Low Life

Album: VHS (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song features UK blues rocker Jamie N Commons with whom the band also worked with on their 2014 breakthrough hit "Jungle." X Ambassadors vocalist Sam Harris wrote the song with Commons and producer Alex Da Kid. Harris recalled in a track-by-track commentary: "This one was the first one that we ever wrote together and it started out pretty simply. Alex had the fundamentals for this track and I wrote this chorus over it with him and then he was in the studio with Jamie and he brought the song to Jamie and he just cut verses."
  • Harris explained the song's meaning: "It's a song about, you know, feeling like a scumbag, feeling like an a--hole. And no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, no matter how hard you work to move past it and become a better person, that's always going to be a part of you."
  • The song soundtracked the end credits of the Season Four Premiere of Showtime drama series Ray Donovan.
  • A remix of the song, titled "Low Life 2.0," was released on June 28, 2016 as the first single from VHS 2.0, the deluxe edition of VHS. This new version features additional vocals from rapper A$AP Ferg.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Tommy James

Tommy JamesSongwriter Interviews

"Mony Mony," "Crimson and Clover," "Draggin' The Line"... the hits kept coming for Tommy James, and in a plot line fit for a movie, his record company was controlled by the mafia.

The Fratellis

The FratellisSongwriter Interviews

Jon Fratelli talks about the band's third album, and the five-year break leading up to it.

JJ Burnel of The Stranglers

JJ Burnel of The StranglersSongwriter Interviews

JJ talks about The Stranglers' signature sound - keyboard and bass - which isn't your typical strain of punk rock.

Christopher Cross

Christopher CrossSongwriter Interviews

The man who created Yacht Rock with "Sailing" wrote one of his biggest hits while on acid.

Bands Named After Real People (Who Aren't In The Band)

Bands Named After Real People (Who Aren't In The Band)Song Writing

How a gym teacher, a janitor, and a junkie became part of some very famous band names.

70s Music Quiz 1

70s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

The '70s gave us Muppets, disco and Van Halen, all which show up in this groovy quiz.