The Curious Case Of The Paddle Pop Song
August Man SG|April 2017

How an old advertising jingle mirrored a political tide.

The Curious Case Of The Paddle Pop Song

IT STARTED INNOCENTLY ENOUGH, a casual question about Wall's Paddle Pop popsicles. We were at a wedding dinner, having a nice catch-up among old friends and ex-colleagues, albeit between making entries on Snapchat and Instagram Stories like the world was coming to an end. Abruptly, a former colleague who had gone over to Esquire Singapore and is now headed to San Francisco, asked the group of us if we recalled the jingle to the beloved childhood popsicle.

“Huh,” someone considered. “Paddle Pop... Paddle Pop... duh duh duh duh duh duh,” he hummed tunelessly. “I don't remember the words,” he shrugged. “Wasn't it some Singlish phrase like 'super sedap yummy'?” I asked. “Yeah, something like that, but not quite...” another said.

This story is from the April 2017 edition of August Man SG.

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This story is from the April 2017 edition of August Man SG.

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