123 Victory

Album: Losing My Religion (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This gospel jam was originally recorded for Kirk Franklin's Losing My Religion album. It features a bubbling bassline from session musician Braylon Lacy, who has also worked with Erykah Badu and Toni Braxton.
  • Franklin recruited his longtime friend Pharrell Williams for a fresh version of the track. "The song was already on my album and when I thought about doing a remix, Pharrell was like, 'You know what? Why don't we just start from the beginning? You know, do something fresh from the beginning,'" said Franklin.

    "So, he had a track that he showed me he was working on," he added. "And I really liked the track. So, what I did is I ran to the next studio room, sat down with a piano and just wrote the song."
  • The remix was penned by the pair in May 2016, inspired by the police shootings and civil unrest in America that was going on. It was released as a single on August 19, 2016. "When all of the tragedy that's been going on over the last six, twelve weeks, with just the shootings, killings and the unrest, [I] thought that it'd be a good time to release a song," explained Franklin.

    "'Cause we did the song back in May and we've been talking for a while about doing something and finally did it," he added. "And kind of sat on it, not really knowing what we're gonna do and then when everything hit, it's like, you know what, maybe this would be a good time to release it."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)Songwriter Interviews

Chad tells tales from his time as drummer for Nirvana, and talks about his group Before Cars.

Spot The Real Red Hot Chili Peppers Song Titles

Spot The Real Red Hot Chili Peppers Song TitlesMusic Quiz

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have some rather unusual song titles - see if you can spot the real ones.

Commercials

CommercialsFact or Fiction

Was "Ring Of Fire" really used to sell hemorrhoid cream?

Which Songs are About Drugs?

Which Songs are About Drugs?Fact or Fiction

"25 or 6 to 4" to "Semi-Charmed Life" - see if you can spot the songs that are really about drugs.

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New York

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New YorkSong Writing

Can you be married in one country but not another? Only if you're part of a gay couple. One of the first famous singers to come out as a lesbian, Janis wrote a song about it.

Sam Hollander

Sam HollanderSongwriter Interviews

The hitmaking songwriter/producer Sam Hollander with stories about songs for Weezer, Panic! At The Disco, Train, Pentatonix, and Fitz And The Tantrums.