"Empire State Human" is a song by the British synth-pop group The Human League. The song was written by Philip Oakey, Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh. It was co-produced by The Human League and Colin Thurston, and recorded at Monumental Studios in Sheffield.
The song was the third single to be released by the original line-up of the Human League, and the only single from the band's 1979 debut album "Reproduction". Upon its first release in October 1979, the single failed to chart. However, it was re-released in June 1980 and fared slightly better, reaching number 62 in the UK Singles Chart. For the re-release, Virgin Records included a free copy of the single "Only After Dark" with the first 15,000 copies as a sweetener.
Lyrically, "Empire State Human" is a song about becoming powerful using the analogy of size, with Oakey declaring that he wants to be "tall" 60 times in 3 minutes. Uncut magazine drew a comparison with Oakey's own personal ambition:
The B-side, "Introducing", is an instrumental produced by The Human League. Oakey sang on the original recording but the vocals were not used on the released version.
The open shirted man on the cover artwork is band member Ian Craig Marsh's father.
It was used in the 2012 video game "Lollipop Chainsaw" in a minigame for the retro stage, and also featured on the game's original soundtrack.
In 2022 the song was used as the intro music on the "Surrender" book tour by U2 front man Bono. It was used again for the show's Broadway run in 2023.
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