"A Brand New Day", also known as "Everybody Rejoice", is a song from the 1974BroadwaymusicalThe Wiz written by AmericanR&B singer and songwriterLuther Vandross. (In 1976 Vandross recorded a version of the song for his albumLuther, on Cotillion Records.) In the play, the song is sung to celebrate afterDorothy has killed Evillene, the tyrannicalWicked Witch of the West.Dorothy, theTin Man, theCowardly Lion, and theScarecrow sing the song with the newly freedWinkies, who were ruled and enslaved by Evillene. It was later featured in the 1978film version, sung by cast membersDiana Ross,Michael Jackson,Nipsey Russell, andTed Ross (credited as The Wiz Stars). Given the all-Black cast ofThe Wiz, the song's many references to freedom and new possibilities (especially as sung by African American characters who had just been freed from enslavement) certainly invoked the struggles and history of Blacks in America. In the onscreen version of the song,Nipsey Russell can even be heard exclaiming "Free at last!"—a reference tocivil rights activistMartin Luther King Jr. (His impromptu addition to the song is not heard on the soundtrack album version, instead replaced by sung vocals byDiana Ross.) The song's opening line is sung byLuther Vandross, the song's composer (Vandross' line was to represent one of the Winkies singing and dancing on a table while throwing up an item in the film).
The film version was released as a single in some continentalEuropean countries and peaked at #1 inBelgium andThe Netherlands,[1] credited to The Wiz Stars featuring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson.
The single release is an edit of the first half of the song, which in its entirety runs 7:49 on thefilm's soundtrack. It is backed by the second half of the song, which is labeled as "Liberation Ballet – A Brand New Day". The "Liberation Ballet" is primarily instrumental and is composed of uptempo dance music in a variety of styles, with the film's cast and choir cheering and singing "Can you feel the brand new day" throughout the piece.
