C'est La Vie (Khaled Song)
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"C'est la vie" is a
song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...
by
Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
n raï singer Khaled. It was produced by Moroccan-Swedish producer RedOne and released on Universal Music Division AZ becoming a summer hit for Khaled in France in 2012.


Content

The song is bilingual, with the main verses in Algerian Arabic and the chorus in French. The chorus repeats the phrase:


Charts

The song is considered to be a comeback for Khaled in France after a three-year absence in the charts. Released in July 2012, the song entered the official French Singles Chart at number 30 and later peaked at number 4. In addition to its success in France, it became very popular throughout
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
and
Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
, where it reached the top 10. In 2013, the single was certified platinum by the Belgian Entertainment Association. The song also charted in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
,
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
,
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, and
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
and received radio airplay in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. "C’est La Vie" sold over one million copies in the European market, 1.8 million copies in the Middle East and North Africa, and over 4 million copies worldwide. The album reached number 5 on
SNEP SNEP (, in English National Syndicate of Phonographic Publishing) is the inter-professional organisation that protects the interests of the French record industry. Originally known under the acronym SNICOP, the organisation was established in ...
, the official French Albums Chart.


Chart performance


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Cover versions


Marc Anthony version

In 2013, American singer Marc Anthony covered the Khaled song as a salsa tune titled "Vivir Mi Vida" ("Live My Life") for his studio album '' 3.0''. This version was produced by Sergio George and recorded at The Hit Factory Criteria in Miami, Florida. Anthony performed it live at the 2013 Latin ''Billboard'' Music Awards. The music video, directed by Carlos Perez of Elastic People, was released on September 10, 2013. "Vivir Mi Vida" won a Latin Grammy Award in 2013 for
Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without re ...
and holds the record for the second-longest run inside the top-five in the ''Billboard'' Latin Songs, with 51 weeks. A "Pop" version was also produced using the instrumental of the original Khaled version and is included on the album. In 2017, Anthony's former wife
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...
covered the song in her "Spotify Session" as a tribute to his late mother and her former mother-in-law. As of January 2025, the music video for Anthony's version of the song has received over 1.2 billion views on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
.


Track listing


Chart performance


=Weekly charts

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=Year-end charts

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=Decade-end charts

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Certifications


Hashem Melech

Israeli singer Gad Elbaz created a new version of the song calling it "Hashem Melech" (in
Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...
ה' מלך) as a sort of contemporary Jewish worship song based on and adapted from "C'est la vie". The Israeli version released in January 2013 as a duet between Gad Elbaz and his singer father Beni Elbaz contains
Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...
and French lyrics, though the Hebrew lyrics are not related to Khaled's all-French original lyrics and more geared to religious content. The chorus repeats the phrases (translation in parentheses and italics) Elbaz also released an all-Hebrew version of the song. "Hashem Melech" was a minor hit in Israel and in Orthodox Jewish circles worldwide. The Hebrew lyrics in the refrain are the same as those of a famous song also titled "Hashem Melech" by the well-known Jewish singer Yosef Karduner. In September 2015, Elbaz released another limited version featuring additional vocals by the young Israeli child singer Yosef Chaim.


Hashem Melech 2.0

In 2016, Elbaz teamed with Hasidic rapper Nissim (full name Nissim Baruch Black, born Damian Jamohl Black and a convert from Islam to Christianity and eventually to Judaism) to create a rap-infused version of the song now titled "Hashem Melech 2.0" to distinguish it from the original Elbaz version. The rap by Nissim is primarily English language, and is said to dominate the song, wrapping around and throughout the elements of the original "1.0" song. Still a bilingual song, "Hashem Melech" now featured Hebrew and English lyrics instead. Elbaz' original French lyrics were dropped in favor of English in the new version, but his Hebrew lyrics were retained for the new version. Nissim's rap segments were all in English. The popularity of the second version far exceeded that of the first. Daniel Finkelman created a sophisticated, exuberant, multiracial dance
video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...
of the new version, set against the New York City skyline and streetscape. The New-York themed music video features Elbaz and Nissim dancing and delivering their religious message dancing joyously through the New York city streets and on skyscraper rooftops, amidst a changing New York skyline, encouraging listeners to believe in a better tomorrow.


Ali B version

In 2017, the Dutch rapper Ali B released the single "Voy a Bailar", largely an adaptation of the Khaled song but with adaptations from the Latin "Vivir Mi Vida" cover from Marc Anthony. Ali B added rap lyrics in Dutch. The release featured additional vocals by Boef, Rolf Sanchez and RedOne.


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


In popular culture

The song became popular in Indonesia, a majority-Muslim country. A political campaign there in early 2017 developed a theme song called "Kobarkan Semangat Jakarta". Based on "C'est la vie" and "Hashem Malach", it created controversy as no attribution was given to either work. This sent the Khaled French version and surprisingly the Elbaz Hebrew version "Hashem Melech" to trend on Indonesian Twitter. The Spanish version “Vivir Mi Vida” by Marc Anthony was played on August 12, 2023 at the Rogers Centre in
Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
prior to the
Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...
’ game against the
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
during the Level of Excellence induction ceremony for Blue Jays great José Bautista; the song was played when Bautista’s family was introduced onto the field by the event’s MC, Hazel Mae of Canadian sports channel
Sportsnet Sportsnet is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language Discretionary service, discretionary sports broadcasting, sports specialty channel owned by Rogers Sports & Media. It was established in 1998 as CTV Sportsnet, a joint venture betw ...
.


See also

* List of number-one songs of 2013 (Colombia) * List of number-one Billboard Hot Latin Songs of 2013 * List of Billboard number-one Latin songs of 2014


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cest la vie 2012 songs 2012 singles 2013 singles Macaronic songs Khaled (musician) songs Marc Anthony songs Song recordings produced by RedOne Songs written by Alex P Songs written by Björn Djupström Song recordings produced by Sergio George Number-one singles in Colombia Songs in Spanish 2017 singles RedOne songs Songs written by Khaled (musician) Songs written by RedOne Songs written by Bilal Hajji Latin Grammy Award for Record of the Year Sony Music Latin singles Universal Music Group singles Songs containing the I–V-vi-IV progression