The track was used by Barack Obama as the entrance theme for his presidential candidacy announcement in Springfield , Illinois , on 10 February 2007 , and it was played before his acceptance speech at the 2008 Democratic National Convention . Obama frequently used it as the lead-in as he took the stage for campaign events during the 2008 U.S. presidential election , a spectacle that even convinced one student to vote for him , and played it on primary night rallies with supporters . In August 2008 , Obama listed " City of Blinding Lights " as one of his ten favourite songs . In his dissertation , music student Jacob Charron speculated that the music used by Obama on the campaign trail was selected because it would not upset the older voters and would be recognizable to the younger voters . The song was also valuable for its global image , ringing guitar line , and suggestions of awakening
2008 Democratic National Convention
2008 Democratic National Convention
City of Blinding Lights