"Harder Than You Think" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Single by Public Enemy | ||||
from the album How You Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul? | ||||
Released | August 13, 2007 (vinyl) August 18, 2012 (digital download) | |||
Genre | Hip hop | |||
Length | 4:10(album version) 3:10 (UK radio edit) | |||
Label | SLAMjamz Records | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Gary G-Wiz | |||
Public Enemysingles chronology | ||||
|
"Harder Than You Think" is the first single from American hip-hop group Public Enemy's 20th-anniversary album How You Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul? , released in 2007. It was produced by Gary G-Wiz.
The song gained popularity during late summer 2007, and became Public Enemy's highest-charting single on the UK Singles Chart in August 2012. It borrows from Shirley Bassey's 1972 track "Jezahel" [1] , a cover of the song "Jesahel" by the Italian prog rock band Delirium. On November 25 2023 the authors of "Jesahel" (Ivano Fossati and Oscar Prudente) and Universal Music Group sued Public Enemy for plagiarism, as Fossati and Prudente are not credited for the use of "Jesahel" in "Harder Than You Think". [2] [3]
The song is also known in the UK for its use as Channel 4's theme for their coverage of the Paralympic Games since the 2012 Summer Paralympics, as well as the theme tune for talk and sketch comedy show The Last Leg , which was initially created to cover the Paralympics.
The music video was directed by David C. Snyder, and was uploaded unofficially onto YouTube on August 3 2007.
Following the use of "Harder Than You Think" to soundtrack the UK's Channel 4 coverage of the Summer 2012 Paralympics, a music video including clips from the Channel 4 trailer for the Summer 2012 Paralympics was produced by HWIC Filmworks (founded by John Delserone and David C. Snyder, who directed the original video). [4] [5]
A version of the video was also produced for the Dehasse Radio Edit, a dance version of the track remixed for the 2012 re-emergence of the track in the UK charts.
The song was featured in Eric Koston's segment in the 2007 skateboarding video "Fully Flared". The song and its beat were used by ESPN for the 2011 Big East men's basketball tournament. The song is also featured on the soundtrack of the video game Skate 2 . The song was later featured heavily in a Fall K-Mart ad as of September 2011. It is also one of the lead songs in the commercials for ESPN's broadcasting of the Winter X Games. The song featured prominently towards the end of the BBC Four 2011 documentary "Public Enemy: Prophets Of Rage" which was screened as the fourth episode of the channel's "Black Music Legends Of The 1980s" series. It also appeared in the trailer for the 2012 film Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap and was also the only track to feature on its soundtrack album which did not appear in the actual film. The song is also featured at the opening of the 2012 film End of Watch . In 2021 it's been used in the NBA commercial about Martin Luther King, Jr Day called "We Must Learn". It is also featured in The Redeem Team documentary film released by Netflix in 2022. The song is also featured in the 6th episode of Succession's fourth season as Kendall walks out to make a speech. [6] In 2023, the song is featured again in the biographical film Gran Turismo during the film's final race in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
In the United Kingdom, it was used as the soundtrack in both the 90-second trailer [7] [8] and as the theme tune to Channel 4's coverage of the 2012 Summer Paralympics. [9] The song subsequently experienced a surge in sales, peaking at number 4 and thereby becoming Public Enemy's first Top 10 single in the UK and their highest-charting single ever in the nation. A review for The Independent said of its re-release in the UK: "Following its prominent use in Channel 4's Paralympics coverage, great lost 2007 single 'Harder Than You Think' had a sales surge that carried it into the UK Top Five, giving the band their biggest hit to date. It'd be a thrilling piece of work in any era, Chuck delivering a typically apocalyptic call to arms over a backing track which uses a horn sample from Shirley Bassey's 'Jezahel', but to hear it blasting from the radio in the second decade of this century is beyond beautiful." [10] The song also serves as the theme tune to the British TV show The Last Leg , which was originally a show that ran alongside the 2012 Paralympics, but later spun off as an independent show.
The song was also used as the theme tune to Channel 4's coverage of the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia; the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; the 2018 Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea and a re-recorded version was used the 2020 Summer Paralympics in Tokyo, Japan, the 2022 Winter Paralympics in Beijing, China, and the 2024 Summer Paralympics in Paris, France.
