"Circle of Life" is the opening song of Disney's 1994 animated film The Lion King, composed by Elton John with lyrics by Tim Rice. It was performed by Carmen Twillie (female vocals) and Lebo M (opening Zulu vocals) as the film's opening song. Elton John also sang a pop version of it with the London Community Gospel Choir, which was included in the film's soundtrack and made into a music video. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Song in 1994 along with two other songs from the film, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" and "Hakuna Matata", though the former won the award. It reached #11 in the UK, and #18 in the US.
The song is also featured frequently in attractions that include The Lion King at Disney theme parks, such as parades.
Michael Crawford sang the song as part of a medley for The Disney Album in 2001.
Plot
The song takes place at the very beginning of the film, the dawn of Simba's presentation. As the song progresses, various animal herds travel through the Pride Lands to gather at Pride Rock. There, Rafiki meets up with the current King of the Pride Lands, Mufasa and his mate, Sarabi. After blessing their newborn cub, Simba, Rafiki lifts him up high for all the animals to see, and the animals bow before their future king.
The song reprises at the end of the film, after Simba has taken the throne, the death of Scar, and avenging Mufasa. Rafiki presents Simba and Nala's newborn cub, Kiara, recalling the opening. In The Lion King 1½, the song is used again.
In The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, Simba breaks the Circle of Life when he exiles Kovu believing he was involved in the ambush set by Zira, forbidding Kiara from getting near him which was Mufasa's paw prints that he himself must follow. After Kiara and Kovu manage to unite the prides, the Circle of Life is restored to its former glory and peace was brought back to Pride Rock once again.
The Lion King 1½
In DisneyToon's 2004 direct-to-video film The Lion King 1½, Timon and Pumbaa are watching this musical number in a dark theater when Timon suddenly uses a remote control to fast forward to where they appear in the film. Pumbaa argues that it shouldn't go out of order and attempts to rewind it back to the beginning. They start fighting over control of it until they agree that it should tell their side of the story. Throughout the rest of it, it is occasionally interrupted to have them comment on whatever is happening.
Musical
Act I
Rafiki raises Simba into the air with Mufasa and Sarabi looking on from the original London cast of The Lion King.
In the film's musical adaption, the opening sequence is altered noticeably in certain ways; for example, the song is sung by Rafiki accompanied by a chorus of multiple background singers garbed in unusual, distinctive costumes or manipulating numerous different puppets resembling Serengeti fauna rather than being performed by an unseen voiceover, as in the original film. The sun rising on the Pride Lands, Rafiki commences the start of the production by kicking off the song and summoning the various animals of the surrounding area for Simba's presentation. As the first two verses of the musical number end, a representation of Pride Rock appears onstage carrying its two reigning rulers, Sarabi cradling the small puppet representing her newborn cub in her arms. As the choir chants excitedly in the background, Rafiki accompanies them atop Pride Rock to bless the baby prince before raising him high in the air, singing joyfully alongside the bowing chorus.
Act II
At the end of Act II, Simba's friends and family acknowledge him as the rightful king after Simba and the Pridelanders defeated Scar and the hyenas. Rafiki crowns Simba with the mantle of kingship after his victory and Simba ascends Pride Rock. He then gives a mighty roar across the whole kingdom and the animals come back to the Pride Lands to recognize Simba as the rightful king.
The assembly of animals that appear are slightly different from the beginning of Act 1, with no wildebeests, no adult elephant (only the baby elephant) and two zebras instead of three. Only half of the bird ladies from the beginning appear along with three cranes and the birds as kites on poles. The lionesses appear to celebrate the continuing circle of life before the animals as they present a newborn cub, the future lion king. The circle of life begins again with Simba and Nala having a newborn cub of their own. The musical ends as Rafiki presents Simba and Nala's newborn cub to all of the animals. A blackout finishes Act II and leads to the curtain call at the end.
Lyrics
Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba
Sithi uhm ingonyama
Ingonyama
Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba
Sithi uhhmm ingonyama
Ingonyama
Siyo nqoba
Ingonyama
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (Se to kwa)
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (Asana)
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (Se to kwa)
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (Asana)
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (repeats throughout verse)
From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round
It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala
It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life
Rafiki:
Nants ingonyama, bagathithi baba!
