 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".