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Got the Life

Summary

"Got the Life" is a song by American nu metal band Korn. It was released in 1998, as the second single from their third album, Follow the Leader (1998). The song was recorded in April 1998 at NRG Recording Studios. The band decided they would release the song as a promotional single after each member found that there was something "special" about the song. The single had "phenomenal success", and its music video was requested more than any other video on MTV's TRL, making it the first officially "retired" music video.

"Got the Life"
Single by Korn
from the album Follow the Leader
B-side"I Can Remember"
ReleasedAugust 1998
RecordedApril 1998
StudioNRG (North Hollywood)
Genre
Length3:45
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Korn singles chronology
"All in the Family"
(1998) 		"Got the Life"
(1998) 		"Children of the Korn"
(1998)

"Got the Life" did not receive much attention in the music press; however, the song was rewarded a gold certification in Australia by the Australian Recording Industry Association. It peaked at number one on the Canadian RPM Rock/Alternative Chart chart, as well as number fifteen on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number seventeen on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

Background and release edit

"Got the Life" was recorded in April 1998 at NRG Recording Studios in North Hollywood, California.[4] After recording the song, the group's members each felt that there was something "special" about the song.[5] Lead vocalist Jonathan Davis claimed that it reminded him of "something you might hear at raves", which were very popular at the time.[5][6] Even though they thought that many fans would not appreciate the song, they released it as a promotional single in early August 1998, before the release of Follow the Leader.[6] "Got the Life" was said by Leah Furman to be "revolved around the mixed blessings of fame."[7]

The single was sent to radio stations on July 24, 1998, and has been released five times.[8] The single's first release was on August 10, 1998,[9] where it was released with two versions in the United States.[9][10] The single contains different mixes of the song, including "Deejay Punk-Roc Remix" and the instrumental "D.O.S.E.'s Woollyback Remix."[11] The single also apprehends B-sides and remixes to earlier songs.[12] Stephen Thomas Erlewine reviewed the single, giving it two out of five stars, and noting that "the 'Deejay Punk-Roc Remix' is pretty good, but the instrumental is of negligible worth. The second part of the single is backed with 'I Can Remember' plus 'Good God (OOMPH! vs. Such A Surge Remix)'.[13] The single was also released in Australia,[12] and in the United Kingdom twice.[14][15] The single was considered to have had "phenomenal success".[16]

Composition edit

 
"Got the Life" music sheet.

"Got the Life" is three minutes and forty-five seconds long.[17] It is the shortest song on Follow the Leader, and like the album the single was produced by Steve Thompson and Toby Wright,[18][19] and was mixed by Brendan O'Brien.[18] "Got the Life (Deejay Punk-Roc remix)" was mixed by Deejay Punk-Roc and Jon Paul Davies, and was recorded at Airdog Funk Research Department and Liverpool, England. The D.O.S.E.'s Woollyback remix was mixed by D.O.S.E. in courtesy of Mercury Records.[18]

The song starts off with a single percussion beat, leading into the refrain riff, with a triple guitar overdub. When the verses emerge, lead singer Jonathan Davis begins singing with the lyrical line "Hate, something, sometime, someway, something kicked on the front floor."[20] Korn performed the song with the following members: Jonathan Davis performing vocals, Brian "Head" Welch and James "Munky" Shaffer performing guitars, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, performing on the bass guitar, and David Silveria on the drum kit.

In a 2013 interview with Scuzz, Jonathan Davis revealed that "Got the Life" originally contained an audio sample at the very beginning - a piece of dialogue spoken by actor Dom DeLuise in the 1974 film Blazing Saddles. Warner Brothers would not allow its usage, however, so it was removed prior to the song's release.[21]

Music video edit

"I would give my car to a bum. I thought Tre from Pharcyde could play the bum. I wanted to blow up cars and other fancy material things in the video as a way to show that we didn't care about those things. We could end the video with a shot of a big backyard party with all of [their] friends. In Addition, I wanted to put two lowrider bikes in the scene and make it look like we were all down in Mexico, partying and having a good time."

—Reginald Arvizu[6]

Korn decided to shoot a music video for "Got the Life" after the reception from fans and employees at NRG Recording Studios was very positive.[6] The music video's concept was by the band's bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu.[6] Their managers advised them to request Joseph Kahn to direct the video.[6] Kahn also was the director for "A.D.I.D.A.S." music video in 1997.[22] After asking Kahn to direct their video, he responded saying "That's the stupidest idea I've ever heard."[23]

Offended by and against his response, Korn hired McG,[23] director of the band's music videos from their self-titled debut album — "Blind", "Shoots and Ladders", "Clown", and "Faget".[24] On January 12, 1999, music video was the first video that is considered to be "retired" from MTV's daily top ten countdown, Total Request Live.[23][25][26] MTV's Total Request Live said the song was the most requested music video "for too long so they had to stop airing it so other artists would have a chance at the coveted number one spot."[23] Deuce, the video album where the song's music video appears on, was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.[27][28] California rapper WC makes a cameo appearance in the video dancing. Jay Gordon of Orgy, Brandon Boyd of Incubus, Fred Durst, Sam Rivers, Wes Borland of Limp Bizkit, Eminem, and UFC fighter Tito Ortiz can be seen in the end of the video.[29][30][31]

Reception edit

AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave the single 2/5 stars, although he stated that the song "rivaled such previous masterworks as 'A.D.I.D.A.S.' and 'Shoots and Ladders'. Their fusion of metal and rap was stronger than ever, boasting their best rhythm tracks to date. Which is good, since the B-sides of the 'Got the Life' singles were devoted to remixes."[12]