Chart (2012) | Peak position |
---|---|
Ireland (IRMA) [14] | 23 |
UK Singles (OCC) [15] | 4 |
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC) [16] | 1 |
UK Indie (OCC) [17] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [18] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Date | Format | Label |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | August 13, 2007 [11] | 12" vinyl | SLAMJamz |
August 18, 2012 [12] | Digital download |
Hybrid is a British electronic music duo consisting of Mike and Charlotte Truman. The group was formed in 1995 by Mike Truman, Chris Healings, and Lee Mullin. At the time they were primarily known as a breakbeat collective, although they overlapped considerably with progressive house and trance.
"Hard to Beat" is the third single from English indie rock group Hard-Fi, from their album Stars of CCTV. Despite being released as the third single, it was Hard-Fi's first of two top-10 singles, reaching number nine in the United Kingdom after being released on 20 June 2005. In the United States, the song was released as the second single from Stars of CCTV on 18 April 2006, following "Cash Machine". It gained the band some prominence in the US by entering the US Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart at number 39 a month after release. It later peaked at number 34.
"Bodies" is the debut single by the American rock band Drowning Pool, released in May 2001 from their debut album Sinner. "Bodies" is Drowning Pool's signature song and has been featured in various films, TV programs, and advertisements since its release. It was also the theme song for the 2001 WWF SummerSlam pay-per-view event, as well as that of the ECW brand in 2005 to early 2008, including the ECW One Night Stand pay-per-view events in 2005 and 2006. During 2001, the song became popular but was briefly taken off radio stations due to the September 11 attacks due to the nature of the lyrics, though the song is lyrically about moshing. It was also meant to be vague in order for the viewer to have their own interpretation.
"I Think We're Alone Now" is a song written and composed by Ritchie Cordell that was first recorded by Tommy James and the Shondells. It was a major hit for the group, reaching number 4 on the US Hot 100 in April 1967. It finished at No. 12 on Billboard magazine's year-end singles chart for 1967.
The discography of Public Enemy, an American hip hop group, consists of 15 studio albums, two live albums, four compilation albums, two remix albums, one soundtrack album, four video albums, 39 singles, four promotional singles and 39 music videos. The group released their debut studio album, Yo! Bum Rush the Show, in February 1987; it peaked at number 125 on the United States Billboard 200. The album spawned the singles "Public Enemy No. 1" and "You're Gonna Get Yours". Public Enemy released their second studio album, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, in April 1988. The album peaked at number 42 on the Billboard 200. It has since sold 1.3 million copies in the US, earning a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Four of the album's singles charted on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart: "Bring the Noise", "Don't Believe the Hype", "Night of the Living Baseheads" and "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos". The former three, along with the single "Rebel Without a Pause", also charted in the United Kingdom.
"Can't Get Along (Without You)" is a single from indie band Hard-Fi, taken from their second album Once Upon a Time in the West. It was released on 4 November 2007. Richard Archer has said that he thought it to be one of his best songs and TV presenter Tim Lovejoy said that it was one of the best records he had ever heard. However, despite all this, the single only managed to reach #45 in the UK Singles Chart which made it their worst charting single to date until June 2011 where "Good For Nothing" peaked six places lower at 51. On the other hand, the single has had an unexpected success in Peru reaching #1 in its second and third week.
And I Love You So is a 1972 album by Shirley Bassey.
"Sweet Disposition" is a song by Australian indie rock band the Temper Trap. Described by critics as an "indie anthem", the song was written by Dougy Mandagi and Lorenzo Silitto. Upon the song's release, it peaked at No. 14 in Australia and reached the top 10 in Flanders, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Renewed interest in the song was generated after it was included in the soundtrack for the 2009 film 500 Days of Summer—eventually reaching No. 9 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart in the United States.
"Written in the Stars" is a song recorded by English rapper Tinie Tempah featuring American singer Eric Turner. It was released on 19 September 2010, through Disturbing London and Parlophone. It was written alongside Charlie Bernardo and producer iSHi, and is the third single from Tinie Tempah's debut studio album Disc-Overy (2010). Musically, the song has been described as pop, pop rap, and rap rock, with lyrics addressing overcoming hardship and finding success.
The Sea is the fifth studio album by English singer Melanie C. Made under her own independent record label Red Girl Records. The album marked her first new material in four years, since the reunion with the Spice Girls.
