The global coronavirus outbreak has postponed music events, tours, and festivals left and right. Fortunately, it has also spawned a variety of ingenious ways to keep people connected and sharing that much-needed positivity. Other people, however, have taken the current state of things to rework some of the songs we all know and love.
From tongue-in-cheek references to straight dark humor, here are some parodies of popular songs inspired by life in quarantine.
1. "Bohemian Rhapsody," by Queen
What started as Dana Jay Bein's reinterpretation of the "Bohemian Rhapsody" lyrics on Twitter would find its vocals with Adrian Grimes, and lo, a COVID-19 rework of Queen's six-minute epic was born.
It starts with "Is this a fever/ is this just allergies/ Caught in a lockdown/ No escape from the family" before dropping tips on staying safe by handwashing. The Bein-Grimes "Coronavirus Rhapsody" now has 4.5 million views on Adrian Grimes' YouTube channel.
2. "One Day More," from Les Miserables
One of the most momentous parts of the timeless classic "Les Misérables," from the stage to the screen, is the chorus performance that is "One Day More." One family from Kent, U.K., moved the narrative from the French Revolution to the shelter-in-place due to coronavirus.
The family performance, in all its theatrical glory, talks from "shopping for online delivery" and the kids having "no football match today." Even the kids being unable to see their grandparents and their friends fit perfectly along the Les Mis lines. The Marsh family rendition has been re-uploaded by multiple media outlets and has been featured in news shows in the UK.
3. "Hello," by Adele
Chris Mann makes quarantine both sad and funny with his social distancing version of an Adele original. Titled "Hello (from the Inside)," the singer-songwriter and "The Voice" sings from what appears to be his windows, "hello, it's me/ I'm in California dreaming about going out to eat."
His video is complete with flashbacks of days outside before calling "Hello from the inside/ It's just me and myself and I." He even questions the point of putting on pants and taking a bath in his full music video (he also sings his backup vocals!)
4. "I'll Be There For You," by the Rembrandts, from Friends
For those looking for an upbeat theme to put on loop this quarantine, Michael Rose's quarantined "Friends Theme" is a perfect choice. Originally by the 90s pop duo The Rembrandts, Rose and friends start the song with "So no one told you life was gonna be this way/ Your job's remote, you're broke, you're hiding from the plague."
It still keeps the songs promise but with social distancing, "I'll be there for you/ Standing six feet away." The music video features Rose and his three other friends playing from their homes and sharing their quirky quarantine experiences. He sings that it feels like we're always stuck in quarantine before adding, "And you might be there a day, a week, a month, or even a year," Rose sings.
5. "Little Town," from Beauty and the Beast
Another community song like "One More Day," but a bit more fun and lighter. During the first part of the Disney animated classic Beauty and the Beast, Belle goes to town and sings "Little Town" to the snide remarks of the village people.
Sharon Luxenburg takes the very scene with the people's bonjour replaced with "stay home." Belle, voiced over by Miri Zhavi, still receives the same snarky comments, but this time about her apparent disregard for safety measures. "I've yet to see a reckless fool quite like her/ without a mask or glove she goes... She's gonna get us all infected that is Belle," the quarantine-wary people sing.
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