Theatre
By Numbers
The Lion King by numbers: Every song in the stage musical of The Lion King
Here’s your breakdown of every song on the West End soundtrack of The Lion King
With both Elton John and Hans Zimmer on the soundtrack, The Lion King had to be a hit. The Disney musical has played over 10,000 performances at the Lyceum Theatre, and the number just keeps going up. Its reputation as a visual treat is highly deserved, but it’s the music in The Lion King that will stick in your head for months afterwards. Featuring all the beloved songs from the film, the stage show also adds a number of new tracks, and utilises multiple languages, including Swahili, Zulu and Sotho. Here’s your guide to all the songs in The Lion King.
‘Circle Of Life’
A lot of us can recite the famous Zulu chant that opens the show phonetically, but most don’t know what it means. The literal translation is pretty appropriate:
Here comes a lion, Father
Oh yes, it’s a lion
We’re going to conquer
A lion and a leopard come to this open place
As the chant suggests, the show opens with all the animals gathering to celebrate the birth of Simba, the new ‘lion king’. Rafiki, the mandrill who serves as the show’s narrator, sings about the cyclical nature of life, and how everyone has to go through ups and downs to find where they belong.
Key lyric: “Til we find our place/On the path unwinding/In the circle, the circle of life”
‘Grasslands Chant’
Now a lively cub, Simba is taken by his father on a walk through the grasslands, to see the Pride Lands from the top of Pride Rock. As he goes, the other animals around him ask him, in Zulu, to lead well.
Key lyric: “Busa ngo thando bo/Busa lomhlaba” (“Rule with love/Rule this soil”)
‘The Morning Report’
Mufasa’s fussy hornbill advisor, Zazu, gives Mufasa an update on the state of things in the Pride Lands. As Zazu goes on and on, Simba crouches low in the grass and practices pouncing on him, with encouragement from his father.
Key lyric: “This is the morning report/Gives you the long and the short”
‘The Lioness Hunt’
After Simba has a conversation with his scheming uncle Scar, who sparks his interest in the dangerous elephant graveyard, the lionesses prepare to go hunting. Their hunt will leave Simba and his friend Nala to their own devices. This percussive track begins the momentum of the hunt, with the lionesses predicting victory in Xhosa and Zulu.
Key lyric: “Hotonoba! Hotonoba!” (“Victory! Victory!”)
‘I Just Can’t Wait To Be King’
Trying to shake off Zazu, their overattentive babysitter, Simba and Nala sing about the freedom they’ll have when Simba sits on the throne, and fantasise about not having to answer to anyone. Of course, Simba’s flippant impatience to be king will be sadly answered later in the story…
Key lyric: “Free to run around all day/Free to do it all my way”
‘Chow Down’
Having shaken off Zazu, Simba and Nala make it to the elephant graveyard and meet hyenas Banzai, Shenzi and Ed. The hyenas corner the lion cubs, threatening to make a meal out of them.
Key lyric: “It’s so incredible/That you’re so rude/When you’re so edible”
‘They Live In You’
Simba and Nala are rescued by Mufasa, who is disappointed in Simba’s disobedience. He tells him that the great kings of the past watch over Simba from the stars and that Simba has a responsibility to do them proud. The ensemble implore Simba to ‘mamela’, which means ‘listen’ in Sotho. This song was one of the major additions to the soundtrack for the stage production, penned by Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, and Lebo M.
Key lyric: “In every creature/In every star/In your reflection/They live in you”
‘Be Prepared’
Annoyed that his attempt to harm Simba was unsuccessful, Scar relates his plan to the hyenas. He intends to take the throne for himself, and to do so he needs both Mufasa and Simba out of the way. Bribing the hyenas with the promise of unlimited food, Scar secures their allegiance and plots the deaths of his brother and nephew. Featured in the original film, this is a classic Disney villain song, letting the audience know that peace is about to be disturbed.
Key lyric: “I know it sounds sordid, but you’ll be rewarded/When at last I am given my dues”
‘The Stampede’
Promising an incredible surprise, Scar takes Simba to a gorge and tells him to wait there. This musical number starts with a scream, as the hyenas spark a wildebeest stampede into the gorge. The chorus chant the Zulu word ‘yona’, meaning ‘here it comes’. Mufasa gets to the gorge in time to rescue Simba, but Scar pushes him back into the stampede. The number ends with the chorus singing a short phrase in Swahili, translated below.
Key lyric: “Baba, wa mi baba” (“Father, oh my father”)
‘Rafiki Mourns’
Simba escapes, but the rest of the Pride Lands believe that both he and Mufasa are dead. Rafiki sings this lament in Zulu before the lionesses join in for a grief-filled chant.
