Haddaway – What Is Love

“What Is Love” was written and produced by German music producer and composer Dee Dee Halligan (Dieter Lünstedt a.k.a. Tony Hendrik) and his partner/wife Junior Torello (Karin Hartmann-Eisenblätter a.k.a. Karin van Haaren) of Coconut Records in Hennef (Sieg) near Cologne. They had previously produced songs for successful groups like Bad Boys Blue and Londonbeat, and were waiting for the right singer for their new song. Trinidadian-born singer Nestor Alexander Haddaway was then chosen to sing it. He used to work as a producer, dancer and choreographer before he was signed to the label.

The accompanying music video of “What Is Love” was directed by German music video director Volker Hannwacker. It features Haddaway in a mansion pursued by three femme fatales, at least one of whom is a vampire. Some scenes feature the singer and the vampire running backwards. Keith Dorwick analyzed the video in his book Love Song, writing, “He is first dressed in a blue suit with a white shirt, but upon being bitten by a white female vampire, he is converted to a boy toy with seeming supernatural powers. Now dressed in tight pants and an open vest that shows off his smooth and surprisingly chiseled chest, he easily leaps onto the fireplace mantel where he begins dancing, then flies down in a smooth leap that demonstrates his new vampiric power.” The video received heavy rotation on MTV Europe in May 1993.

“What Is Love” – Single by Haddaway from the album The Album
B-side “Sing About Love”
Released 18 January 1993
Label Coconut
Songwriters Dee Dee Halligan and Junior Torello
Producers Dieter Lünsted and tKarin Hartmann-Eisenblätter
Charted No.11 on US; No.2 in UK; No.1 in Spain; No.1 in Portugal; No.1 in Italy; No.1 in France; No.2 in Germany; No.1 in Austria; No.17 in Canada.