De Fam’s ‘Alamak Raya Lagi!’ gets 14 million views
DANCE pop trio De Fam’s catchy Hari Raya number ‘Alamak Raya Lagi!’ may have been criticised when it was first released on March 7.
But it has now become a pop phenomenon.
The song, which Azira Shafinaz Ramlan, Sophia Liana Sobri and Wani Shamsuddin or Cik Manggis initially planned to release last year, is a hit beyond Malaysian shores as well with more than 14 million YouTube views so far.
It is also one of the top trending videos on TikTok and has been parodied by many netizens.
It has even gained the attention of South Korean pop group TRI.BE and Italian football club Juventus.
While TRI.BE members have danced to its tune on TikTok, Juventus used the song in one of its TikTok videos highlighting some of its goal m
Azira was recently reported as saying that De Fam initially wanted to release the song during Raya last year to commemorate Aidilfitri 2022 which “caught many by surprise”.
“It would have been great to release it in 2023, but our plans had to be postponed due to unforeseen circumstances.
“Nevertheless, we are happy it has finally been released and become a runaway hit, despite some initial criticisms,” she said.
Cik Manggis thanked fans from both Malaysia and overseas for supporting the song and its music video, which depicts the trio’s “mad rush” to prepare for an unexpected Hari Raya that came one day earlier than expected.
“The story behind the video is lighthearted, on the unexpected situations all of us encounter from time to time, and how we make the best out of it despite the initial surprise and frenzy.” Sophia said the use of "alamak" in the song title was not meant to be rude.
“It is commonly used in conversations and has appeared in many songs over the years
“As for swear words, there was none in the song as claimed by some. We may have expressions of surprise and frenzy, but they are not swear words,” she added.
Nasyid singer Cheb Ali Masrawi had criticised the song for “containing inappropriate language” and suggested that the song title be changed to ‘Alhamdulillah Raya Lagi’.
Meanwhile, award-winning singer and songwriter Aina Abdul said she loved the song and advised listeners to loosen up and not take it too seriously.
“I love it because it is funny and entertaining.
That is what a good Raya song should be."