As Chinese New Year rolls around, we are all immersed in the festive spirit. However, you would be amused to discover the release of a Chinese New Year song sung in Malay…by Malay singers.
The song, “Dong Dong Qiang”, was released by MVM music on 7 Jan and has garnered 687,000 views at the time of writing.
For good reason.
The music video boasts vibrant costumes, catchy tunes and depictions of CNY customs, though the highlight of the show would be its Bahasa Melayu lyrics.
Winning Hearts In Malaysia
In a never-before-seen performance, this is the first time Malays are pictured singing the familiar tune, according to producer Pan Jun Xiang.
“We show the audience that Malays are more than happy to integrate with Chinese culture and there is no racial discrimination here,” he said.
Having earned the title of the “fourth trending video for music”, many Malaysians have left encouraging comments—the most salient being “I’m proud to be a Malaysian.” As an expression of gratitude, many have also left thanks for the production team.
This production has also helped spread the joy of traditional clothes—one of the singers, Beby Acha, was thrilled to wear a cheongsam in the video.
Here’s the video:
Racial Unity Message Not By Design
Music producer and composer Nevin Hiong mentioned that when“the owner of the record label MVM Production reached out to me to produce a Chinese New Year song for his Malay artistes, he didn’t specify that it should be in Bahasa Melayu.”
He was only required to follow three requirements – the song should contain the customary “gong xi ni”, “dong dong qiang”, and “huat ah”.
Even though various aspects of Malay culture and Chinese practices were blended into a blissful concoction—red lanterns, Malay drums, and Chinese calligraphy—promoting racial harmony was not part of a deliberate plan.
Nonetheless, depicting this cross-cultural experience had been influential.
“Our original intention was to produce a Chinese New Year song, but now it has evolved into a patriotic song,” he mentioned.
Other Instances
There are also other instances of productions that help unite different races. One example of this is the “Singapore Medley”, which features a mash-up of familiar Singaporean tunes.
You can watch it here:
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Featured Image: YouTube (MVM MUSIC)