Evie Summers
The Lion Sleeps Tonight is a song written and first recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda, a Zulu migrant worker in Johannesburg, South Africa. The original song, Mbube (lion in Zulu), was a massive hit, selling 100,000 copies in South Africa and making Linda a legend among Zulus. Over the years, the song has been adapted and covered internationally by numerous artists, with English lyrics added by George David Weiss for the Tokens' 1961 cover, which became a number-one hit in the US. The song's success brought in millions in royalties, but Linda and his family received little of this wealth, sparking a decades-long battle for compensation.
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What You'll Learn
The song's writer, Solomon Linda
The Lion Sleeps Tonight was originally written and recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda under the title "Mbube". Linda was born in the Zulu heartland of South Africa in 1909. Despite never learning to read or write, he had a talent for songwriting. In his mid-20s, he moved to Johannesburg, where he led an a cappella group called The Evening Birds that performed in local beer halls. He sang in a high soprano over four-part harmony chants, a style that would come to define a whole generation of Zulu music.
The original version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" was written in Zulu and was inspired by Linda's childhood chore of herding cattle and keeping lions at bay. The song was first recorded in the United States by The Weavers in 1951 and was published under the title "Wimoweh". In 1961, Hugo and Luigi hired songwriter George David Weiss to add English lyrics to "Wimoweh", and it became "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", a No. 1 hit for the Tokens.
Within two years, there had been over 150 cover versions worldwide, but Linda's name disappeared from the writers' credits. The royalties that he should have received from "Wimoweh" and "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" would have made him a rich man, but he died in 1962 with only $22 in his bank account. His widow couldn't even afford a gravestone for him.
In 2000, a Rolling Stone article by South African journalist Rian Malan exposed the story of Solomon Linda, embarrassing several major players in the music publishing world and attracting lawyers to Linda's family. In 2002, director Francois Verster released the Emmy-winning documentary A Lion's Trail, which furthered the cause of Linda's family receiving the compensation they deserved. In 2006, a South African court ruled that 25% of the song's past and future royalties should go to Linda's three remaining daughters.
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The Lion King and royalties
The Lion King is an American animated musical film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released in 1994. The film is considered to be Disney's first original animated film, with a plot inspired by William Shakespeare's Hamlet. The Lion King features an ensemble voice cast, including Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, and Moira Kelly. The film follows a young lion, Simba, who flees his kingdom after his father, King Mufasa, is murdered by his uncle, Scar.
The Lion King has been a significant financial success, grossing over $968 million worldwide. The original soundtrack, released in 1994, was the fourth-best-selling album of the year and the top-selling soundtrack. It is the only soundtrack to an animated film to be certified Diamond (10× platinum) by the Recording Industry Association of America. The success of The Lion King also led to the release of Rhythm of the Pride Lands in 1995, featuring eight songs by composers Hans Zimmer, Mark Mancina, and Lebo M.
The use of the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" in the film sparked a dispute between Disney and the family of South African composer Solomon Linda, who created the song in 1939. Linda's family filed a lawsuit in 2004, seeking $1.6 million in royalties from Disney. The dispute was settled in 2006 when Linda's heirs reached an agreement with Abilene Music, who held the worldwide rights to the song and had licensed it to Disney.
One notable example of royalty payments associated with The Lion King involves Jason Weaver, who provided the singing voice for young Simba. Weaver's mother negotiated a deal with Disney, turning down an initial offer of approximately $2 million in favour of royalties. This decision proved financially beneficial, as Weaver has earned substantially more through royalty payments over the years, with the songs achieving double-platinum status.
In summary, The Lion King has been a commercial success, generating significant revenue and royalties for those involved. The dispute over "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" and Jason Weaver's royalty agreement highlight the financial complexities and negotiations surrounding the film's music and intellectual property rights.
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The meaning of 'Wimoweh'
"Wimoweh" is a derivative of the Zulu phrase "Uyimbube", which translates to ""You are a lion". The word "Wimoweh" was first used in the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", which was originally written and recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda under the title "Mbube". Linda was born in the Zulu heartland of South Africa in 1909 and never learned to read or write, but he had a knack for songwriting. In his mid-20s, he moved to Johannesburg, where he led an a cappella band that performed in local beer halls.
The song "Mbube" became a hit, and Linda became a star throughout South Africa. By 1948, the song had sold over 100,000 copies in Africa and among Black South African immigrants in Great Britain. The song also gave a name to a style of African a cappella music that evolved into Isicathamiya (also called Mbube music), popularized by the group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
In 1951, the song was adapted by the folk group The Weavers, who released it as a single titled "Wimoweh", a mishearing of the original song's chorus "Uyimbube". The Weavers' version contained the chanting chorus "Wimoweh" and Linda's improvised line. It reached the top ten on the Billboard charts and became a popular staple for nightclub acts.
