THE UMBRELLA PLAYLIST: WHEN MUSIC IS MORE THAN ENTERTAINMENT

September 24th, 2015

The Umbrella Playlist: when music is more than entertainment by Wen Yau

There has been a joke among protesters that the song “Under a Vast Sky” (海闊天空) is the civil anthem of Hong Kong.  The song was originally written by Wong Ka Kui for his pop-rock band Beyond in the summer 1993, and became a legend after Wong accidentally fell to death on a Japanese TV programme a few weeks later.  The lyrics illustrate a daring and insistent passion for freedom and the ideal, in spite of difficulties, and it represents the spirits of civil struggles in Hong Kong.  Echoing the protestors’ apology to others being influenced by the occupation in the Umbrella Movement, the lines, “forgive me for being wild and yearning for freedom, yet fearing someday I might fall down… Oh NO!” (原諒我這一生不覊放縱愛自由，那會怕有一天會跌到⋯⋯Oh NO!) best demonstrates the rebellious yet humble and gentle character of the peaceful civil disobedience protesters in Hong Kong.  For years this song has been sung collectively in numerous protests and even young students who were born after the song was written can sing along to it.

Besides “Under a Vast Sky,” the song “Hold Up the Umbrellas” (撐起雨傘) has been a popular theme song of the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong.  The song was written by Pan and Albert Leung, featuring Cantopop singers Denise Ho (aka Hocc) and Anthony Wong.  This was the second song made by various pop singers for social-political cause after “For Freedom” (為自由) for the Tiananmen Square protest in 1989.  Ho and Wong are well aware of their influences as pop singers. They have spoken out in favor of the gay and lesbian rights movement in Hong Kong over the last two years and are actively involved in the Umbrella Movement.

The song “Hold Up the Umbrellas” is dedicated to the Umbrella Movement and therefore is more deliberate in its content so as to unite the people by sharing the fear and anxiety in solidarity under the umbrellas.  Music is often used in nonviolent protests as it helps soothe the emotional tension and boost protesters’ morale through collective effervescence or aesthetic experiences. When sung together during the protests, people develop a sense of belonging and mutual support by sharing each other’s feelings.  There are also numerous songs written by protestors or supporters during the Umbrella Movement, but the celebrity singers featured in this song and some of their active participation made the song representative of the movement.  The song was also recently voted ‘My Most Favourite Song of 2014’ on a landslide in one of the major pop music awards in Hong Kong.

There is often criticism by radicals that singing and other festive activities would make protests futile and imprudent, especially when there were threats of gangsters’ attacks and police’s crackdown at the beginning of occupation in Hong Kong. This may be true if we neglect the aesthetic experience created by the arts and the people’s agency.  In the Umbrella Movement, lyrics of some pop songs such as “Embracing Freedom in the Storm” (風雨中抱緊自由, from Beyond’s Glorious Days 光輝歲月), and ‘Born in troubled times, there is a responsibility’ (生於亂世有種責任, from Hocc’s Glamorous 艷光四射) have been appropriated in banners or used as slogans.  These lines not only capture and resonate with people’s feelings in the protest at different times, but also reflect people’s critical response to the government, which has shown no concessions to any of the protesters’ demands.

The fact that protesters have adapted song lyrics to create banner slogans, their choice of words, the visual presentation and where those banners are shown, demonstrate protesters’ strategic thinking upon the contexts of related issues.  As police clearance was expected to take place in a week’s time, the banner ‘Disappointment can’t destroy hope’ (就算失望不能絕望, from Taiwanese band Mayday’s Unyielding 倔強) hung in front of “Lennon Wall” (one of the outer walls of the Government Offices, once covered by an abundance of people’s words on colourful post-it notes).  It made a contrast to another banner, “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one” (from John Lennon’s “Imagine”) which had been flying on the footbridge opposite of the wall since the first week of movement.  The featured song lyrics showed aspirations of the protestors and served as encouragement to each other.  Pop music is no longer being consumed blindly or to numb peoples’ senses; it is used as a tool of critical expression and to engage people through a process of re-creation.  Such critical thinking is crucial in peaceful or nonviolent protest as protesters are conscious of their judgment and therefore not merely motivated by irrational sentiments.

Numerous songs have been written during the creative boom of the Umbrella Movement.  The issue now is how these creative activities can engage people in a more responsive and critical way.  For example, some local performing artists initiated a project called “24 Hours in Revolution” in which they talked to protesters, composed songs according to their stories about the Occupy Movement in Hong Kong, and performed these songs in different places.  Their songs, which document micro-histories and empower the nameless people in civil struggles, are apparently not as popular as “Under a Vast Sky” or “Hold Up the Umbrellas,” but they do demonstrate an alternative means of using music in such an unprecedented civil disobedience and civil movement in Hong Kong.

Reference:

    • Beyond, Under a Vast Sky (海闊天空), 1993:

    • The Wound Of History – A Memorial Song To The Tiananmen Square Protests Of 1989:

( by Wen Yau )

As a cross-media artist, researcher, curator and writer, wen yau has been concentrating on performance/live art and time-based media in the last few years, often grappling with cultural difference and intimacy in public space.  Currently she is a PhD candidate at the Academy of Visual Arts at the Hong Kong Baptist University, researching performative practices in postcolonial Hong Kong art and activism. //www.wenyau.net/