"Come with Me Now" is a song by South African American[2] band Kongos. Initially released to iTunes in December 2012 as a single from their album Lunatic,[3] "Come with Me Now" earned commercial success in the United States in 2014, eventually peaking at number one on the BillboardAlternative Songs chart[4] and becoming their first charting single in the United States.[4]
In 2011, Kongos released their album Lunatic, which featured "Come with Me Now" which was released as a single. With the band performing the song live while opening for American band Linkin Park in South Africa, "Come with Me Now" was considered a fan favorite there though it initially struggled to find an audience in the United States. The band admitted that when "it didn't seem like things were getting along we really lost heart – we were ready to move on to new material".[5]
In early January 2014, the song began receiving airplay in the US, generating major label attention for the band which was eventually signed to Epic Records.[5] It was released to US contemporary hit radio on 15 April 2014.[6] The song appears on the soundtrack of the movie The Expendables 3.[citation needed]
The song was released in the UK as the lead single off Lunatic on August 17, 2014.[citation needed]
Composition
"Come with Me Now" has been described by Billboard as an "accordion-tinged" rock song.[5] Members of the band themselves say that the song is heavily influenced by kwaito music, which is described as being a blend of South African jazz, township pop, and Western house music.[1] It was written by keyboard/accordion player Johnny Kongos and singer/bassist Dylan Kongos.
Commercial performance
On April 9, 2014, "Come with Me Now" debuted at number 98 on the BillboardHot 100, making it their first charting single on the chart; it peaked at number 31.[7] It also topped the BillboardAlternative Songs chart.[4] By reaching the summit of the chart in 10 weeks, it was the quickest song of a rookie band to top the chart since American rock band Evanescence's 2003 song "Bring Me to Life".[7] The single peaked at number 4 on the BillboardHot Rock Songs chart[4] and number 7 on the Canadian Hot 100.[4] The song has sold 1.3 million copies in the United States, as of December 2014.[8] The single also peaked at number 14, number 16, and number 18 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks, Mainstream Top 40 and Adult Top 40 charts, respectively. The song also topped the Official South African Singles Chart and peaked in the top 40 in New Zealand.[9] It has sold over 160,000 copies in Canada.[10]
Music video
The music video for "Come with Me Now" was uploaded on July 31, 2012. The video includes footage of the band playing the song, intercut with looped shots of people performing other activities such as applying makeup, exercising, and flipping through a magazine before they fall into water.
The song was featured in the BBC Sport "Get Carried Away with the Cup" campaign, promoting the return of coverage of the FA Cup to the broadcaster.[14]
↑ Lester, Paul (9 April 2014). "Kongos (No 1,738) Band of the Week". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 December 2018. they've got Greek blood, grew up in South Africa and the UK and now live in the States
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