NDP favourite Home turned into funny song about deciding what to eat: 'Chicken rice or hokkien mee?'
National Day is coming again.
Released on May 23, Not Alone by Benjamin Kheng is the theme song for this year's National Day Parade (NDP).
But with the nation's 59th birthday less then two months away, another song seems to be winning Singaporeans' hearts, ears and maybe stomach.
It's the 26-year-old NDP favourite Home - but with a truly tasty twist.
In a video posted online on June 6, the parody performed by Siao Sing Songs changed Dick Lee-penned lyrics from patriotic to gastronomic. The song became about something we can all relate to - deciding what to eat.
Instead of "Whenever I am feeling low, I look around me and I know", the new lyrics were "When I am lonely and hungry, I 'jio' my friends to eat with me."
This was followed by "Maxwell Centre, Boon Tong Kee, for chicken rice or hokkien mee?"
Later in the song, a singer in the group asked: "How about economic rice? Zhe ge ('this' in Mandarin), na ge (that), zhe ge, na ge. If you want fish, you must think twice."
Another sang: "I want something really 'pedas' (spicy in Malay) and wash it down with Milo ice."
As the song came to end, the four-member group belted out in unison: "Let's order Grab delivery!"
One member feigned a protest: "Huh? Got platform fee."
Another singer delivered the punchline: "Just cook Maggi!"
The video on Instagram has received more than 2,800 likes including one from NDPeeps, which is the official NDP account.
NDPeeps commented: "All these lyrics about our favourite Singaporean food are making me hungry!"
A Redditor said: "So quirky and uniquely Singaporean! Truly local millennial humor at its peak."
Another netizen asked: "Can we have this in this year's NDP?"
But who are Siao Sing Songs, the people behind the parody?
Describing themselves as a "motley crew of creatives and performers" who "serve up cheeky parodies" of well-known songs, they are like Singapore's Weird Al Yankovic.
Earlier, Siao Sing Songs posted a video of a performance of their "ultimate NDP song", which was a medley of parody songs that included Rasa Sayang and Under The Sea (from The Little Mermaid).
Someone on TikTok commented on the video: "OH NoooooOOOOoooo I just want HOME and nothing else."
In response, Siao Sing Songs posted their version of Home with the food-fixated lyrics.
And the rest is makan history.
