The original score features a mixed ensemble of piano, violin, guitar, bass, and drums. 3. Trivia & Cultural Impact
But its influence wasn't limited to America. "Funkytown" topped the charts in around the world, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Israel, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, and West Germany. It became the ultimate international anthem, selling over eight million copies globally. Billboard magazine later ranked it as the eighth most popular single of 1980. Funkytown
Tragically, the word "Funkytown" has also taken on a much more sinister meaning in online communities. Beginning around 2016, an infamous and extremely graphic viral video began circulating, showing a brutal cartel execution in a tiled room. In the final seconds of the 2:50-minute-long video, the Lipps Inc. song "Funkytown" can be heard playing faintly in the background. The original score features a mixed ensemble of
He wrote a track about the universal desire to leave a dead-end town in search of something electric. The lyrics are famously simple: "Gotta make a move to a town that's right for me / Town to keep me movin', keep me groovin' with some energy." "Funkytown" topped the charts in around the world,
Greenberg formed Lipps Inc. as a studio project and recruited Cynthia Johnson, a local singer who had won the Miss Black Minnesota pageant in 1976. Johnson possessed a powerful, soulful voice that had been honed in gospel choirs and local top-40 bands. Her vocal delivery provided the perfect human counterpoint to Greenberg’s mechanical arrangements. Deconstructing the Sonic Formula
: Lipps Inc. (pronounced "lip-synch") was a project created by Greenberg. He recruited Cynthia Johnson , a former Miss Black Minnesota 1976, to provide the iconic lead vocals.