Anywhere In The World

Album: Single Release Only (2012)
Charted: 55
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Songfacts®:

  • Music producer and guitarist Mark Ronson, who's worked with Amy Winehouse and Lily Allen, collaborated with London dance singer-songwriter Katy B for this song. It was recorded for use as Coca-Cola's promotional anthem for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

    Ronson explained to The Independent why he chose the Peckham-born singer to record the vocals on this track. He explained: "I think Katy B encapsulates young London in a way I never could. She reps London harder than anyone song-wise since Lily Allen."
  • Coca Cola originally approached Ronson to create a song on which the sounds of athletes in training can be heard for their Olympic-based advertising campaign. The producer spent time with some of the athletes, recording sound clips of them in training. The song's rhythm incorporates the heartbeat of an Olympian runner and the noise of table tennis player Darius Knight hitting a ball, accompanied by other panting, grunting and thudding sounds.

    The 120 beats-per-minute tempo is paced by the heartbeat of the Russian runner Kseniya Vdovina, who was recorded on a treadmill using a microphone attached to a stethoscope.
  • Katy B penned the lyrics in the studio to Ronson's accompaniment on the piano. "We wanted to capture something uplifting and celebratory," she told The Independent. "For me, growing up in London, my inspiration was how I love it when there's an event in London that brings people together; how I feel when I go to Notting Hill Carnival or Hyde Park. Just celebrating London, really."
  • Ronson has little sporting pedigree himself. When he was nine years old, young Mark took part in a relay race at his school sports day and ran the wrong way round. The coach subsequently christened him "Wrong Way Ronson," a nickname that he remained stuck with for several years.

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