Truth be told, “Only the Bulls” is fairly good in it’s own right as far as sports songs go (and I have done more than my fair share of research on bad sports songs). The original song has some – OK, plenty of – cheesiness to it, but it also hearkens back to nineties sports broadcast bumper music so it pretty much gets an automatic pass around here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZWAdR4QXtA
Adding hometown rapper Lupe Fiasco and Fallout Boy gives the song a “modern day” sheen which makes “Only The Bulls” feel more current on the one hand but so much less charming on the other. Pop power chords have their place in music but I’ll take the original’s unapologetic cheeriness and spunk over the remix’s harder edge (the drums are emphasized way too much in the remix). The key to good sports music is that it should never take itself too seriously and let’s just say that a lack of self-seriousness doesn’t really suit Lupe Fiasco well.
Bottom line: the remix is an unnecessary update to a perfectly fine sports song but it’s not a disaster by any stretch of the imagination. At the very least, it’s not “Let’s Ram It.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxkKlzInR4Y
