The band made their debut under Acid Jazz Records but subsequently found mainstream success under Sony. While under this label, three of their albums have charted at number one in the UK, including Emergency on Planet Earth (1993), Synkronized (1999) and A Funk Odyssey (2001). The band's 1998 single, "Deeper Underground", was also number one in their native country.
As of 2017, Jamiroquai had sold more than 26 million albums worldwide. Their third album, Travelling Without Moving (1996), received a Guinness World Record as the best-selling funk album in history. The music video for its lead single, "Virtual Insanity", also contributed to the band's success. The song was named Video of the Year at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards and earned the band a Grammy Award in 1998.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamiroquai
Studio albums
Emergency on Planet Earth (1993)
The Return of the Space Cowboy (1994)
Travelling Without Moving (1996)
Synkronized (1999)
A Funk Odyssey (2001)
Dynamite (2005)
Rock Dust Light Star (2010)
Automaton (2017)
Manifest Destiny
Jamiroquai Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It was four hundred years or more
Since you came to crucify
And they were taken far away from home
There were promises of paradise
But if they had been told that day
That they would be sold that this way
To satisfy the souls of chosen men
At the shame of my ancestry
To redefine the storyline again
If I was taken for a day
And shown another way
Now every child can learn a different thing
See I tried a million times
But I had to change my mind
Sadness was the best thing I could bring
On the inside he was dead and this is what he said
As he took away the blue above the clouds
Superiority was clearly meant to be
So destiny will manifest in time.
So where has the love all gone
A troubled trail of tears will tell the tale
Of how I was put down where I don't belong
Woman, child and man for sale
For ethical slavery is just an absurdity
How can you be alive when you are dead
With these chains of hypocrisy
The shame of my ancestry
Forever stained by blood in which you tread.
If I was taken for a day
And shown another way
Now every child can learn a different thing
See I tried a million times
But I had to change my mind
Sadness was the best thing I could bring
On the inside he was dead and this is what he said
As he took away the blue above the clouds
Superiority was clearly meant to be
So destiny will manifest itself in time.
So where has the love all gone
Manifest Destiny by Jamiroquai is a song that centers around the different forms of oppression that people have experienced throughout history. The lyrics speak to the transatlantic slave trade, the cruelty of European colonization, and the devastating effects of racism. The song speaks to the need for people to reexamine their history and learn from the mistakes of the past in order to create a better future.
The first verse speaks specifically to the transatlantic slave trade, which lasted for over four hundred years. People were taken from their homes, and promised a paradise that was never delivered. Instead, they were sold and treated as objects to be used and traded by the "chosen men." The lyrics speak to the shame of the past, and the need to rewrite history in a way that acknowledges the atrocities committed.
The second verse touches on the idea that people can change their minds and that it's essential to do so. The singer suggests that through education, people can learn about different perspectives and come to understand the world in a more equitable way. The lyrics acknowledge the sadness that comes with coming to terms with the past and the need to move forward in order to create a better future.
Line by Line Meaning
As I remember
The singer is recalling a past event
It was four hundred years or more
The event being recalled happened a long time ago
Since you came to crucify
The event being recalled involved someone being crucified
And they were taken far away from home
The crucifixion victims were taken away from their homes
There were promises of paradise
The crucifixion victims were promised paradise
But if they had been told that day
The singer is questioning if the victims would have made the same choice if they knew what would happen to them
That they would be sold that this way
The victims were sold into slavery
To satisfy the souls of chosen men
The victims were sold to satisfy the desires of certain men
See I had to look carefully
The artist had to examine the situation closely
At the shame of my ancestry
The artist is reflecting on the shameful actions of their ancestors
To redefine the storyline again
The singer is trying to create a new narrative about their past
If I was taken for a day
The artist is imagining themselves in a different situation
And shown another way
The singer wishes they had been exposed to different perspectives
Now every child can learn a different thing
The singer believes that education is key to changing the future
See I tried a million times
The singer attempted to make changes numerous times
But I had to change my mind
The artist had to alter their beliefs or actions
Sadness was the best thing I could bring
The artist believes that expressing sadness is important for healing
On the inside he was dead and this is what he said
The singer is referencing someone who felt empty inside and is conveying their thoughts
As he took away the blue above the clouds
The singer is describing someone who removed hope or optimism
Superiority was clearly meant to be
The artist believes that some people think they are inherently better than others
So destiny will manifest in time.
The artist believes that the future is predetermined and will unfold as it should
So where has the love all gone
The artist is questioning where love has disappeared to in the world
A troubled trail of tears will tell the tale
The singer is referencing the sadness and pain caused by the mistreatment of others
Of how I was put down where I don't belong
The artist is reflecting on a time when they were discriminated against or oppressed
Woman, child and man for sale
The singer is highlighting the dehumanization and commodification of people
For ethical slavery is just an absurdity
The singer believes that there is no such thing as ethical slavery
How can you be alive when you are dead
The singer is questioning if someone can truly be alive if they have lost their spirit or sense of self
With these chains of hypocrisy
The artist is criticizing those who claim to be moral or just but act in contradiction to those beliefs
Forever stained by blood in which you tread.
The artist believes that their culture or ancestry has been marked by a history of violence and oppression
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JASON KAY, TOBY SMITH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Daveyboyz1978
@@drebeck2542 Not true.
