By Raymart Escopel
ASIDE from the exhilarating sets of game and an array of gorgeous football players gathered in one place, FIFA World Cup would not be complete without its official theme song.
During the World Cup 2010, Columbian singer Shakira’s famous song “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” performed in South Africa became a worldwide trend as it earned international fame with millions of views in YouTube and even topped music charts for a couple of weeks.
The song allowed everyone to experience the “last song syndrome” because of its energetic, jovial beat and easy to memorize lyrics.
For this year’s World Cup opening, a new hit song was sang at one of Brazil’s football stadium when rapper Pitbull, together with Hollywood diva Jennifer Lopez and Brazilian artist Claudia Leitte performed the event’s official theme song.
Entitled ‘We Are One,’ the song now has registered a hundred million views in YouTube as of this writing.
However, debates arose whether the event’s official them song deserves a merit or not. Mixed reviews were gathered over the issue of the song selection. Supporters went on saying that the song was just as spirited, festive and catchy just like “Waka Waka.”
Critiques, on the other hand, states that the song lacks the authentic Brazilian flavor, defeating the purpose of a showcasing a true Brazilian culture.
Despite that, “We Are One” is still considered a hit as it sold 105,000 downloads since its release in April. Compared to the hit song, “Waka Waka,” which reigned in the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, “We Are One” stayed for a shorter period of time.
After being performed during the World Cup 2014 opening ceremony, the song’s download sales has once again spiked up registering an additional 22,000 downloads, making it its biggest-selling week since it was released./PN
