| "Jungle" | ||||
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| Single byX Ambassadors andJamie N Commons | ||||
| from the albumVHSand the EPThe Reason | ||||
| Released | 18 December 2013 (2013-12-18) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:09 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriters |
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| Producer | Alex da Kid | |||
| X Ambassadors singles chronology | ||||
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| Jamie N Commons singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Jungle" onYouTube | ||||
"Jungle" is a song by American rock bandX Ambassadors and British blues rock singerJamie N Commons. It was released as a single on 18 December 2013 byKIDinaKORNER andInterscope.[1] The track appeared on X Ambassadors' 2014 EPThe Reason and their 2015 studio albumVHS.
"Jungle" has been described as an "amped up"alternative rock[2] andelectronic song,[3] as well as a "rock-heavy, upbeat track".[4] The song features "a drum-beat reminiscent ofQueen's 'We Will Rock You'".[5] Jeff Benjamin ofFuse compared it to anImagine Dragons track, stating it "is full of Alex [da Kid]'s booming electronic-rock percussion, but with soulful humming and bluesy belting in place of Dragons singerDan Reynolds' signature shouty approach."[6] "Jungle" was co-written by X Ambassadors, Jamie N Commons,Alex da Kid andMike Del Rio. Alex da Kid andMike Del Rio also produced the song.[1]
Speaking about the goal of the song in aBillboard interview,Alex da Kid stated, "It was my goal to write and produce an anthemic song that would resonate with anyone that has grown up in or been around underprivileged surroundings."[5] In an interview withThe News & Observer, X Ambassadors member Sam Harris commented on the writing process: "I had written a hook for it, and Alex had the beat. I thought he was gonna put a rapper on it, but then he gave it to Jamie, and Jamie wrote these great verses on it."[7] According to Sam Harris, the negative experiences that his brother and bandmate Casey Harris had encountered as a blind person after relocating toNew York City served as an inspiration for the song.[5]
"Jungle" was made available for digital download on 18 December 2013 byKIDinaKORNER andInterscope Records.[1]
Jason Warshof of Ithaca.com described the song as a "thumping, gritted-teeth anthem".[8] Harlew Brown ofSpin called it "a soulful heavy hitter".[9] Andy Gensler ofBillboard regarded it as a "pounding, foot-stompingblues beat", noting that it sounds like "John Bonham with a shotgun, holding up a guttural-sounding blues vocal."[10]
The official music video for the song was exclusively premiered on 16 June 2014 on the website ofBillboard magazine.[5] It was co-directed by Emile Rafael andAlex da Kid. The video features members of various subcultures inLos Angeles.[5]AXS contributor William Pankey described it as "a fly-covered, grubby slice of life centered around the piss-stained, impoverished streets of Los Angeles."[11]
X Ambassadors and Jamie N Commons included the song on the setlist for their Into the Jungle U.S. Tour, which lasted from 30 September to 18 October 2014.[12] On 31 January 2017, X Ambassadors performed "Jungle" alongside "Collider" at the Opening Night celebration ofSuper Bowl LI atMinute Maid Park, Houston.[13]
On 14 June 2014, a remix version featuring a rap segment by American rapperJay-Z debuted during Game 5 of theNBA Finals betweenMiami Heat andSan Antonio Spurs.[2] On the same day, the remix was made available exclusively onBeats Music,[14][15][16] before it was released as a single for digital download on 23 June.[17] The remix was commissioned as part of an advertising campaign byBeats Electronics for the2014 FIFA World Cup.[18]
In aVH1 interview, X Ambassadors singer Sam Harris commented on the background of the remix version: "Our producer calls me up out of the blue. He's like, 'Hey, guess what? I got Jay-Z to do a remix of "Jungle"!' Came out of nowhere."[19] One of the interludes on X Ambassadors' albumVHS, titled "Good News on the Remix", features a recording of the conversation between Sam Harris and the producer discussing Jay-Z's remix.[19] The lyrics of the additional verse contain references to Brazilianfavelas,religious persecution,Muhammad Ali as well as several films, includingA Bronx Tale (1993),Training Day (2001) andCity of God (2002).[18][20]
Colin Stutz ofBillboard stated that while the remix "isn't much different from the original", Jay-Z "gets his point across, going nonstop for more than a minute straight", with "a heavy hitting verse".[2] According to Colin Joyce ofSpin, the rapper "manages to transform the bombastic single into [a] stadium-sized banger".[21]
The song was used as the official theme forWWE Battleground in 2014 and in the emd credits ofHitman: Agent 47 in 2015.
"Jungle" was used in a five-minute promotional video titled "The Game Before the Game" byBeats Electronics, released in June 2014 for theFIFA World Cup and intended to promote Beats by Dre's redesigned Solo2 headphones. Directed by Nabil Elderkin, the advertisement features, among others,Neymar,Cesc Fàbregas,Luis Suárez,Nicki Minaj,Lil Wayne,LeBron James andSerena Williams.[10][22][23] Speaking about the selection of "Jungle" for the campaign, Beats by Dre's chief marketing officer Omar Johnson toldBillboard magazine, "We had a really huge track from a really huge artist. The moment we heard this song, we literally said 'nope, that's the right song.'"[10]Billboard placed the track at number three in its list of the Top 10 Songs From World Cup Spots.[24]
The song was featured in a trailer for thesecond season ofNetflix web television seriesOrange Is the New Black.[6] It was also used in trailers for the filmsHorrible Bosses 2 (2014)[25] andProject Almanac (2015)[5] and the video gameBattlefield Hardline (2015).[7] It appeared in the crime thriller television seriesThe Blacklist.[13][25]
In April 2015, a promotional video featuring the cast ofPitch Perfect 2 and basketball playerKyle Lowry was released for the2015 NBA Playoffs. The video featured ana cappella cover version of the track, withAnna Kendrick performing as lead vocalist.[26][27] "Jungle" also appeared in a television commercial for the video gameDeus Ex: Mankind Divided (2016).[28] A remix version of the song bySteve Aoki was used in a launch trailer for the video gameInjustice 2 (2017).[29][30] The song was included on the soundtrack of the basketball simulation video gameNBA 2K18 (2017).[31]The song was used in the latest spot of Ahora Noticias, a chilean news network on Channel Mega.[citation needed] The song was also used in theE3 2018 reveal trailer and part of the official soundtrack of the association football gamePro Evolution Soccer 2019 (2018).[32][33]A cover of the song byBTS was used in a January 2021 advertisement ofCoca-Cola in Indonesia.[34][35]
On 25 November 2016, a copyright lawsuit was filed by Songs Music Publishing, LLC in theUnited States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee against German automobile manufacturerPorsche and the Cramer-Krasselt advertising agency which alleged that one of the company's advertisements for the sports carPorsche 718 Cayman "copies several quantitatively and qualitatively important portions of 'Jungle'". According to the complaint, the defendants copied the original drum rhythms, organ stabs and background vocals from the song, which together "negates any suggestion of independent creation".[36][37]
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