Bigger (Beyoncé song)

"Bigger"
"Bigger"
Song by Beyoncé
from the album The Lion King: The Gift
Released	July 19, 2019
Genre	Afrobeats; R&B;
Length	3:46
Label	Parkwood; Columbia;
Songwriter(s)	Beyoncé; Richard Lawson; Derek Dixie; Stacy Barthe; Akil King; Raye;
Producer(s)	Beyoncé; Derek Dixie;

"Bigger" (stylized in uppercase)^[1] is a song by American singer Beyoncé from the 2019 album The Lion King: The Gift^[2] and featured in the 2020 film Black Is King.

Background

The song was penned at a writing camp at Beyoncé's studio and was created due to a bond with British singer-songwriter Raye and US songwriter Stacy Barthe. Raye told BBC Newsbeat: "I remember we were both in a really dark, sad place and we wanted to create something to empower ourselves. We spent maybe two or three hours on it. It was 3 a.m. and I remember Beyoncé's team came in and heard what we'd created so far and just completely freaked out. It was incredible."^[3] Raye also told Official Charts: "I wrote a lot of songs - I put a shift in. But [Beyoncé] fell in love with Bigger."^[4] Beyoncé informed Raye that "Bigger" would be the first song on the album at the 2019 The Lion King European premiere, and her reaction, as caught on video, went viral.^[5] Raye tweeted "Beyoncé told me I’ve written Track 1 on the new album ... it’s called Bigger . I can’t I can’t."^[6]

Composition and lyrical interpretation

"Bigger" is preceded by "Balance", a Mufasa interlude voiced by James Earl Jones, which samples his "Circle of Life" speech from the 2019 film. The two tracks segue into each other. Dazed described this shift as "tying in nicely with the track’s lyrics."^[7] According to The Atlantic, "Bigger" has an overarching theme of "royal succession" as well as an undercurrent exploration of the "ecological and existential" aspects of the "Circle of Life."^[8] Matzav Review described "Bigger" as an "ode to the natural riches of the African continent" whilst also serving as a tribute to Beyoncé's children, showing them the paraphrased "power of collective knowledge."^[9]

Music video

A music video was released on July 19, 2019, as the second part from an extended edition of the music video from "Spirit", the lead single from the album.

A second music video was released in Black Is King. It features snippets of the original video with new footage filmed specifically for the movie.

Charts

Chart (2019)	Peak position
US Hot R&B Songs (Billboard)^[10]	19
US R&B Digital Song Sales (Billboard)^[11]	22

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)^[12]	Gold	20,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

^ "The Lion King: The Gift / Beyoncé". Tidal. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
^ "The Lion King: The Gift / Beyoncé". 8o8wave. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
^ "Beyoncé Lion King album: The young Brit who wrote the first track". Newsbeat. July 22, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
^ "Raye talks new single Love Me Again and writing for Beyonce: "I've earned the right to put out an album"". Official Charts Company. August 2, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
^ "The moment Beyoncé told me the song I wrote was track 1 on the album." — @raye". Twitter. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
^ "Beyoncé told me I've written Track 1 on the new album ... it's called Bigger . I can't I can't". Twitter. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
^ "Watch the new visuals for Beyoncé's 'Bigger'". Dazed. July 21, 2019. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
^ "Beyoncé Remixed the Meaning of The Lion King". The Atlantic. July 26, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
^ "Beyoncé leads your children an honest important lesson in 'Bigger'". Matzav. March 28, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
^ "Beyoncé: Chart History: Hot R&B Songs". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Billboard.com.
^ "Beyoncé: Chart History: R&B Digital Song Sales Chart". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Billboard.com.
^ "Brazilian single certifications – Beyoncé – Bigger" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved January 4, 2022.

[:"creds"-1] "The Lion King: The Gift / Beyoncé". Tidal. Retrieved August 7, 2020.

[2] "The Lion King: The Gift / Beyoncé". 8o8wave. Retrieved August 7, 2020.

[3] "Beyoncé Lion King album: The young Brit who wrote the first track". Newsbeat. July 22, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.

[4] "Raye talks new single Love Me Again and writing for Beyonce: "I've earned the right to put out an album"". Official Charts Company. August 2, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.

[5] "The moment Beyoncé told me the song I wrote was track 1 on the album." — @raye". Twitter. Retrieved April 22, 2020.

