S'porean man on NZ solo trip visits Maori village, hosts sing 'We Are S'pore' NDP song

Right in the feels.

Daniel Seow | December 26, 2023, 02:20 PM

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A Singaporean man was on a three-week solo trip to New Zealand in June when his hosts at a Maori cultural village put on a performance that made him homesick.

Though the man, Lee Wei Yang, was the only Singaporean present, he was treated to a stirring rendition of the NDP classic, "We Are Singapore".

Lee captured the memorable performance on TikTok on Dec. 23.

@weiyang_le_alex singapore represent while traveling solo in new zealand 🥹 majulah singapura #rotorua #tepatu #maorivillage #newzealand #singaporean #wearesingapore #singapore ♬ original sound - Lee Wei Yang

Sang songs from visitors' home countries

Lee told Mothership that this was his first solo trip.

Near the end of his trip, he visited the Te Pa Tu cultural village in Rotorua as part of a tour, on Jun. 24.

It featured a traditional Maori feast, music performances and cultural practices like the haka.

Lee was asked to share which country he was from when he registered for the tour.

This was so that his hosts, the Maori family in charge of running the tour, could sing a song from his home country over dinner.

Lee recalled that they sang songs from Mexico and the United States for the other tourists, but he was the only Singaporean there.

Then it got to his turn.

The performance

Based on Lee's TikTok, the performance group comprised an ensemble with a female singer belting out the song "We Are Singapore", accompanied by a male guitarist and two backup singers.

It was delivered with much gusto and enthusiasm, with the performers seemingly lost in the song at times.

GIF from weiyang_le_alex on TikTok.

And as the classic national day parade earworm resonated through the dining hall, Lee could not help but tear up.

"It made me [feel] touched and sentimental," he shared.

After all, he hadn't been home for almost three weeks at that point, and was badly homesick.

Lee said he didn't expect his Maori hosts to know that particular song, so it came as a surprise to him.

"I'm guessing they must have had Singaporeans as visitors before, that's why they learned the song as part of their repertoire," he added later.

Right in the feels

Online users echoed Lee's sentiments.

"I'd be crying already," one user wrote.

A beloved NDP classic

"We Are Singapore", one of the most beloved NDP ditties, was first released in 1987, making it 36 years old.

Older folks might also remember the song being played over the broadcasting systems at companies and schools.

A 2018 remake of the song by local musician Charlie Lim was used as the NDP theme song for that year.

The original song was composed by Canadian Hugh Harrison, a former jazz pianist.

Harrison also composed two other NDP classics, "Stand Up for Singapore" (1984) and "Count on Me Singapore" (1986).

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Top image from weiyang_le_alex on TikTok.