Choir:
Stiti umm, ingonyama
Ingonyama negwengabo!
Antelope:
Mai ba bo
Haa, ingonnyama baba!
Rafiki:
Nants ingonyama, bagathithi baba, hyaa!
Choir:
Stiti umm, ingonyama
Ingonyama negwengabo!
Antelope:
Hao, kusani bo
Pheki agalela (chou!)
Rafiki:
Nants ingonyama, bagathithi baba, hyaa!
Choir:
Siti umm, ingonyama
Rafiki:
Helele
Choir:
Ingonyama
Rafiki:
Oh, sizonqoba baba helele
Choir:
Ingonyama
Rafiki:
Hayyo! Sizonqo baba
Choir:
Ingonyama baba, enamabala
Antelope:
Ingonyama! Enamabala
(Whoa, ingonyama baba, enamabala)
(Ingonyama negwenamabala continues)
Rafiki:
From the day we arrive on this planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
Hmm, there's far too much, to take in here
More to find, than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small, on the endless round
It's the circle of life!
(Kalaliko bheki akale!)
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the circle
The circle of life
(Ingonyama negwenamabala)
(improvisation by antelope)
It's the circle of life!
(Kalaliko bheki akale!)
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place!
On the path unwinding
In the circle!
The circle of life
(loud drumbeat)
Umm hmm
Oh ho
Oh ho
Oh ho
Oh ho
From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking step into the sun
There's more to be seen than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
Some say, eat or be eaten
Some say, live and let live
But, all are agreed as they join the stampede
You should never take more than you give
In the circle of life
It's the wheel of fortune
It's the leap by faith
It's the band of hope
Till, we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the circle
The circle of life
Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with the scars
There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rollin' high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps the great and small on the endless round
In the circle of life
It's the wheel of fortune
It's the leap by faith
It's the band of hope
Till, we find our place
On the path unwinding, yea
In the circle
The circle of life
(Chorus repeats)
On the path unwinding, yea
In the circle
The circle of life
Note: The song was re-recorded in 2003 by the Disney Channel Circle of Stars, a group of actors and actresses who have appeared in Disney Channel television series and original movies. The line-up was significantly different when their next re-recording, "A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes", was released two years later.
Other Versions
| Performer(s) | Title(s) | Translations(s) | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| ? (1994 version) ? (2013 version) جيهان الناصر (Jihan El Naser) (2014 version) |
Arabic | ||
| Zezé Motta | "Ciclo sem Fim" | "Endless Circle" | Brazilian Portuguese |
| Стефка Оникян (Stefka Onikyan) | "Свят и вечен закон" (Svyat i vechen zakon) | "A Holy and Eternal Law" | Bulgarian |
| 甄楚倩 (Yolinda Yan) | Cantonese | ||
| Tata Vega | "El ciclo de la vida" | "The Endless Circle" | Castilian Spanish |
| Jadranka Krištof | "Život teče u krug" | "Life Goes in Circle" | Croatian |
| Jitka Zelenková | "Život proudí v nás" | "Life is Flowing" | Czech |
| Lise Dandanell | "En verden af liv" | "A World of Life" | Danish |
| B.B. Queen | "De levenscyclus" | Dutch | |
| Silvi Vrait | "Eluring" | "Life Circle" | Estonian |
| Anneli Saaristo | "Elämän tie" | "The Road of Life" | Finnish |
| Debbie Davis | "L'Histoire de la vie / Le Cycle de Vie (Québec)" | "The Story of Life / The Circle of Life (Canada)" | French / Canadian French |
| Jocelyn B. Smith | "Der Ewige Kreis" | "The Endless Circle" | German |
| Βιβή Κίτσου (Vivi Kitsou) | "Ο κύκλος ζωής" ("O kyklos zois") | "The Circle of Life" | Greek |
| "גלגל החיים" ("Galgal HaChayim") | "The Wheel of Life" | Hebrew | |
