The song became an international hit.

It was written by songwriter Allee Willis along with Joni Sledge and Narada Michael Walden's then wife Lisa Walden.

Released in January 1981, the song peaked at number three on the R&B/Soul charts[1] and 79 on the Hot 100 charts in late March 1981.

[2] It was also a Top 10 hit in the Low Countries, reaching number eight in the Netherlands[3] and number six in Belgium (Flanders).

[7] The song is a patriotic hymn to feminism and the right of American women to receive the same professional and social recognition as men; the song was regarded as a patriotic and propaganda piece by Ronald Reagan's then newly elected conservative government and is often used as a soundtrack for feminist parades of black women's rights.