![]() ![]() “For the past quarter century, EA Sports FIFA has been a destination for new music from up-and-coming artists and superstars alike,” says Steve Schnur, president, music at EA. The 100-song mix includes the most popular tunes to ever be featured on a soundtrack for any installment in EA Sports’ long-running soccer video game franchise. True music globalization is finally here, and it was "FIFA" that forever changed the game.Tracks including Muse‘s “Supermassive Black Hole,” Blur‘s “Song 2” and Kaleo‘s “Way Down We Go” are included on the “Ultimate FIFA Soundtrack” playlist. There is no record deal, endorsement or music video that can compare to the instantaneous/extended exposure it provides. "FIFA" is the number one selling sports videogame franchise on the planet and the premier showcase for international artists in the world today. SS: The artists receive a licensing fee, but that’s not why each and every one of them sees this as the opportunity of a lifetime. Pitchfork: Are the artists compensated for being selected, how if so? SS: Right now I’m listening to orchestral cues for our upcoming Star Wars titles, Swedish Elecro-Pop, Chilean Hip-Hop, an unsigned Lower East Side rock band for next year’s Madden, some Italian Trance, Stephen Barton’s original score for Titanfall, and my old Hoodoo Gurus albums. Pitchfork: What are you listening to right now? And I knew from the very first moment I heard CHVRCHES that I would put them in the next possible "FIFA". ![]() Disclosure has been a favorite of mine since their first single in 2010. Robert Delong is another favorite, and his music- which integrates traditional percussion, gaming controllers and MIDI interface- needs to be introduced to the world. We’re debuting a track from the album he’s doing with Alex Da Kid, and I think his folk/blues sound will really resonate. Pitchfork: Who’s your favorite artist on the soundtrack? And hearing 50,000 fans in the stands simultaneously react to a K’naan song that we first introduced in the game is an indescribable feeling. Because of our partnership with the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, our soundtrack music is used at all league-sanctioned matches around the world. My favorite feedback comes from stadium crowds. SS: Certainly there’s a lot of Armchair A&R, though the feedback we get is almost consistently positive. ![]() In the 10 years since, "FIFA" has introduced the Black Keys, K’naan, Chromeo, Datarock, MGMT, Lykke Li, Bloc Party, The Ting Tings, Franz Ferdinand, Foster The People, Ladytron, Robyn, Shiny Toy Guns, Damian Marley, Airborne Toxic Event, Matt & Kim, the Temper Trap, Two Door Cinema Club, Grouplove, Imagine Dragons, Crystal Fighters, Kimbra and plenty more. It was also the year that Radiohead- who were notoriously reluctant to license their music to anyone- wanted to be part of the soundtrack simply because they had become such huge fans of what was happening with the game. The next year in "FIFA 2004", we introduced Kasabian, the Raveonettes and Kings of Leon to European audiences. ![]() All four became international successes almost immediately, and their labels, publishers and the artists themselves believe that their appearance in our soundtrack was key. It had 14 songs by then-unknown artists I believed in, including Avril Lavigne, Ms. SS: My first FIFA soundtrack was "FIFA 2003", which came out in 2002 but we started working on it in late 2001. Pitchfork: How long have you been overseeing FIFA’s soundtrack? ![]()
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