| "जीवन का चक्र" ("Jeevan ka chakra") | "The Survival of Life" | Hindi | |
| Andrea Szulák | "Az élet az úr" | "Life is the Master" | Hungarian |
| Berglind Björk Jónasdóttir | "Hringras lifsins" | Icelandic | |
| "Roda Kehidupan" | "Circle of Life" | Indonesian | |
| Ivana Spagna | "Il cerchio della vita" | "The Circle of Life" | Italian |
| 宮園ゆかり (Yukari Miyazono) | "サークル・オブ・ライフ" ("Sākuru obu Raifu") | "Circle of Life" | Japanese |
| Kabardian | |||
| Lee Jung-hyun | Korean | ||
| Tata Vega | "El ciclo sin fin" | "The Endless Circle" | Latin American Spanish |
| "Kitaran Kehidupan" | "The Cycle of Life" | Malay | |
| "生生不息" ("Shēngshēng bù xī") | "Endless" | Mandarin | |
| Marathi | |||
| Marianne Antonsen | "Sirkel av liv" | "Circle of Life" | Norwegian |
| Joanna Dark (1994 version) Beata Bednarz (2003 version) |
"Krąg życia" | "Circle of Life" | Polish |
| Ana Paulino | "O ciclo sem fim" | "The Endless Circle" | Portuguese |
| Andreea Poruțiu | "Povestea-i a ta" | "The Story Belongs to You" | Romanian |
| Анна Вавилова (Anna Vavilova) | "Жизни вечный круг" ("Zhizni vechnyi krug") | "Eternal Circle of Life" | Russian |
| Aleksandra Radović | "Životni krug" | "Circle of Life" | Serbian |
| Jana Kocianová | "Kolobeh Života" | "Circle of Life" | Slovak |
| Diana Lečnik | "Krog Živjenja" | "Circle of Life" | Slovene |
| Meta Roos | "En värld full av liv" | "A World Full of Life" | Swedish |
| Tamil | |||
| สายสุนีย์ สุขกฤต (Saisunee Sukkrit) | "วิถีแห่งชีวิต" ("Wit̄hī h̄æ̀ng chīwit") | "Circle of Life" | Thai |
| Zuhal Olcay | "Hayatın Çarkı" | "The Wheel of Life" | Turkish |
| Наталя Єфименко (Natalia Efimenko) | "Коло життя" ("Kolo zhyttya") | "Circle of Life" | Ukrainian |
| Marah Louw | "Indlela impilo" | "Way of Life" | Zulu |
Popular culture
Due to the film's impact on popular culture, the song is often referenced in other media.
In one of Disney's many self references, it also appeared as a false beginning of Chicken Little when Buck was trying to open the movie.
Ronan Keating recorded a cover for "Disneymania".
At the 2011 White House Correspondents' Dinner, President Barack Obama jokingly claimed he was going to show his long-form birth video, spoofing an earlier controversy about refusing to show his long-form birth certificate to prove he was, in fact, born in the United States. The opening chant was played from the film, and Simba was seen being lifted to the skies. The song was used to poke fun at Obama's Kenyan heritage.
Trivia
- The song has become the theme of Disney's Animal Kingdom in Walt Disney World. At Epcot, it is featured in the attraction Circle of Life: An Environmental Fable starring characters from the film.
- The Season 3 Phineas and Ferb song "On the Savannah" in first part of the two-part episode "Where's Perry?" has a similar setting and is also done with African singers.
- The choral element in between the "it's the circle of life" and "and it moves us all" is an approximate "kalaliko bheki akale".
- The song is often compared to "Vuelie" from the film Frozen, in the sense that they are both sung at the beginning of their films and are also sung by a native chorus (Sami and Zulu).
- There is a rare work-in-progress version that appeared in both the teaser trailer included in The Fox and the Hound VHS and the original theatrical trailer that people would not find anywhere else.
- The instrumental version of the song, with the Zulu vocals still included, is heard when the player uses The King's Domain sky in the Disney INFINITY games.
Gallery
See also
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This page uses content from the English Wikipedia page Circle of Life. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. Text from Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. |
