What About Love? Lyrics - Color Purple, The

Song Overview

Song Credits

• Featured: Jennifer Hudson, Cynthia Erivo
• Composers & Lyricists: Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, Stephen Bray
• Album: The Color Purple (2015 Broadway Cast Recording)
• Release Date: February 19 2016
• Genre: Gospel-soul, R&B-tinged Broadway duet
• Instrumentation: Fender Rhodes electric piano, brushed drum kit, soft brass pads, acoustic guitar arpeggios, string quartet swells
• Label: Broadway Records
• Runtime: 3 min 32 sec
• Language: English
• Mood: Tender, questioning, horizon-bright
• Copyright © 2015 – 2016 Purple Music LLC / WB Music Corp.

Song Meaning and Annotations

The heart of “What About Love?” beats in counterpoint: Celie’s wide-eyed wonder curves against Shug’s seasoned hesitancy like two birds circling the same updraft. The groove is gentle—part late-night R&B slow jam, part hymn—yet every suspended chord feels risky, as if the wrong answer might send them both tumbling.

Dramatically, the duet follows their first kiss. Celie, who has only known transactional touch, floats above Georgia’s red clay on new thermals of affection. Shug—nightclub chanteuse, self-proclaimed rolling stone—finds herself staring at an emotional terrain she’s never charted. The verses keep volleying what about questions, poking at the edges of trust, tenderness, hope. Each call is mirrored by a harmony or echo, underscoring that neither woman can finish a thought without the other’s breath.

Opening Exchange

[Celie] Is that me who’s floating away …
[Shug] Is that me I don’t recognise …

The writers paint euphoria and disorientation with parallel imagery. Both characters meet versions of themselves they’ve never seen, signaling personal rebirth rather than mere romance.

Central Question

But what about trust? / What about tenderness?

Trust and tenderness are laid on the table like fragile china. The duet refuses to equate surface passion with soul-level security, a rare nuance in musical-theatre love songs.

Flight Motif

What about tears when I’m happy? / What about wings when I fall?

Joyful tears and rescue wings suggest that real partnership offers solace and propulsion. The imagery rhymes with the novel’s recurring theme of transcendence through communion.

Celie’s Resolve

I want you to be a story for me that I can believe in / Forever

Celie’s line crowns the duet. “Story” echoes Alice Walker’s narrative framing; belief here is less doctrinal than lived—two women rewriting the script that once caged them.

Similar Songs

1. “Say It Somehow” — The Light in the Piazza Original Cast
   Both duets float on a pillow of suspended chords and cautious wonder. Clara and Fabrizio invent language to bridge cultural distance the way Celie and Shug invent emotional vocabulary to span lived trauma.
2. “Take Me or Leave Me” — RENT Ensemble
   Maureen and Joanne’s explosive argument is the flip side of Celie-Shug’s tender negotiation. Each duet exposes fault lines inside unconventional relationships and resolves (or doesn’t) through vocal fireworks.
3. “For Good” — Wicked Original Cast
   Elphaba and Glinda sing parting gratitude rather than budding romance, yet the DNA matches: two women acknowledging transformative impact, woven into intertwining melodies that climb toward catharsis.

Questions and Answers

Why is the duet pivotal to Celie’s arc?

It’s her first experience of consensual, reciprocal affection, anchoring the self-love that fuels later songs like “I’m Here.”

How does Jennifer Hudson’s vocal color differ from Cynthia Erivo’s?

Hudson leans on gospel belt and smoky vibrato; Erivo threads a pristine head-mix. Their contrast paints Shug’s worldly confidence against Celie’s fragile awe.

Is the piece musically challenging for regional productions?

The melody sits comfortably, but dynamic control is crucial; the score demands whispered intimacy one bar, soaring belts the next.

Does the number advance LGBTQ+ representation on Broadway?

Yes—the romantic framing is earnest, not sensationalized, marking an early-20th-century queer love story as sacred rather than scandalous.

Why the repeated phrase “What about”?

It mirrors the tentative nature of new love—probing, testing, seeking reassurance before trust takes root.

Fan and Media Reactions

The comment sections glow like candlelight. Listeners confess to replaying the duet during 2 a.m. self-care hours; others cite it as the scene that finally made them text their crush. Critics called the Hudson-Erivo blend “molten honey poured over fine crystal,” praising its balance of heat and fragility.

“I never knew whispered harmonies could leave scorch marks.” — @StageDoorWanderer

“Hudson’s low velvet, Erivo’s silver top—mash them together and time stops.” — Theater Talk Radio

“Two women drawing a new constellation with every note.” — @BroadwayStargazer

“Best slow dance track nobody knows is a show tune.” — @LateNightDJ

“Saw it live; the audience inhaled as one and forgot to exhale till blackout.” — Jesse Green, NYT