[6] "Beyoncé told me I've written Track 1 on the new album ... it's called Bigger . I can't I can't". Twitter. Retrieved April 22, 2020.

[7] "Watch the new visuals for Beyoncé's 'Bigger'". Dazed. July 21, 2019. Retrieved April 24, 2020.

[8] "Beyoncé Remixed the Meaning of The Lion King". The Atlantic. July 26, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2020.

[9] "Beyoncé leads your children an honest important lesson in 'Bigger'". Matzav. March 28, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2020.

[10] "Beyoncé: Chart History: Hot R&B Songs". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Billboard.com.

[11] "Beyoncé: Chart History: R&B Digital Song Sales Chart". Billboard. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Billboard.com.

[BrazilBeyoncéBiggersingleCertRef-12] "Brazilian single certifications – Beyoncé – Bigger" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved January 4, 2022.

[1]

v t e Beyoncé songs
Discography
Dangerously in Love	"Crazy in Love" "Naughty Girl" "Baby Boy" "Me, Myself and I" "The Closer I Get to You" "Dangerously in Love 2" "Daddy"
B'Day	"Déjà Vu" "Get Me Bodied" "Suga Mama" "Upgrade U" "Ring the Alarm" "Kitty Kat" "Freakum Dress" "Green Light" "Irreplaceable" "Resentment" "Listen" "Check on It" "Beautiful Liar / Bello Embustero" "Welcome to Hollywood" "Flaws and All" "Still in Love (Kissing You)" "Amor Gitano"
I Am... Sasha Fierce	"If I Were a Boy" "Halo" "Broken-Hearted Girl" "Ave Maria" "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" "Radio" "Diva" "Sweet Dreams" "Video Phone" "Ego" "Honesty" "Why Don't You Love Me" "Poison"
4	"1+1" "I Care" "I Miss You" "Best Thing I Never Had" "Party" "Rather Die Young" "Start Over" "Love On Top" "Countdown" "End of Time" "I Was Here" "Run the World (Girls)" "Lay Up Under Me" "Schoolin' Life" "Dance for You"
Beyoncé	"Pretty Hurts" "Haunted" "Drunk in Love" "Blow" "No Angel" "Partition" "Jealous" "Rocket" "Mine" "XO" "Flawless" "Superpower" "Heaven" "7/11" "Ring Off" "Standing on the Sun" "Grown Woman"
Lemonade	"Pray You Catch Me" "Hold Up" "Don't Hurt Yourself" "Sorry" "6 Inch" "Daddy Lessons" "Love Drought" "Sandcastles" "Freedom" "All Night" "Formation"
The Lion King: The Gift	"Bigger" "Find Your Way Back" "Mood 4 Eva" "Brown Skin Girl" "Already" "Spirit" "Black Parade"
Renaissance	"Cozy" "Alien Superstar" "Cuff It" "Energy" "Break My Soul" "Plastic Off the Sofa" "Virgo's Groove" "Heated" "America Has a Problem" "Pure/Honey"
Cowboy Carter	"Blackbiird" "16 Carriages" "Texas Hold 'Em" "Bodyguard" "Jolene" "II Most Wanted" "Ya Ya"
As featured artist	"'03 Bonnie & Clyde" "Delresto (Echoes)" "Family Feud" "Feeling Myself" "Fighting Temptation" "Hollywood" "Hymn for the Weekend" "I Got That" "Just Stand Up!" "Lift Off" "Love a Woman" "Love in This Club Part II" "Make Me Say It Again, Girl" "Mi Gente" "Part II (On the Run)" "Put It in a Love Song" "Runnin' (Lose It All)" "Savage (Remix)" "Say Yes" "See Me Now" "Shining" "Telephone" "Top Off" "Until the End of Time" "Walk on Water" "What More Can I Give"
Other songs	"A Woman Like Me" "All I Could Do Was Cry" "Apeshit" "At Last" "Back to Black" "Be Alive" "Before I Let Go" "Boss" "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" "Die with You" "Fever" "God Bless the U.S.A." "I'd Rather Go Blind" "My House" "One Night Only" "Perfect Duet" "Pink + White" "Sexy Lil Thug" "So Amazing" "Sorry Not Sorry" "Summertime" "Wishing on a Star" "Work It Out"
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