Shazam Around The World: The Songs Of The World Cup Finalists
After all the hype and hysteria, this Sunday the 2010 World Cup reaches its conclusion. The past few weeks have been packed with excitement and disappointment in equal measure, leading to the final match between Spain and Holland.
In this World Cup, the role of music has been even more prominent than previously. The two different official anthems, K’naan’s ‘Waving Flag’ and Shakira’s ‘Waka Waka’ -which the Colombian superstar will be performing during the closing ceremony – have been flying high in the charts around the world. Whereas in the UK, Dizzee Rascal and James Corden revisited an eighties Tears For Fears classic, throwing in a little hook from Blackstreet’s greatest moment ‘No Diggity’ in ‘Shout (For England)’. We’ve even found a new weapon of mass hearing destruction in the shape of a traditional South African folklore instrument, the much maligned Vuvuzela.
Both finalist countries have also prepared some local anthems to boost morale among their respective selections. In Spain, they’ve chosen an African-sounding choir to sing ‘Podemos (Himno de La Roja)’ (We Can ‘Anthem Of the Red One’) – La Roja being the name Spaniards give to their national team, after the colour of their uniform. Meanwhile, the Dutch chosen anthem is ‘Viva Hollandia’, sang by veteran artist Wolter Kroes, which also shares some echoes of the Black Continent’s music.
While neither tracks are likely to go down in the books of music history, they’ll serve us well to wish both teams luck. May the best team win!