In 1961, Hugo and Luigi, two RCA Records producers, hired songwriter George David Weiss to arrange a doo-wop and rhythm and blues cover of "Wimoweh" for the B-side of a single called "Tina", sung by the group The Tokens. Weiss wrote the English lines "In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight..." and "Hush, my darling, don't fear, my darling...". The Tokens' version, titled "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", became a number-one hit in the United States and internationally.
Despite the song's massive success, Linda received little to no royalties for his work and died in poverty in 1962. In 2000, South African journalist Rian Malan wrote an exposé for Rolling Stone, bringing attention to the injustice faced by Linda and his family. As a result, Linda's survivors began receiving compensation for the song's royalties in 2006.
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The Tokens' cover
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is a song that was originally written and first recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda, a Zulu migrant worker, under the title "Mbube" ("lion" in Zulu). Linda worked at Johannesburg's Carlton Hotel by day and was a singer in a male choral group called the Evening Birds by night. "Mbube" sold 100,000 copies in South Africa alone, making Linda a legend among Zulus.
In 1961, Hugo and Luigi hired songwriter George David Weiss to add English lyrics to "Wimoweh," a version of "Mbube" that had been recorded by the Weavers and published in the US in 1951. Weiss's version, "The Lion Sleeps Tonight," became a number-one hit for the Tokens, a doo-wop group. The Tokens' version was issued by RCA Records and featured on the B-side of a 45-rpm single called "Tina."
The success of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" led to over 150 cover versions worldwide within two years, and the song has been featured in numerous films, including the Ace Ventura films starring Jim Carrey. However, the song's popularity also sparked a debate about cultural misappropriation and plagiarism, as Linda died a pauper while others profited from his creation. In 2000, a Rolling Stone article by South African journalist Rian Malan brought attention to this issue, and in 2002, filmmaker François Verster released the Emmy-winning documentary A Lion's Trail, which told Linda's story. As a result of the publicity, Linda's estate received additional compensation, including annual payments from the Richmond Organization and royalties from Disney for their use of the song in The Lion King.
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The song's meaning
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is a song originally written and first recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda under the title "Mbube", which means "lion" in Zulu. The song originated in South Africa, where Linda and his peers would chase away lions that preyed on their cattle. Linda worked at Johannesburg's Carlton Hotel by day and was a soprano singer in a male choral group called the Evening Birds by night.
The lyrics of the original version of the song were written in Zulu, and the song became a massive hit in South Africa, selling 100,000 copies. The song's popularity spawned a new genre of African music called isicathamiya, or mbube-style.
In the early 1950s, the song made its way to New York, where it caught the attention of American musicologist Alan Lomax. In 1951, the Weavers recorded the first version of the song in the United States, publishing it under the title "Wimoweh", which was a mispronunciation of the word "uyimbube", meaning "you are a lion".
In 1961, Hugo and Luigi hired songwriter George David Weiss to add English lyrics to "Wimoweh", and it became "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", a number-one hit for the Tokens. The English lyrics depict the lion as resting in the "mighty and quiet jungle" or near a "peaceful and quiet village", with the chorus praising the lion.
The song has been the subject of controversy due to Linda's lack of compensation for his work. Despite the song's success and the millions earned in royalties and film licensing, Linda died in poverty in 1962, with very little money in his bank account. It was not until the early 2000s, following the publicity generated by journalist Rian Malan's exposé in Rolling Stone and the documentary "A Lion's Trail" by filmmaker François Verster, that Linda's family began receiving the compensation they deserved.
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Frequently asked questions
The song was originally written and first recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda.
While the song's popular version does not tell a specific story, one interpretation is that it is about Apartheid and the plight of the "Black Man". Another interpretation is that it praises the lion, depicting it as resting in the "mighty" and "quiet jungle" or near the "peaceful" and "quiet village".
The original song, "Mbube" ("lion" in Zulu), was recorded by Solomon Linda in 1939. In 1951, it was first recorded in the US by The Weavers, who released it as "Wimoweh". In 1961, Hugo & Luigi hired George David Weiss to add English lyrics to "Wimoweh", and it became "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", a No. 1 hit for The Tokens. Since then, the song has been covered by numerous artists, including Miriam Makeba, R.E.M., NSYNC, and Henri Salvador.
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" has been featured in several movies, including the Ace Ventura films (1994 and 1995) and Disney's The Lion King (1994). The song has also been the subject of documentaries, such as "A Lion's Trail" (2002) and "The Lion's Share" (Netflix), which explore the story of Solomon Linda and the cultural misappropriation surrounding the song.