"What Makes You Beautiful" is the debut single by the British-Irish boy band One Direction. It was the lead single from their debut album, Up All Night (2011). Written by Savan Kotecha and producer Rami Yacoub, the song was released by Syco Records on 11 September 2011. The uptempo power pop track features a prominent guitar-based chorus and riff. The middle eight consists of a "na na na" hook.
"The One That Got Away" is a song by American singer-songwriter Katy Perry from her third studio album, Teenage Dream (2010). The song was produced by Dr. Luke and Max Martin, both of whom also co-wrote the song with Perry. The song is a mid-tempo pop ballad about a lost love. It features a reference to the rock band Radiohead, and compares the strength of the relationship to that of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. The song was released on September 30, 2011, by Capitol Records as the album's sixth and final single.
"With Ur Love" is a song by English singer Cher Lloyd featuring vocals from American singer Mike Posner. The single was released on 4 October 2011, and was written by Shellback, Savan Kotecha, Max Martin and Posner and was produced by Shellback and Martin. Musically "With Ur Love" is a mid-tempo pop and "bubblegum" R&B song, that lyrically speaks about the euphoria of being in love. The song debuted at number four in the United Kingdom, becoming Lloyd's second top ten single. It also reached the top ten in Ireland and the top twenty in New Zealand.
"Earthquake" is a song by British musician Labrinth which features long-time collaborator Tinie Tempah. The track was released on 23 October 2011 in the United Kingdom as the second single from the artist's debut studio album, Electronic Earth (2012). It debuted at number two on the UK Singles Chart, having sold 115,530 copies and setting the second-highest one-week sales at number 2 of the year, behind Little Mix.
"Summer Paradise" is a song by Canadian rock band Simple Plan, featuring Somali-Canadian rapper K'Naan or Jamaican reggae artist Sean Paul. It was released on December 13, 2011, in Australia as the third official single from their fourth studio album, Get Your Heart On! (2011). It was written by Emanuel Kiriakou, Keinan Warsame and the band and produced by Brian Howes. The song is a reggae and ska punk-based track and it was inspired by the band vocalist's hobby of surfing. It was released in Australia with an accompanying music video with shots of the "Get Your Heart On Tour!" and scenes of the band in Barbados and on the beach. The track was released in the United Kingdom as the lead single.
Sirach Charles, better known by his stage name Angel, is an English (British) singer-songwriter, rapper and record producer from West London, England. His single "Go In, Go Hard", featuring vocals from English rapper Wretch 32, was released on 18 March 2012. The song reached number 41 on the UK Singles Chart. The following single, "Wonderful", performed better commercially, peaking at number nine on the UK Singles Chart and topping the UK R&B Chart.
The Janoskians was a YouTube comedy group and pop music group from Melbourne, Australia. They consisted of brothers Beau, Luke, and Jai Brooks, and Daniel Sahyounie and James Yammouni. Their videos include performing gross out humour and pranks on non-consenting members of the public as well as each other, mockumentaries, dares and skits.
"Professional Griefers" is a song by Canadian electronic music producer Deadmau5 featuring vocals by American singer Gerard Way. The song was released as the third single from his sixth studio album Album Title Goes Here. The song is featured in the game FIFA 13 and its soundtrack. The song used to be featured in the game Asphalt 8: Airborne in the electronica playlist. The song was also featured briefly in season one episode five of the hit TV show Arrow.
"Run Boy Run" is a song by Yoann Lemoine, under his stage name Woodkid. It was released as the second single from his debut studio album, The Golden Age (2013). It was written by Lemoine and Ambroise Willaume from the French band Revolver. The single was released on 21 May 2012, becoming his highest-charting single. "Run Boy Run" was certified gold in Germany in 2014.
"Hero" is a song by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro. It was released as a stand-alone single on July 27, 2016 by Avex Trax and Amuro’s own label Dimension Point; it was distributed physically in Japan and Taiwan, and digitally worldwide. The song was written by Ryosuke Imai and Sunny Boy, whilst production and composing was handled by the latter collaborator. Originally slated to appear as a B-side track to her previous single "Mint", it served as the official Japanese theme song to the 2016 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, broadcast by the NHK. Alongside this, a B-side track titled "Show Me What You’ve Got" appeared on the release of "Hero".