Music is indeed the universal language. And there’s no better evidence of that than this week as FIFA World Cup 2026 fever amps up globally — accompanied by a host of related music projects. One such project is being helmed by Grammy Award-winning songwriter-producer RedOne.
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“Follow Me” features French Montana, TWICE’s Jihyo, Ludmilla, Adriana C and the producer himself.
Also appearing in the anthem’s upcoming video is an A-list roster of soccer players. That lineup includes Ronaldo R9 (Brazil), Brahim Diaz (Morocco), Federico Valverde (Uruguay) and Denzel Dumefries (The Netherlands). Arriving June 12 via RedOne’s 2101 Records/Vydia, “Follow Me” is available for pre-save now.
In addition, RedOne cowrote and produced the 2026 World Cup anthem/national team fight song for the country of Jordan. “Alnashama” — Arabic for “the brave ones” — features artists Yara Mustafa and Husain Al Salman. The song also marks a momentous achievement for Jordan: Its national team is making its first World Cup appearance.
“Music and sports are the two most powerful global languages we have,” RedOne tells Billboard. “When they intersect, you don’t just create a song or a game — you create a moment that the entire world feels at the same time. In today’s global music climate, that shared emotional experience is everything. It’s culture, unity, love and energy — and it travels instantly across borders.”
Ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026, RedOne released another global project, A.W.A.M. (Allah al-Watan al-Malek), last December. In underscoring the global sound of African culture and unity, A.W.A.M spun off three singles in conjunction with the monthlong Africa Cup of Nations Tournament (December 2025-January 2026). RedOne is featured on all three tracks, which included “Africa” (Akon, Yemi Alade, French Montana and Innoss’B); “Le Show” (Ayra Starr, Davido and French Montana) and “We Gonna Dance” (Ne-Yo & Asma Lmnawar).
RedOne explains that A.W.A.M translates from Arabic to “God, Homeland, King. It’s the national motto of Morocco, commonly used to express patriotism and loyalty to the throne and often seen inscribed on mountainsides and buildings.”
RedOne — whose credits include Lady Gaga, Enrique Iglesias and One Direction — has stationed himself at the burgeoning intersection of music and sports. Among his credits in that arena are FIFA World Cup 2022’s “Dreamers” by Jung Kook and the 2025 NBA Finals anthem “The Days” by Lil Wayne and Bono, plus creating music for the Qatar World Cup.
“My role — and my goal — has always been to help create unique songs, sounds and stories with artists in pop and R&B/hip-hop that amplify each artist’s individual style and brand,” says RedOne. “Music is about connection. The intersection of music and sports gives us the biggest global stages and widest audiences possible. And that’s where culture shifts happen.”