"Got the Life" is widely considered to be one of Korn's best songs. In 2019, Loudwire ranked the song number ten on their list of the 50 greatest Korn songs,[32] and in 2021, Kerrang ranked the song number seven on their list of the 20 greatest Korn songs.[33]

"Got the Life" became Korn's first entry on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Songs and Alternative Songs charts, peaking at number fifteen and number seventeen, respectively.[34] The song peaked at number twenty-six in Australia, and shipments of a CD single have surpassed 35,000 units.[35] "Got the Life"'s music video debuted at number eight on MTV's Total Request Live, on September 17, 1998.[36]

Track listing edit

Charts edit

Chart (1998) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[38] 26
Canada Alternative 30 (RPM)[39] 1
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[40] 94
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[41] 30
Hungary (Mahasz)[42] 4
Iceland (Dagblaðið Vísir Top 30)[43] 1
Peru (UNIMPRO)[44] 36
Scotland (OCC)[45] 21
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[46] 7
UK Singles (OCC)[47] 23
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[48] 15
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[49] 17

See also edit

References edit

Literature
  • Arvizu, Reginald (2009). Got The Life. William Marrow. ISBN 978-0-06-166249-2.
  • Furman, Leah (2000). Korn: Life in the Pit. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 0-312-25396-6.
  • McIver, Joel (2002). Nu-Metal: The Next Generation Of Rock. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-9209-6.
Cited
  1. ^ Wiederhorn, Jon (July 1, 2013). "NOISEY VS. METALSUCKS - THREATEN MY FAMILY IF YOU MUST, BUT I STILL SAY KORN RULES". Vice.
  2. ^ Shumka, Dave. "10 nu metal songs that still hold up on CBC music". CBC Music. Archived from the original on 2016-03-01. (February 14th, 2013)
  3. ^ Unterberger, Andrew (September 10, 2004). "Top Ten Nu-Metal Bands". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on October 9, 2004. Retrieved September 25, 2014.
  4. ^ "Follow The Leader (CD)". Tower Records. Archived from the original on 2008-09-14. Retrieved 2010-03-19.
  5. ^ a b Arvizu 2009, p. 116
  6. ^ a b c d e f Arvizu 2009, p. 117
  7. ^ Furman 2000, p. 127
  8. ^ Furman 2000, p. 145
  9. ^ a b c "Got the Life (US) > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-05
  10. ^ a b "Got the Life (Remixes) > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-05
  11. ^ "Got the Life" (DVD). Korn. Epic. 1998.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ a b c Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Got The Life- Korn". AllMusic. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  13. ^ Stephen Thomas Erlewine "Got the Life (Australia) > Overview ". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-05
  14. ^ a b "Got the Life (UK Single #1) > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-05
  15. ^ a b "Got the Life (UK single #2) > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-05
  16. ^ McIver 2002, p. 71
  17. ^ "Got the Life (UK)" (DVD). Korn. Epic. 1998.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ a b c Arvizu 2009, p. 112
  19. ^ "Got the Life (UK #2)" (CD). Korn. Epic. 1998.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. ^ Small, Doug (1999). Korn (2 ed.). Omnibus Press. pp. 32–47. ISBN 0-8256-1804-5.
  21. ^ "Korn Interviewe by U.K.'s Scuzz". Blabbermouth.net. 29 December 2013. Retrieved 2013-12-29.
  22. ^ "Maital Sabban" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
  23. ^ a b c d Arvizu 2009, p. 118
  24. ^ Korn: Who Then Now, McG, DVD - Barnes & Noble Archived 2011-06-06 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2010-06-02
  25. ^ Furman 2000, p. 151
  26. ^ "Hall of Fame". The TRL Archive. Archived from the original on 2007-11-04. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  27. ^ Duece (DVD). Korn. Sony/Epic. 2002.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  28. ^ "RIAA certifications". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  29. ^ Storm, Brian (2016-11-27). "Eminem Was In Korn's 'Got The Life' Music Video Before He Was Famous". Rock Feed. Retrieved 2017-07-25.
  30. ^ "Korn".
  31. ^ "BRANDON BOYD RECALLS KORN'S SUPPORT FOR INCUBUS DURING THEIR DIFFICULT EARLY YEARS".
  32. ^ "The Top 50 Korn Songs, Ranked". Loudwire. September 13, 2019. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  33. ^ Law, Sam (April 20, 2021). "The 20 greatest Korn songs – ranked". Kerrang. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  34. ^ "Korn > Follow the Leader > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-02-23.
  35. ^ "Accreditations - 1999 Singles". ARIA. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  36. ^ "Debuts". ATRL. The TRL Archive. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
  37. ^ "Got the Life (Australian single)" (DVD). Korn. Epic. 1998.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  38. ^ "Korn – Got the Life". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  39. ^ "Rock/Alternative - Volume 68, No. 3, October 12 1998". Retrieved 2010-06-11
  40. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 16, no. 20. August 29, 1998. p. 11. Retrieved February 7, 2020.
  41. ^ Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  42. ^ "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 15, no. 36. 5 September 1998. p. 15. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  43. ^ "Íslenski Listinn (01.10. 1998)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). June 29, 2000. p. 10. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  44. ^ "PERU – Doble Nueve Ranking Anual 1998" (in Polish). Charts Around the World. 1999-12-31. Retrieved 2022-12-27.
  45. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 25th, 2022.
  46. ^ "Korn – Got the Life". Swiss Singles Chart.
  47. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  48. ^ "Korn Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  49. ^ "Korn Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved April 19, 2021.

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