"Circle of Life"[note 1] is a song fromDisney's 1994 animated feature filmThe Lion King. Composed by British musicianElton John and composerHans Zimmer, with lyrics byTim Rice,[2] the song was performed byCarmen Twillie (the deep female lead vocals) andLebo M (opening vocals inZulu) as the film's opening song.[3] In an interview, Rice said he was amazed at the speed with which John composed: "I gave him the lyrics at the beginning of the session at about two in the afternoon. By half-past three, he'd finished writing and recording a stunning demo."[4] John sang a pop version (with alternative lyrics) of the song with theLondon Community Gospel Choir, which was included in thefilm's soundtrack and made into a music video.
The song is well known for its opening line, sung by South African composerLebo M inZulu. While no official transcription of the movie version exists, the Zulu version of the lyrics from the musical/stage production (byHal Leonard, 1997) is known as follows:[7][8]
Nants'ingonyama, bakithi, baba Sithi hu 'ngonyama. Nants'ingonyama, bakithi baba Sithi hu 'ngonyama. Sizo ngcoba 'ngonyama. Ingonyama nengw'enamabala.
Here comes the lion, father, Oh yes it's a lion. Here comes the lion, father, Oh yes it's a lion. A lion we're going to conquer. A lion and a leopard come to this open place.
Upon the release,Larry Flick fromBillboard magazine named the song "a second sugar-coated confection from the soundtrack toThe Lion King. John flexes his distinctive voice to fine effect over a melodramatic instrumental that suits the grand, larger-than-life quality of the movie.Power ballad's fate as a swift and sizable hit is assured."[9] Troy J. Augusto fromCash Box wrote, "Elton's unique, radio-friendly voice and the song's powerful, dramatic production (courtesy ofChris Thomas) mean broad, immediate success as the film continues its amazing run at the box office."[10] In his weekly UK chart commentary,James Masterton commented, "Sad to relate though it is another rather unimpressive Elton John ballad, unable to stand comparison with much of his classic output and is worryingly close in places to 'The One' – arguably the last single of any value he put out."[11] Alan Jones fromMusic Week noted, "Elton is in philosophical mood here and has a slightly continental flavour. Publicity forThe Lion King movie from which the single is taken should push it into the Top 20."[12] Leesa Daniels fromSmash Hits gave "Circle of Life" a score of four out of five, writing, "He has managed to create a beautiful song, that, once you've seen the film, will reduce you to a big blubbering buffoon. The song is grand, majestic and deeply touching..."[13]
The accompanying music video for "Circle of Life" was directed by US film composer, producer and film directorRichard Baskin, but shot half in black-and-white. The clips of the film were shown. The film's voice actors such asJames Earl Jones and the choir were added in the video along a real cub and a female art designer.[14] It was made available onYouTube in November 2017, and had generated more than 22 million views as of May 2025.[15]
John began to perform "Circle of Life", replacing "Can You Feel the Love Tonight", in some of his concerts, shows and performances for nearly 20 years from 1999 to 2018.[citation needed]
In the theatrical adaptation, the opening sequence is noticeably different from the opening of the film. For example, the song is sung byRafiki instead of an off-screen female narrator.
With thesun rising over the Pride Lands, Rafiki commences the start of the production by singing the opening chant of the song and summoning the animals of the Pride Lands for the presentation of babySimba. As the first two verses of the musical number end, a representation of Pride Rock appears on stage carrying its two reigning rulers,Sarabi cradling the small puppet representing her son in her arms with Mufasa alongside her. As the choir chants excitedly in the background, Rafiki accompanies the monarch and his consort to the top of Pride Rock to bless the cub before raising him high in the air, singing joyfully alongside the chorus as the gathered animals bow before their new prince.
At the end of Act II, Simba's friends and family acknowledge him as the rightful king afterScar's defeat. Rafiki crowns Simba with the mantle of kingship after his victory and Simba ascends Pride Rock. There he gives a mighty roar which echoes across the whole kingdom, and the animals come back to the Pride Lands to recognise and salute Simba as the rightful king. The musical ends as Rafiki presents Simba and Nala's newborn cub (Fluffy) to all of the animals, followed by a blackout that finishes Act II and leads to the curtain call at the end of the performance.
The assembly of animals that appear are slightly different from the start of the first act. There are no wildebeests nor adult elephants, only two zebras instead of three, nine gazelles instead of twelve, and half of the bird performers instead of four. Only the baby elephant, the rhino, the giraffes, three cranes, the cheetah, and the birds appear as poles on cranes as kites.
The song was featured in Disney's 2019photorealistic computer-animated remake ofThe Lion King and was used in the first trailer of the film, a near shot-for-shot remake of the opening of the original animated film.[66] This new version of the song was performed by Brown Lindiwe Mkhize, the actress who performed as Rafiki in the stage adaptation of the movie in London from 2005 to 2018.[67] However, the new version also retains the original Zulu opening vocals by Lebo M from the 1994 film.
G4 recorded a cover version of the song for their self titled debut album, which they had performed previously during series 1 of the BritishX Factor.[68]
In 2017, American boyband98° recorded a cover version of the song to help promote a re-release ofThe Lion King onBlu-ray as part of the Disney Signature Collection.[69] The single was released as a digital download on 22 September 2017.[70]
The song was remixed byMat Zo which was released in the albumDconstructed on 22 April 2014.[71]
^Music & Media's Holland airplay chart was introduced on the issue of 4 February 1995, replacing an airplay that was for all Dutch-language areas, including the Flanders region of Belgium. "Circle of Life" was number three on its first week, after being a chart-topper on the previous chart.
.png)
