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"Humility"
Remixes cover art
Single by Gorillaz featuring George Benson
from the album The Now Now
Released	31 May 2018 (2018-05-31)
Genre	Funk pop jazz pop yacht rock
Length	3:17
Label	Parlophone Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Damon Albarn George Benson
Producer(s)	Gorillaz James Ford Remi Kabaka Jr.
Gorillaz singles chronology
"Andromeda (D.R.A.M. Special)" (2017) "Humility" (2018) "Lake Zurich" (2018)
George Benson singles chronology
"Show Me the Love" (2010) "Humility" (2018)
Audio sample
file help
Music video
"Humility" on YouTube

"Humility" is a single by British virtual band Gorillaz featuring American jazz guitarist George Benson. It was released on 31 May 2018 along with "Lake Zurich" as the first single from their sixth studio album, The Now Now. On 12 July 2018, two remixes of the song by Superorganism and DJ Koze were released. It charted in a total of 8 countries reaching number 85 on the US Billboard Hot 100, with its highest position in any chart being number 7 in Billboard's Hot Rock Songs.

Promotion and release

The song was first announced on 30 May 2018 when Zane Lowe confirmed The Now Now's release and stated that Damon Albarn would be debuting the song on the Beats 1 program the following day. The next day, the song debuted with a music video featuring Jack Black and was digitally released along with another single, "Lake Zurich". On 13 May 2022, the music video was re-uploaded to the Gorillaz YouTube channel with commentary from virtual band member Murdoc Niccals.

Music video

The music video for the song was filmed in Venice Beach, Los Angeles, California and features Jack Black.

It begins with footage of 2-D roller-skating around Venice Beach interspersed with shots of Black playing a guitar. This sequence appears multiple times throughout the video, mainly in between the appearances of the different Gorillaz members. After the opening sequence, Noodle is shown checkmating Remi Kabaka, one of the producers for The Now Now and the voice actor of Russel, during a round of chess. Ace Copular (who replaced Murdoc while the latter was incarcerated) is then seen observing two men play basketball in front of a mural of George Benson. When the ball lands in his hands after a successful dunk by one of the players, he deflates it using a pocket knife, making it impossible for the game to continue. After this, various video clips of local residents are shown. Near the end of the video, Russel can be seen standing on the side of the boardwalk. When 2-D skates in his direction, he extends his leg and trips him. When 2-D recovers, his white eyes turn black, and he attempts to skate again, only to end up falling.

The video was produced by The Line in collaboration with Blinkink and Ruffian, with rotoscoping by Trace VFX. It was directed by Gorillaz co-creator Jamie Hewlett and co-directed by Tim McCourt, Max Taylor, and Evan Silver.

Remixes

On 12 July 2018, a single containing two remixes of the song by British indie pop band Superorganism and German EDM producer DJ Koze was released. The Superorganism remix adds lead singer Orono Noguchi's voice to the song along with a snippet of rap lyrics from another Gorillaz song, Clint Eastwood, while the DJ Koze remix is mostly instrumental.

Personnel

• Damon Albarn – vocals, synthesizer, guitar, additional drum programming
• George Benson – guitar, additional vocals
• James Ford – bass guitar, synthesizer, drums
• Remi Kabaka Jr. – percussion, drum programming
• John Davis – mastering engineer
• Mark DeCozio – additional engineering
• Samuel Egglenton – engineering assistant
• Stephen Sedgwick – mixing engineer, recording engineer, engineering

Charts

References

1. "REVIEW | The World's 'most successful virtual act', Gorillaz are back with their sixth studio album, 'The Now Now'". 30 June 2018. Archived from the original on 4 September 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
2. Smith, Thomas (27 June 2018). "Gorillaz – 'The Now Now' Review". NME. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
3. "Singles Club: Disco-funk, bubblegum pop and "a '90s girl group headlining a Balearic rave"". Fact. 5 June 2018. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
4. Kaufman, Gil (31 May 2018). "Gorillaz Share 'The Now Now' Album Track List, Drop 'Humility' Video". Billboard. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
5. Taylor, Chris (27 June 2018). "Damon Albarn questions everything on Gorillaz's surprisingly personal The Now Now". The Line of Best Fit. A melancholic air floats over the entire record, even in album opener "Humility". Hidden behind the yacht-rock dreaminess is an Albarn baring his soul.
6. Enos, Morgan (30 May 2018). "Gorillaz Announce Next Album 'The Now Now'". Billboard. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
7. Kaye, Ben (31 May 2018). "Gorillaz return with new singles "Humility" and "Lake Zurich": Stream". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
8. "Gorillaz drop video for new track 'Humility', give new album update". DIY. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2018.
9. ^ Jon, Blistein (31 May 2018). "Gorillaz Tap Jack Black for Vibrant New 'Humility' Video". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 3 June 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
10. "The Line Animation — Gorillaz – Humility". The Line.
11. Clarke, Patrick (12 July 2018). "Gorillaz share 'Humility' remixes by Superorganism and DJ Koze". NME. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
12. "Top 20 Anglo Argentina – Del 11 al 17 de Junio, 2018" (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 July 2018.
13. "Gorillaz feat. George Benson – Humility" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
14. "Gorillaz feat. George Benson – Humility" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
15. "Gorillaz Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
16. "Gorillaz feat. George Benson – Humility" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
17. "IRMA – Irish Charts". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
18. "Billboard Japan Hot Overseas" (in Japanese). Billboard Japan. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
19. "Gorillaz Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
20. "NZ Heatseeker Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 11 June 2018. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
21. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
22. "Gorillaz Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
23. "Gorillaz Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
24. "Gorillaz Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
25. "Hot Rock Songs - Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved 28 March 2020.

• 2018 songs
• 2018 singles
• Gorillaz songs
• George Benson songs
• Songs written by Damon Albarn
• Parlophone singles
• Warner Records singles
• Songs written by James Ford (musician)
• Songs written by Remi Kabaka Jr.
• Jazz fusion songs
• British funk songs
• Songs about loneliness