Released: January 11, 1997

Songwriter: Michael Jackson Babyface

Producer: Babyface

[Verse 1]
No sense pretending it's over
Hard times just don't go away
You got to take that chip off your shoulder
It's time you open up
Have some faith

Nothing good ever comes easy
All good things come in due time
Yes it does
You got to have something to believe in
I'm telling you to open your mind
Hee-eee

[Chorus]
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna make it right
You've got to reach out and try
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna get it right
Gotta put it all on the line

[Verse 2]
You see yourself in the mirror
And you don't like what you see, ooh
And things aren't getting much clearer
Don't you think it's time you go for a change
Oh!

Don't waste your time on the past, no, no
It's time you look to the future, oh
It's all right there if you ask
This time if you try much harder
You will be the best that you can be, o-o-oh

[Chorus]
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna make it right
You've got to reach out and try
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna get it right
Gotta put it all on the line

[Bridge]
If you wanna make it right
And you wanna do it now
Then you gotta learn to try
And you'll make it work somehow
No, nothing in life comes free
And that's just the way it is, now
You gotta go for what you want
You gotta know what you've got to stand for

[Chorus]
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna make it right
You've got to reach out and try
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna get it right
Gotta put it all on the line

Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna make it right
You've got to reach out and try
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna get it right
Gotta put it all on the line

Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna make it right
You've got to reach out and try
Gotta put your heart on the line
If you wanna get it right
Gotta put it all on the line

Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana. Jackson began his career when he was seven years old as the lead singer of the Jackson 5, breaking into stardom in 1969 after signing into Motown. The Jackson 5’s first four singles all peaked at number one on the Billboard 100, and soon after Michael pursued a solo career.

His breakthrough fifth album, 1979’s Off The Wall produced four top ten hits (including “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough”) and sold 20 million copies, establishing him as a household name. The album was followed with 1982’s Thriller, which became the best selling album of all time, and was the first album to feature seven top 10 singles, including “Billie Jean” and “Beat It.”

In 1985, Michael contributed to the collaboration single “We Are The World”, which remains one of the best-selling singles of all time and raised nearly $65 million for famine relief.