 " Why Does It Hurt So Bad " is a song recorded by American singer Whitney Houston for the 1995 film Waiting to Exhale . It was released on July 7 , 1996 , by <unk> Records as the seventh and final single from the accompanying soundtrack . The song was written and produced solely by Babyface . Musically , it is an R & B ballad , and the lyrics chronicle a <unk> lament . 