Key lyric: “Madi ao/Leka sebete chia ho oele sebatha/Mo leka geme o tsaba hoa” (“The royal blood has been spilled/The courageous subjects will avenge the king’s death”)
‘Hakuna Matata’
Despite the tragedy, Act One ends on an uplifting note with this feel-good number. After collapsing from heat exhaustion far from home, Simba is discovered by Pumbaa the warthog and Timon the meerkat. They put him on a new (all-bug) diet and raise him to be carefree and happy in the jungle with the aid of their favourite phrase, “Hakuna matata”, a Swahili phrase that roughly translates to ‘no worries’.
This number transitions Simba from childhood to adulthood, with the actor playing Young Simba exiting midway through the number and being replaced by an older actor.
Key lyric: “It’s our problem-free philosophy/Hanuka matata”
‘One By One’
Act Two begins with a visually arresting sequence in which the colour and life of the Pride Lands is slowly replaced by decay and emptiness. The Circle of Life is not functioning as it should now that Scar is on the throne, and the Pride Lands are suffering from a drought. Nonetheless, the ensemble sings a song of resistance in Zulu.
Key lyric: “Ibabeni njalo bakithi/Ninga dinwa/Ninga phelelwa nga mandla/Siya ba bona/Bebe fun’ ukusi xeda” (“Hold on tight, my people/Don’t get weary/Don’t lose your strength/We can see/They wanted to hold us back”)
‘The Madness Of King Scar’
Having imprisoned Zazu, Scar pours out his woes – he can’t understand why he isn’t adored by the Pride Lands. Slipping into madness, he tries to ignore the hyenas’ complaints about the lack of food. When Zazu dares to say Mufasa’s name, he starts to feel haunted by his dead brother and imagines he sees his shadow. He tries to claim Nala as his mate, but the now grown-up Nala rejects him, striking him across the face.
There are a few sly Shakespearean references across the soundtrack, as a nod to the fact that The Lion King is a retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Here, Scar makes the most pointed allusion to the play, quoting “there’s the rub” from Hamlet’s famous ‘to be or not to be’ soliloquy.
Key lyric: “I’m better than Mufasa was/I’m revered – I am reviled/I’m idolized – I am despised/I’m keeping calm – I’m going wild!”
‘Shadowland’
After her encounter with Scar, Nala realises that there’s no reasoning with him, and all she can do is leave her pride to go and find help. Heartbroken to walk away from her home in its time of need, she mourns the paradise that it used to be. The lionesses repeat the Zulu phrase “Fatshe leso lea halalela,” meaning “The land of our ancestors is holy.”
Key lyric: “I cannot stay here, my family/But I’ll remember my pride”
‘Endless Night’
Sleeping in the jungle with Pumbaa and Simon, Simba sings to the stars, asking his father to show him the way. He feels at a loss, cut off from everything he used to know and without purpose. However, the song ends on a hopeful note, as he trusts that the sun will rise on his life again one day.
Key lyric: “Sleepless, I dream of the day/When you were by my side/Guiding my path/Father, I can’t find the way”
‘Can You Feel The Love Tonight’
Simba and Nala reunite, both grown-up, and realise that there might be romantic feelings between them. Timon and Pumbaa lament the fact that Simba now might leave them for Nala as the two lions get to know each other again. Simba struggles to open up to Nala about what he’s been through, and Nala is frustrated that Simba hasn’t yet grown into the king she knows he could be.
Key lyrics: “It’s enough for this restless wanderer/Just to be with you”
‘He Lives In You (Reprise)’
Conflicted about whether to return to the Pride Lands and confront Scar, Simba encounters Rafiki, who reprises Mufasa’s earlier song about the great kings of the past to remind Simba that his father is now one of them, watching over him. Feeling connected to his father, Simba is imbued with the courage he needs to face Scar and decides to return with Nala.
Key lyrics: “He lives in you/He lives in me/He watches over/Everything we see”
‘King Of Pride Rock/Circle Of Life (Reprise)’
Having returned and defeated Scar, Simba assumes his role as king of the Pride Lands. The other animals sing in Zulu asking him to rule well. The show ends with a brief reprise of ‘Circle Of Life’, emphasising that everything is now in its rightful place once again.
Key lyrics: “Hem na nkosi bo/Busa Simba iyo” (“Rule, our king/Rule, Simba”)
Disney’s The Lion King is currently playing at the Lyceum Theatre – find tickets here
