PHOTO: BBC
While Baby Shark has existed since 2007, the 2016 cover has recently gone viral. The video, posted on YouTube by a channel named Pinkfong, has been watched over 1.6 billion times. The combined views and playtime on streaming services has pushed the song into UK Top 40.
PHOTO: DEVIANT ARTCurrently, Baby Shark is at number 37, just below This is Me by Keala Settle and I Like It by Cardi B.
Like other viral hits such as Gangnam Style, This is America, In My Feeling and many others, it has initiated a dance craze as well. And it's not usual for viral songs from the internet to top the UK charts but it seems like there's something special about Baby Shark.
PHOTO: FANPOPSongwriter Jin Jin who was written songs for Clean Bandit, Jess Glynne and many others, said that Baby Shark contains key elements needed for good songwriting. "A pop song definitely needs a big hook. That's the most important thing. It's got the repetition and the do do do do do is a global, international language. Any country or language can relate to that."
Jin also praised the simplicity of the song, adding that it's something professional songwriters aim for with their work. "It's super simple. Often when I'm writing, we come up with an idea, we throw everything at it and then strip it back. We take out as much as we can to make sure the song can still stand at the end of it," she explained.
PHOTO: QUARTZWhile the songwriter concluded that she would be starting her next writing session with "a little bit of Baby Shark," it's important to realise that the song has a sinister side as well. The original version featured extra lyrics about a swimmer who tragically bleeds to death after his leg is bitten off.
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