I used to hate the idea of choosing a favorite. Besides my favorite color (green), I used to think that picking favorites of anything else was impossible. There was just way too much to choose from, I thought, and I didn’t have the guts to narrow it down and choose only one when there were so many amazing options. In the past, for music, I’ve broken songs up into favorites from a certain artist or of a specific genre, and that’s as close as I’ve gotten.

But God damn it, I’ve decided: my favorite song is “Africa” by Toto.

It’s been covered by Weezer, parodied by a family frustrated with algebra, and referenced on South Park. And yes, it’s a meme as well. There’s a bot on Twitter dedicated solely to posting one line of its lyrics at a time, all the time. It’s done everything from curing depression to becoming a relationship deal-breaker (jokingly, of course). Whether you like the song or not, no one can deny that it has swept across the internet and taken all of us along for the ride.

Why?

Well, I’ll let you Google that on your own time. People have different answers to that question. There are tweets, articles, and hell, even analyses of the music itself that come to various conclusions, down to the significance of the chords it uses.

Yet I think we can point to a few, key aspects. It’s catchy without being annoying and cheesy without sacrificing its charm. It’s actually rather emotional and powerful, particularly when the chorus starts. It doesn’t make much sense when you listen to the words and take them at face value; however, the lyrics are chock full of some pretty amazing imagery, and when you sing them, you somehow don’t feel ridiculous.

Ultimately, though, I think “Africa”, like many internet sensations, has brought people together during a time when they’re being torn apart. Through sharing the memes, a lot of people are sharing the same sense of humor. They’re enjoying the same thing and agreeing on something, for once. It’s uplifting. It’s the feel-good song of the moment, much like “Don’t Stop Believin'” was 10 years ago. What is it about ’80s music that inspires such a feeling in people at just the right time? I can tell you that our current ’80s nostalgia, popping up in all forms of media, can’t be the only reason.

Anyway, that’s what I believe regarding the internet at large. But why is “Africa” my personal favorite song?

I love everything about it, and all of it is flawless. I like all of the elements I previously mentioned as well. It’s damn near perfect on a technical level, from the rhythm to the vocals and instruments. Its composition makes it a whimsical, unique piece of music. Most importantly, though, I think it’s a spiritual song. By that, I mean that this song embodies the human spirit. I could go through the song’s lyrics one by one and tell you how each of them strikes me as an individual comment on human nature. I’ll merely pick the following as an example:

I know that I must do what’s right, As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti.

Seriously… I read that line and sing it, and I can’t help but think that it’s the very pinnacle of man’s inherent ability to do the utmost good. It’s much like those classic books we all had to read in school: we draw our own messages from an author’s content, even when he or she didn’t really have anything to say. I’m sure that Toto had no intention of being that deep; that’s just what I’m taking away from it. They simple wrote about loving a place and longing to go there.

I might be high on its supply or laughing too much at its memes. Yet I can’t skip it on my shuffle or miss it on the radio. Ever. “Africa” by Toto is my favorite song.