Good Life (OneRepublic song)

"Good Life"
Single by OneRepublic
from the album Waking Up
ReleasedNovember 19, 2010
Recorded2008
GenrePop rock
Length
  • 4:13 (album version)
  • 4:05 (new mix version)
  • 4:12 (Demolition Crew remix)
  • 3:50 (remix featuring B.o.B)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Tedder
  • Kutzle
  • Zancanella
OneRepublic singles chronology
"Marchin On"
(2010) 		"Good Life"
(2010) 		"Feel Again"
(2012)

"Good Life" is a song by American pop rock band OneRepublic, taken from their second studio album, Waking Up (2009). The song was written by group members Ryan Tedder, Brent Kutzle, and Eddie Fisher along with group associate Noel Zancanella. It was produced by Tedder, with co-production by Kutzle and Zancanella.

The song was released on November 19, 2010, as the album's third single in the United States, and as its overall fourth single. Its popularity was increased by its use in various films, television series and advertisements. The single was a commercial success, peaking at number 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and eventually being certified multi-platinum, as well as reaching the top twenty of other music charts across Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. The song has sold over 3 million copies in the US as of January 2014.[1]

Critical reception of "Good Life" was generally positive. This song is unique in that the band recorded various radio versions of this song for different cities and states. The line changed in the lyrics is "my friends in [city/state] they don't know, where I've been."

A remix of the song, featuring American rapper B.o.B, was released to radio stations in June 2011.

Promotion

Initially released as a single in November 2010, the song's popularity was increased after its use in various media. Google used the song in its 2010 Zeitgeist "year in review" video.[2] The song is featured in the trailers for the films Eat Pray Love and One Day, in the film Easy A,[3] and in the television series One Tree Hill, Cougar Town, Gossip Girl, Rookie Blue, America's Got Talent and 90210. The group performed the song at the 2011 Teen Choice Awards, 2011 Billboard Music Awards, American Music Awards of 2011, Live with Regis and Kelly, Dancing with the Stars, the 2011 Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade, and at the MTV Music Evolution Manila 2016. The background music of this song was played on various Walt Disney World television and radio commercials. In August 2012, "Good Life" was featured in a Honda Summer Clearance Event commercial.

Critical reception

Giving the song five stars, About.com wrote, "Not only does "Good Life" have lyrics that anyone can relate to — "... what the hell is there to complain about ..." — it also has a unique musical delivery that allows the song to stand out on a radio full of same-sounding songs."[4] Rolling Stone put the song on its list of the 15 Best Whistling Songs of All Time.[5]

Music video

The music video for "Good Life" was premiered on February 14, 2011. The video shows the band performing the song in a field, processed to look like an old film using the stop motion principle. Most of the scenes are processed to look like stop motion. It shows many different symbols and is a bit different from their previous videos. The original video was filmed in a mountain valley located in West Hills, California. It features cameo appearances by Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Nicolas Cage, Russell Crowe, and many more.[6] The music video currently has over 200 million views.[7]

In December 2011, a second music video, filmed entirely at Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World was released. It features the band performing at Cinderella Castle, as well as riding on several attractions.[8]

Track listing

  1. "Good Life" (new mix version) – 4:05
  2. "Good Life" (Demolition Crew remix) – 4:12
  • Digital download — remix[11]
  1. "Good Life" (featuring B.o.B) – 3:50

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[38]
B.o.B remix 		2× Platinum 140,000‡
Austria (IFPI Austria)[39] Platinum 30,000*
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[40] Gold 30,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[41] Gold 150,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[42] Gold 25,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[43] Gold 7,500*
United Kingdom (BPI)[44] Silver 200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[45] 3× Platinum 3,309,000[1]
Streaming
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[46] Gold 900,000†

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
† Streaming-only figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Country Date Format Version
Germany[47] January 21, 2011 CD single Original
United States[48] May 3, 2011 Contemporary hit radio
United States[49] June 21, 2011 Digital download Remix
Italy[50] July 15, 2011 Radio impact

References

  1. ^ a b Paul Grein (January 8, 2013). "Chart Watch: Pitbull & Kesha & Eminem & RiRi". Yahoo Music.
  2. ^ "Zeitgeist 2010: Year in Review" (Adobe Flash). YouTube. Retrieved March 7, 2011.
  3. ^ IMDB
  4. ^ Hill, John (2011). "OneRepublic - "Good Life"". About.com. Archived from the original on January 21, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  5. ^ Murphy, Kate (September 30, 2011). "The 15 Best Whistling Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
  6. ^ Parade (November 6, 2019). "If Smiling Is Your Favorite, Here Are 75 Happy Songs That Will Make You Feel Great and Lift Your Mood". Parade. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
  7. ^ OneRepublic – Good Life. YouTube. February 14, 2011. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  8. ^ "One Republic Recreates 'Good Life' At Disney - Theme Parks News Story - WESH Orlando". Wesh.com. December 19, 2011. Retrieved January 9, 2012.[permanent dead link‍]
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  10. ^ ""Good Life - Single" von OneRepublic". iTunes. January 2010.
  11. ^ ""Good Life (Remix) [feat. B.O.B.] - Single" von OneRepublic". iTunes. January 2011.
  12. ^ "The ARIA Report - Week Commencing ~ 14 November 2011 ~ Issue #1133" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association / webarchive.nla.gov.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 16, 2012. Retrieved August 30, 2012.
  13. ^ "OneRepublic – Good Life" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
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  33. ^ "Adult Contemporary Pop Songs – Year-End 2011". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
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  35. ^ "Pop Songs – Year-End 2011". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
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  37. ^ "SloTop50 | Slovenian official year-end singles charts (2013)" (in Slovenian). Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  38. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 6, 2023.
  39. ^ "Austrian single certifications – OneRepublic – Good Life" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved September 14, 2024.
  40. ^ "Brazilian single certifications – OneRepublic – Good Life" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
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