SINGAPORE - Music is always there to soundtrack our lives, through the heartbreaks and triumphs. And it is still here for us in this time of Covid-19.
Even before the pandemic blew up, there were already new songs appearing on Kiss92's playlist that were eerily prescient. A young upstart from New Zealand calling herself Benee released her debut hit single Supalonely and man-of-the-moment Lauv has been emo'ing across the airwaves with his latest song Modern Loneliness.
But it is certainly not only the new tracks which fit nicely into a megamix to accompany the Covid life we are all living. It was 1996 when Celine Dion released her version of All By Myself, a song which at that time was already 20 years old. You can Google an adorable video of a 4-year-old boy called Bryson from America - who is secretly videoed by his mom - singing this song to himself while stuck at home, mournfully making the world's saddest peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
There are other reports from around the world of a spike in the popularity of certain songs during this troubled time. R.E.M.'s It's The End Of The World As We Know It is apparently shooting up the streaming charts. I find it truly bizarre that people would want to hear a gloomy song at this depressing time, but hey, apparently 2011 thriller film Contagion is a big hit on our television screens too, so what do I know.
Personally, I prefer to roll up my sleeves and forge ahead with some real life, with practical songs that we can apply to our everyday behaviour. Bette Midler deserves a career resurgence with her evergreen ballad From A Distance. I also think they should programme the stereo system on the MRT to blare Don't Stand So Close To Me by The Police on repeat. And it would be wise for the still busy supermarkets to loop MC Hammer down the aisles. Hey, if you can play the Chinese New Year ditty Gong Xi Gong Xi every minute of every day from Christmas onwards, you can just as easily pummel our ears with the 1990's rap classic U Can't Touch This.
Do take note that while some songs make great additions to your Covid playlist, some famous tracks should be avoided at all costs.
The Beatles' I Wanna Hold Your Hand? No sir, offer rejected. Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline isn't so sweet when you realise how many hands are touching hands, and reaching out and touching more hands. As for 1980s band The Divinyls, they have always courted controversy with their best known hit I Touch Myself. I'll allow it for now, but I would warn against touching your face. Maybe you can update the lyrics to 'I touch myself, after sanitiser'.
Alanis Morissette famously proclaimed that she's got 'one hand in my pocket' (okay, permissible) 'and the other one is giving a high five' (and you see, there you've gone and crossed the line into a Covid infraction). Definitely no high fives. A bump of elbows if you absolutely must have some human touch, but ideally no contact at all. You Oughta Know better, Alanis - you have another song called Hands Clean for goodness sake.
It's a bizarre time to live in, with an unprecedented use of the word "unprecedented" in global media. You might be bored of the Fifth Harmony hit Work From Home or you might be a parent getting red in the face to Alice Cooper's School's Out while you yell algebra at your 12-year-old. But try to remember that this mysterious, off-beat, improvised jazz interlude in the Broadway score that is mankind's history will one day pass.
And for now, I advise you to throw on an old vinyl of Gloria Gaynor and sing loudly from your balcony: I Will Survive.
Shan Wee is a Kiss92 DJ with SPH Radio.
