US band OneRepublic’s new album Artificial Paradise has a track titled Singapore
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American pop rock band OneRepublic's song, Singapore, is from their latest and sixth album, Artificial Paradise.
PHOTO: NICK WALKER
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SINGAPORE – Singapore clearly left a lasting impression on American pop rock band OneRepublic, whose new album Artificial Paradise contains an instrumental track titled Singapore.
The three-minute orchestral number is layered and atmospheric, building up slowly before fading off with a melancholic, piano-led outro. According to the album credits, it was written and produced by the group’s keyboardist Brian Willett and Montreal-based producer-songwriter John Nathaniel.
On Reddit, the song has received praise from the band’s fans, who describe it as “pure magic” and “beautiful”. One user wrote: “This one is so transcendent, I got so many goosebumps.”
OneRepublic also comprise frontman Ryan Tedder, guitarists Zach Filkins and Drew Brown, drummer Eddie Fisher and bassist Brent Kutzle.
Best known for hits such as Apologize (2007), Stop And Stare (2008), Counting Stars (2013) and I Ain’t Worried (2022), the band have not made any statements about the song and if it is connected to the album title.
OneRepublic are no strangers to Singapore. They filmed several scenes of the music video for their 2023 single Runaway at Marina Bay Sands, and the song is also included in the 18-track Artificial Paradise, their sixth album released on July 12.
They have performed six times in Singapore and first played here at music festival SingFest in 2008.
In February 2023, they staged a concert at The Star Theatre and, in November that year, returned as one of the performing headliners at the Earthshot Prize Awards ceremony.
This is not the first time Singapore has been name-checked in song titles by international music acts.
In 1939, American jazz icon Frank Sinatra released On A Little Street In Singapore, written by American songwriters Peter DeRose and Billy Hill. It has been covered by other artistes, including American rock poet laureate Bob Dylan in 2016.
American singer-songwriter Tom Waits has a song called Singapore in his 1985 album Rain Dogs, as do British band Big Audio Dynamite in their 1995 album F-Punk.
More recently, American rapper Ken Carson included a song titled Singapore in his third and latest album, A Great Chaos, released in 2023.
