🎵 Weekly Music Newsletter: The Viral Eurodance Parody

Also, Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s WAP 2.0. Olivia Rodrigo’s sophmore album. Sufjan Stevens’ return to form. Jeff Rosenstock’s chaotic punk record.

Beloved singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, who built an empire off his songs Margaritaville and Cheeseburger In Paradise, died earlier this month at 76.

Click here for a Spotify playlist with the songs mentioned in this article.

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An unexpected late-summer frontrunner for the coveted title of “Song of the Summer” has taken the stage, and it’s not at the pinnacle of the Billboard charts but on TikTok. Enter Planet of the Bass, a ’90s Eurodance parody brought to life by comedian Kyle Gordon, who assumes the persona of “DJ Crazy Times.”

This viral sensation swiftly transcended its origins as a TikTok jest, skyrocketing into an internet phenomenon. Even before its official release, teaser clips had already garnered a staggering 250 million views. In a twist of fate, the day following its release, the Jonas Brothers extended an invitation to Gordon to perform the track during their tour stop in Boston.

Collaborating with jazz singer Chrissi Poland, Gordon masterfully conjured the fictional duo of DJ Crazy Times and Ms. Biljana Electronica. Together, they embody the Eurodance genre, renowned for its magnetic female lead vocalists and enigmatic, ambiguously European, husky-voiced, and hyper-sexualized hype men.

Planet of the Bass stands as a remarkable homage and lampoon of ’90s Eurodance staples like Another Night, What Is Love, and Rhythm Is A Dancer. Infusing irresistible synthesizers with an infectious club beat, the song gleefully serves up nonsensical, broken-English lyrics that simultaneously celebrate and satirize the unforgettable sounds of that bygone era. The song’s lyrical themes include sexuality, outdated technology references, calls for world peace, and an unapologetic fascination with all things celestial — quintessentially ’90s Eurodance.

With lyrics like “Life, it never die/Women are my favorite guy/Sex, I’m wanting more/Tell the world, stop the war” and “All of the dream/How does it mean/When the rhythm is glad/There is nothing to be sad,” Planet of…