The motion picture, directed by Penny Marshall was released in the US on December 13, 1996. Whitney had long been planning a gospel album and the movie soundtrack gave her the opportunity to do it. "The Preacher's Wife" soundtrack was released a month prior to the movie and went on to be the biggest selling gospel album of all time. Whitney sang lead vocals on 14 of the album's 15 tracks, including the hits "I Believe In You And Me", and "Step By Step", written by Annie Lennox.