Still from the promotional video for Africa

"Africa" is a song by '80s rock band Toto. The song's catchy chorus is a metaphor for how much the writer loves his woman, hence "It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you/There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do/I bless the rains down in Africa". The comparison of missing something magnificent to be with the one he loves.^{[citation needed]} The song was included on their 1982 album Toto IV, and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1983. The song was written by the band's keyboardist David Paich, who also sings both verses of the song, and drummer Jeff Porcaro. Bobby Kimball sings the chorus. Image File history File links Toto_-_Africa. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Toto IV was the fourth album by American pop-rock band Toto, released in 1982 (see 1982 in music). ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A gramophone record, (also phonograph record - often simply record) is an analog sound recording medium: a flat disc rotating at a constant angular velocity, with inscribed spiral grooves in which a stylus or needle rides. ... A Compact Disc or CD is an optical disc used to store digital data, originally developed for storing digital audio. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Rock and roll. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Columbia Records is the oldest brand name in recorded sound, dating back to 1888, and was the first record company to produce pre-recorded records as opposed to blank cylinders. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A record chart, also known as a music chart, is a method of ranking music according to popularity during a given period of time. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Image File history File links Africa_by_Toto. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The 1980s refers to the years of and between 1980 and 1989. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Rock and roll. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Toto IV was the fourth album by American pop-rock band Toto, released in 1982 (see 1982 in music). ... The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. ... David Paich (born David Frank Paich on June 25, 1954 in Los Angeles, California) is a session musician from the 1980s, keyboard player, vocalist and main composer of the Los Angeles based rock/pop band Toto. ... Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was a highly regarded session drummer and a founding member of the Grammy Award winning band Toto. ... Bobby Kimball Bobby Kimball is the lead and background singer in the American rock/pop band, Toto. ...

In the media

• This song was featured in the game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (see Grand Theft Auto: Vice City soundtrack).
• This song is commonly covered by Virginia Coalition during their live shows.
• This song has been covered by Umphrey's McGee during their live shows.
• This song was played in the 2000 movie Ed.
• This song was played in the episode "My Way Home" of the NBC sitcom Scrubs in 2006. The episode was a homage to The Wizard of Oz and the use of this song was an obvious reference to Dorothy's dog, Toto.
• This song has been a popular cover for a cappella groups.
• The song has also been covered by singer-songwriters Olivia Lufkin (in her 2001 single, Sea me) and Howie Day.
• The song was extensively used for the South African Castle Lager marketing campaign.
• American rapper Nas used a sample from the track "Africa" in his own song "New World".
• American rapper Ja Rule used a sample from the track "Africa" in his own song "Murder Reigns".
• American rapper Xzibit used a sample from the track "Africa" in his own song "Heart of Man".
• American singer JoJo used a sample from the track "Africa" in her own song "Anything".
• Marcus Levin used a sample from the track "Africa" in "Take Me Away".
• Sketch comedy troupe These People featured "Africa" as the end theme to their 2006 short film "2 Guys and a Mannequin."
• In the animated television show American Dad!, the character Stan Smith is heard quietly singing the lyrics to Africa while getting his bosses' laundry from the cleaners, in the episode "Bullocks to Stan." The song is also played at the end of the episode. "Africa" was also sampled in the episode Camp Refoogee when Steve meets an African girl.
• In the horror-comedy novel John Dies at the End, the demons torment the hero by making him hear pop songs with drastically re-worded lyrics to make them blatantly offensive. Africa gets this treatment in the book, with the song's well-known chorus being rendered into a racist call for black people to be "sent back to Africa"
• The Lawrence University Great Midwest Trivia Contest has used Africa for the past several contests as sort of theme song for the contest -- one of the triviamasters was never able to get it played when he was playing, so when he became grandmaster, he played it almost nonstop. They have featured several versions of it, including playing it backwards, backwards and forwards mixed together, and claimed to have hidden subliminal answers in the music.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (released in October 2002) is the fourth video game in the hit Grand Theft Auto series. ... The soundtrack of the game Grand Theft Auto:Vice City is popular not only with fans of the game, but also with lovers of 1980s music. ... Virginia Coalition is a rock band from Alexandria, Virginia, who met in the late 80s through a music class at their school, T.C. Williams High. ... Umphreys McGee is a progressive rock / jam band from South Bend, Indiana whose music is often referred to as progressive improvisation. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Ed is a 1996 comedy film starring Matt LeBlanc. ... My Way Home is the 100th episode of the American situation comedy Scrubs. ... NBC (an acronym for National Broadcasting Company) is an American television network headquartered in the GE Building in New York Citys Rockefeller Center. ... Scrubs is an American sitcom that premiered on October 2, 2001, on NBC. It was created by Bill Lawrence, who also co-created Spin City. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Terry, the Cairn Terrier who played Toto in the film Toto is the name of a fictional dog in L. Frank Baums The Wonderful Wizard of Oz series of childrens books. ... A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. ... Olivia Lufkin, often known simply as OLIVIA, born December 9, 1979, in Okinawa, a bilingual Japanese singer (her first language is english). ... Sea me is OLIVIAs seventh solo single released on December 5, 2001. ... Howie Kern Day (born January 15, 1981 in Bangor, Maine) is an American singer-songwriter. ... Castle lager is one of the oldest commercial beers in South Africa, named after the Castle Brewery where its made, founded by Charles Glass in Johannesburg in 1894. ... Nasir Jones (born September 13, 1973), known simply as Nas, formerly Nasty Nas, is an American rapper. ... Jeffrey Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule is an American rapper from Hollis, Queens, New York City, New York, United States. ... Alvin Nathaniel Joiner IV (born September 18, 1974), better known by his stage name Xzibit, is an American hip hop performer, actor, and television personality who was born in Detroit, Michigan and was raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico by his father and stepmother. ... Joanna Noëlle Levesque (born December 20, 1990), best known by her stage name JoJo, is an American pop and R&B singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. ... American Dad! is a satirical American animated television series produced by Underdog Productions and Fuzzy Door Productions for 20th Century Fox. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Bullocks to Stan is an episode of the animated television show American Dad!. Spoiler warning: At the CIA fair, Hayley gets into an argument with Director Avery Bullock. ... Camp Refoogee is the second season premiere of the animated series American Dad!, with 8. ... Steven Smith (voiced by Scott Grimes) is a fictional character on American Dad!. He is Stan and Francine Smiths only son and Hayleys brother. ... Lawrence University, located in Appleton, Wisconsin, is a private undergraduate college founded in 1847. ... The Great Midwest Trivia Contest, sometimes known simply as the Midwest Trivia Contest, is broadcast over Lawrence Universitys radio station, WLFM (91. ...

External links

• Billboard Chart Listing - Allmusic.com
• An editorial on the song's meaning
• Guitar chords

• Mix Magazine's "Classic Tracks" article

References