"The Greatest" is a song by New Zealand band
Six60, released as the lead single from their third album ''
Six60'' in July 2019. The song was a commercial success, becoming triple Platinum certified in New Zealand. In 2023, a new
Māori language
Māori (), or ('the Māori language'), also known as ('the language'), is an Eastern Polynesian language spoken by the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. Closely related to Cook Islands Māori, Tuamotuan, and ...
version of the song, "Te Taumata", was used as the theme song for the 2023
Te Matatini kapa haka festival.
Background and composition
The song was written and produced by the band in collaboration with American music producer
Malay, and was one of the first songs the group wrote together with Malay. The song was inspired by a 1964 photo of British band
the Beatles meeting boxer
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
. The band wanted to create a song expressing how they wanted to continue to strive to be better musicians and people.
The song was not one of the first tracks recorded during the album's recording sessions, but after its creation became the song that expressed the energy of what they wanted to achieve for their 2019 album.
The single artwork is an
homage
Homage (Old English) or Hommage (French) may refer to:
History
*Homage (feudal) /ˈhɒmɪdʒ/, the medieval oath of allegiance
*Commendation ceremony, medieval homage ceremony Arts
*Homage (arts) /oʊˈmɑʒ/, an allusion or imitation by one arti ...
to the photo of the Beatles and Ali.
Release and promotion
The song was released on 26 July 2019, as the leading single from their third studio album ''
Six60''. The band released a trailer for their documentary ''
Six60: Till the Lights Go Out'' at the time of the release of "The Greatest".
In 2023, "The Greatest" was re-recorded in
Māori as "Te Taumata". The track was translated with the help of Max Matenga, and served as the theme song of the 2023
Te Matatini kapa haka festival. The song will be released as the 50th song released from ''He Tau Makuru'', an album project celebrating the 50th anniversary of Te Matatini.
Critical reception
The song was nominated for the
Aotearoa Music Award for Single of the Year
Single of the Year is an Aotearoa Music Award that honours New Zealand music artists for outstanding singles. For the purpose of the award, a single is defined as a song released separately from an album, either for sale or as a music video servic ...
at the
2019 New Zealand Music Awards
The 2019 New Zealand Music Awards was the 54th holding of the annual ceremony featuring awards for musical recording artists based in or originating from New Zealand. It took place on 14 November 2019 at Spark Arena in Auckland and was hosted b ...
, losing to "
Soaked" by
Benee
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from
Tidal.
*
Printz Board – songwriting
*Evan Bogart – songwriting
*Matt Chamberlain – drums
*Ji Fraser – guitar
*
Malay – engineer, guitar, production, songwriting
*Marlon Gerbes – guitar, keyboards, songwriting
*Raul Lopez – assistant recording engineer
*Chris Mac – bass guitar
*Michelle Mancini – mastering engineer
*Manny Marroquin – mixer
*Eli Paewai – drums
*Six60 – performer
*Matiu Walters – songwriting, vocals
Charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{Authority control
2019 singles
2019 songs
New Zealand pop songs
Six60 songs
Songs written by Malay (record producer)
Songs written by E. Kidd Bogart