Big City Life
Encyclopedia
"Big City Life" is a single from Mattafix
's debut album, Signs of a Struggle
, released in 2005.
The chorus is sung in Jamaican Creole
.
The single topped the charts in Germany
, Poland
, Austria
, Italy
, Switzerland
and New Zealand
. The song also peaked at number 2 on the European Singles Chart.
Although the band is British
, the song was much more successful internationally than in their home country. However, the song did peak at number 15 in the United Kingdom
.
On 1 September 2006 "Big City Life" was the winner of the 43rd Sopot International Song Festival
in Poland
. The song also appeared as an EA Trax
song on the video game 2006 FIFA World Cup
, and in the UK compilation, Now That's What I Call Music! 62 (UK series) in 2005.
!Country
!Certifications
(sales thresholds)
|-
|Germany
|Platinum
|-
Mattafix
Mattafix are a UK duo, made up of Marlon Roudette and Preetesh Hirji. Their sound is a fusion of hip hop/rap, R&B, reggae, dancehall, blues, jazz, soul and world...
's debut album, Signs of a Struggle
Signs of a Struggle
Signs of a Struggle is the debut album by English recording duo Mattafix, released on October 31, 2005 throughout Europe. The duo stated that the album is a reflection of the experiences and hardships they have gone through.-Track listings:...
, released in 2005.
The chorus is sung in Jamaican Creole
Jamaican Creole
Jamaican Patois, known locally as Patois or Jamaican, and called Jamaican Creole by linguists, is an English-lexified creole language with West African influences spoken primarily in Jamaica and the Jamaican diaspora. It is not to be confused with Jamaican English nor with the Rastafarian use of...
.
The single topped the charts in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. The song also peaked at number 2 on the European Singles Chart.
Although the band is British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, the song was much more successful internationally than in their home country. However, the song did peak at number 15 in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
On 1 September 2006 "Big City Life" was the winner of the 43rd Sopot International Song Festival
Sopot International Song Festival
The Sopot International Song Festival is an international song contest held in Sopot, Poland. It was the biggest Polish music festival altogether with the National Festival of Polish Song in Opole, and one of the biggest annual song contest in Europe...
in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. The song also appeared as an EA Trax
EA Trax
EA Trax is the title of the in-game soundtracks on some of EA Games' video games featuring up and coming artists, as well as mainstream artists. Music genres featured range from hip hop to rock, depending on the game's genre...
song on the video game 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup (video game)
2006 FIFA World Cup is the official video game for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, published by EA Sports. 2006 FIFA World Cup was released simultaneously on the GameCube, PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox and Xbox 360 on April 24, 2006. In Europe it was simultaneously released on April 28, 2006...
, and in the UK compilation, Now That's What I Call Music! 62 (UK series) in 2005.
Peak chart positions
| Chart (2005–2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
19 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Belgian Singles Chart | 12 |
| Czech Republic (IFPI IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a not-for-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland... ) |
3 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 84 |
| Europe (European Hot 100 Singles) | 2 |
| Finnish Singles Chart | 12 |
| French Singles Chart | 17 |
| German Singles Chart | 1 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 1 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 3 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 17 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
15 |
Year-end
| End of year chart (2006) | Position |
|---|---|
| German Singles Chart | 7 |
Decade-end charts
| (2000–2009) | Position |
|---|---|
| German Singles Chart | 58 |
Certifications
{| class="wikitable"!Country
!Certifications
(sales thresholds)
|-
|Germany
|Platinum
|-