Maluma and Nicki Minaj Welcome the 2022 World Cup With Arab-Latin Anthem ‘Tukoh Taka’
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“Waka Waka,” move over. “Tukoh Taka” is here. Days before the 2022 FIFA World Cup hosts its opening ceremony, Nicki Minaj, Maluma, and Myriam Fares are bringing the Arab-Latin fusion on the soccer tournament‘s fan festival anthem.
The video, released Friday, opens with Lebanese singer Fares singing the chorus and doing choreo in front of a sandy backdrop as images of fans flash onscreen before a club beat, reminiscent of Robin S’ “Show Me Love,” takes over and Minaj joins for her verse.
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“Yo, mira, mira, mira/Con mi copa amiga /Loca, loca la vida (Sí),” raps Nicki Minaj in her verse, making reference to Ricky Martin, who sang the 1998 anthem, “Cup of Life.” “Yo soy muy rica/Papеl o plástica/Some say ‘football,’ some say ‘soccer’/Likklе shot go block-a.”
Maluma then joins the song with his Spanish as he and a group of dancers dance in front of a green-screened giant soccer ball as he brings the reggaetón and Latin American representation on the track. Fares ends the song with a verse in Arabic.
“I am so happy to be part of this FIFA World Cup anthem!” Maluma said in a press release. “I always dreamt of an opportunity like this. Representing Latin music on this global track alongside amazing artists that sing in English and Arabic, takes our culture to another level.”
Maluma and Fares are set to perform the song — which was produced by Gordo, Play-N-Skillz, and Massari — together for the first time at the FIFA Fan Festival Saturday, ahead of the World Cup’s opening match between host Qatar and Ecuador.
“Tukoh Taka” joins a slew of singles promoting the tournament released earlier this year. The World Cup started with a reggae-afrobeats fusion track “Hayya Hayya (Better Together) featuring Trinidad Cardona, Davido and Aisha. Ozuna and Gims released “Arhbo,” Sebastián Yatra and Moroccan star Mouamane Baliaacchi released “Ulayeh,” and Los Bukis dropped “Vamos a Qatar.”
Jungkook from BTS, who is also featured on the World Cup’s soundtrack, is set to perform at the World Cup’s opening ceremony in Doha ahead of the first game. In September, BTS released a new version of “Yet to Come”; the accompanying video featured people around the world watching soccer, serving as a precursor to Jungkook’s World Cup opening ceremony participation.
The release of the song, and the opening night of. the World Cup, comes after Qatar has faced significant backlash for human rights abuses.
Since 2010 when FIFA chose Qatar as the 2022 host city, concerns have continued to grow over the abysmal treatment of migrant workers, who make up 90 percent of the workforce, as PBS notes. A reported 6,500 migrant workers have died since Qatar was awarded host country status. In Qatar, same-sex relationships and activity are criminalized, and women from the region must ask permission from male guardians to travel, work, and marry. Freedom of speech is also restricted.
In an Instagram story Sunday, Dua Lipa addressed rumors that she was booked to perform and called out the tournament’s organizers. “There is currently a lot of speculation that I will be performing at the opening ceremony of the world cup in Qatar. I will not be performing and nor have I ever been involved in any negotiation to perform,” she wrote. “I will be cheering England on from afar.”
“I look forward to visiting Qatar when it has fulfilled all the human rights pledges it made when it won the right to host the World Cup,” she added.
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