[18] During an appearance on the radio station KROQ-FM, Steve Porcaro and Lukather described the song as "dumb" and "an experiment" and some of the lyrics as "goofy" that were just placeholders, particularly the line about the Serengeti.
However, after Sony found out that the song was gaining traction in New York dance clubs, they decided to release it as another single, further cementing the popularity of Toto IV in the process.
Steve Porcaro, the band's synth player, introduced Paich to the Yamaha CS-80, a polyphonic analog synthesizer, and instructed him to write a song specifically with the keyboard in mind.
[13] Jeff Porcaro also acknowledged that he was influenced by the sounds created by fellow Los Angeles session musicians Milt Holland and Emil Richards.
[22] In the chorus, he "[blesses] the rains down in Africa"; several other references to other parts of the continent are made throughout, such as "wild dogs [crying] out in the night" and "Kilimanjaro [rising]... above the Serengeti" (which are, in reality, about an eight-hour drive apart).
[23] Stereogum writer Tom Breihan interpreted the song's Africa as an "extended metaphor" – a "stand-in [for] a thing that you long for even before you've said goodbye to it", and therefore potentially a partial allusion to Paich's own "rock stardom... that kept him apart from anything resembling a normal life".
[24] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone interpreted it differently as a song about "modern alienation", with the speaker "lost in time and space": he "doesn't know a thing about Africa, except it has to be better than the nightmare where he's trapped right now".
As he continues his search, a female librarian (portrayed by Jenny Douglas-McRae) working at a nearby desk takes occasional notice of him, while an African man in a generic tribal outfit carrying a shield that matches the picture begins to close in on the library from the surrounding jungle.
The scenes are intercut with shots of a globe and the band performing atop a stack of giant hardcover books, in which Africa is the topmost.
[9] Breihan described it as "almost shockingly racist", but nonetheless found that it "succeeds at its goal of making Toto seem visually compelling and translating the over-the-top drama of "Africa" into something cinematic.
"[24] The song was popular upon its release, hitting number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1983, and also reaching the top 10 in many other worldwide record charts.
452 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time", being acclaimed as a "yacht-rock touchstone" and receiving praise for its "instantly calming synthesiser riff" and "soaring chorus".
Ultimately giving it an 8/10 rating, he noted the song's "perfectly ridiculous act of hubris" in its "hackneyed, overwrought" lyrics comparing the 'Africa' depicted to Paich's supposed yearning for a "normal life", but acclaimed its complete lack of "self-consciousness" and confidence in its premise, lauding its "ultra-ridiculous synth-gloop" and "operatic" chorus.
Stereogum writer Vivek Maddala argued that "it's not hard to view [the song] as an expression of a glib neo-colonial mentality" and a "Rudyard Kipling 'White Man's Burden'-type narrative", especially with the lyrics being written in an "awkward, reductive way", but nevertheless noted that Paich wrote it "from a benign (if naïve) standpoint".
[4] Michael Hann of the Financial Times claimed that the lyrics are "filled with false nostalgia and riddled with errors", referencing the unrealistic line "as sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti", and even referred to the marimba and "cod-African solos" which might also be perceived as cultural appropriation.
[9] The song has been utilized in many internet memes,[31] has appeared in television shows, such as Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, Stranger Things, Family Guy, Chuck, The Cleveland Show, Top Gear and South Park, and was used by CBS during their 2013 coverage of the funeral of former South African President Nelson Mandela, albeit not without controversy.
"[34] "Africa" saw a resurgence in popularity via social media during the mid- to late 2010s, inspiring numerous Internet memes as well as a fan-requested cover by American rock band Weezer which peaked at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Though he admits that he "sometimes hates" it, having played it "since 1982", Lukather has notably been surprised over the evergreen popularity of "Africa", which he claims has "outlived [Toto's] haters and been very good to [him]".
Paich notes that the band "has a good sense of humour about [themselves]" regarding the many references to the song in media; Lukather remarks his amusement at a portrayal of himself playing "Africa" on South Park.
According to Paich, the band has also received complaints concerning the ridiculousness of the song, but prefers to "laugh it off"; he especially maintains his view that one can see Kilimanjaro from the Serengeti.
Contrary to the criticism, he remarks that people from Johannesburg and Cape Town have asked him how he was able to "describe" the place "so beautifully", despite not having visited Africa at the time.
In December 2017, Twitter user "@WeezerAfrica," run by 14-year-old Cleveland, Ohio resident Mary Klym,[79] tweeted, "@RiversCuomo it's about time you bless the rains down in Africa."
[84] Toto responded on August 9, 2018, by releasing a cover of Weezer's 2001 single "Hash Pipe", after debuting it in concert a week prior.
[88] Despite its warm reception, Toto guitarist Steve Lukather said in January 2025 that he was not a fan of the cover, claiming that Cuomo did it for the money with no real affection for the song.