The first verse, pre-chorus and chorus follows, using a simple chord progression of Fm–C7. The same pattern occurs leading to the second chorus. At the end of the song, a spoken bridge precedes the third chorus, and then closes by repeating the chorus for a fourth time. Lyrically, "Spice Up Your Life" have been described as an "international rally cry" by Music Week, aimed at a global audience. Melanie C commented about the inspiration behind the song's theme: "We always wanted to do a carnival tune and write a song for the world". Some critics considered the song to be an example of branding or "sloganeering", while the lyrical content has been labeled as dance oriented ("Slam it to the left / If you’re having a good time / Shake it to the right / If you know that you feel fine"), with a self-promoting message ("Every boy and girl / Spice up your life"). The song includes mentions of different dance styles during the bridge ("Flamenco / Lambada / But hip-hop is harder / We moonwalk the foxtrot / Then polka the salsa / Shake Shake Shake haka"), and lyrics in Japanese, Spanish and German at the end of each chorus ("Hai, si, ja"). The lines "Yellow man in Timbuktu / Colour for both me and you" during the second verse have received criticism for its racist connotation. El Hunt from NME called it "regrettable", while The Irish Times and The Guardian referred to them as "woeful lyrics". Release and promotion The promotional campaign for the release of "Spice Up Your Life" began the last week of September 1997, when the song started to receive airplay across Europe. On 6 October, the Spice Girls officially unveiled all the tracks from Spiceworld in a press conference in Granada, Spain. The same week, they appeared on the British television programmes Talking Telephone Numbers, GMTV, and The Big Breakfast. The single was originally going to be released in the United Kingdom on 6 October 1997, but the date was delayed for a week in an attempt to displace Elton John's "Candle in the Wind 1997"—a tribute to Princess Diana, who had died two months before—from the top position. "Spice Up Your Life" was commercially released in the UK on 13 October 1997, in two single versions. The first one, released in cassette and CD maxi single format, included two radio mixes, one