Because of the vaccuum of slavery in England (the one and only place it wasn't occurring) the church came to the moral position against slavery. This in turn influenced the congregation which then spurred political activity.
Given how much it cost us to abolish (50 years patrolling the seas, thousands of trade deals where we stipulated the condition of anti-slavery and countless diplomatic missions) its simply not true to suggest economics was the cause.
Having said that the fact that in the American civil war it was the non-slaver who emerged victorious rather goes to show that economically it was a flawed system.
I am not saying that the transatlantic slave trade was not abhorant but it is only in the states that the idea of racial superiority existed to try and mitigate the "all men equal under god" thing...
The reality is more white people have been enslaved than black people (though most died during castration and those who survived left no offspring) and Africa kept far more slaves than it sold (black people keeping black slaves)
This racial narrative which applied to only 5% of slavery is unhelpful to human progress, better not to stoke historic resentment for one injustice while ignoring all others.
@RubenRB76
As I remember
It was four hundred years or more
Since you came to crucify
And they were taken far away from home
There were promises of paradise
But if they had been told that day
That they would be sold that this way
To satisfy the souls of chosen men
See I had to look carefully
At the shame of my ancestry
To redefine the storyline again.
If I was taken for a day
And shown another way
Now every child can learn a different thing
See I tried a million times
But I had to change my mind
Sadness was the best thing I could bring
On the inside he was dead and this is what he said
As he took away the blue above the clouds
Superiority was clearly meant to be
So destiny will manifest in time.
So where has the love all gone
A troubled trail of tears will tell the tale
Of how I was put down where I don't belong
Woman, child and man for sale
For ethical slavery is just an absurdity
How can you be alive when you are dead
With these chains of hypocrisy
The shame of my ancestry
Forever stained by blood in which you tread.
If I was taken for a day
And shown another way
Now every child can learn a different thing
See I tried a million times
But I had to change my mind
Sadness was the best thing I could bring
On the inside he was dead and this is what he said
As he took away the blue above the clouds
Superiority was clearly meant to be
So destiny will manifest itself in time.
So where has the love all gone...
@Mangateau
For me, one of the best jamiroquai song
@lizardlordlordoflizards5096
Totally agree. A masterpiece - along with Space Cowboy.
@latenight5865
for me as well
@cristinacorrea5869
li love so much♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
@geraldbrunoescofier1204
All song's , of Jamiroquai 's are amazing feeling . I thing that Tallulah and falling , the best .in the same level .^_^
@tijannjai8288
@@geraldbrunoescofier1204 I'm glad u mentioned those two songs. They are great, especially 'Falling' from the Supersonic album. That album was a bit different, and maybe less popular than some of the others, but there were some great tunes on it.
@Tortisginis
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it”
@Daveyboyz1978
I would agree but maybe the revision of history is even worse. This is a great tune but I fear Jay Kay has simply swallowed the propaganda that his ancestry is shameful, it is on the contrary because he is an Englishman. Far from starting slavery 400 years ago (we didn't have slavery in England since about 1300 since William the conqueror made it illegal here and African tribes were always enslaving each other we just helped with some transportation) we are the country that emptied its own coffers to have it abolished against our own interests and only on moral grounds. It was the absence of it here and the industrial revolution that led to its abolishment and this was a practice in every country of the world, universally excepted that the victors would enslave the vanquished. We changed that, he should be proud.
@drebeck2542
@@Daveyboyz1978 Slavery wasn't practised in England but they allowed it for the longest while within its colonies. And any culture, creed, nation or ethnicity found guilty of owning slaves or have performed violent acts against their fellow humans in the name of superiority or creed should be ashamed of that particular action. You might also be thinking he is saying he is ashamed of the entirety of his lineage but seeing as how this is a song about the topic of superiority as well as some of its negative effects, he might instead be calling that the shame of his ancestry. Also, the most pivotal reason for the abolition of the slave trade was not the morality of the time but appealing to the pockets of the planters. They eventually reasoned that if the slaves were able to take care of their own expenses such as food, clothing and equipment they would make a profit. The revision of history is important it all depends upon how. It should be as unbiased as possible, as honest as possible and when we see the ills of the past we call them out for what they are.
@Daveyboyz1978
@@drebeck2542 Not true.
Because of the vaccuum of slavery in England (the one and only place it wasn't occurring) the church came to the moral position against slavery. This in turn influenced the congregation which then spurred political activity.
Given how much it cost us to abolish (50 years patrolling the seas, thousands of trade deals where we stipulated the condition of anti-slavery and countless diplomatic missions) its simply not true to suggest economics was the cause.
Having said that the fact that in the American civil war it was the non-slaver who emerged victorious rather goes to show that economically it was a flawed system.
I am not saying that the transatlantic slave trade was not abhorant but it is only in the states that the idea of racial superiority existed to try and mitigate the "all men equal under god" thing...
The reality is more white people have been enslaved than black people (though most died during castration and those who survived left no offspring) and Africa kept far more slaves than it sold (black people keeping black slaves)
This racial narrative which applied to only 5% of slavery is unhelpful to human progress, better not to stoke historic resentment for one injustice while ignoring all others.