Watsons remixes Raya theme song with K-pop, hip-hop and rock to dial-up celebrations

Watsons Malaysia is back with another star-studded festive music video for Raya which shines the light on an individual’s uniqueness and encourages everyone to celebrate their differences. Titled "Raya Unik Raya Ikonik", Watsons worked with Naga DDB Tribal and Real Time to remix its 2019 Raya theme song, turning it into a combination of traditional Malay instruments with popular music genres such as rock, K-pop, and hip-hop.

In the film, relatives with different interests gather together for Raya. One family loves rock while the other two are into K-pop and hip-hop. Initially wary of one another, the family members eventually warm up and chat happily. This eventually turns into a full-blown performance to celebrate the festive season.

The film, which was shot by Graph Studio, features a line-up of renowned celebrities including Watsons' brand ambassador Ayda Jebat, Amy Search, Dolla, Loca B, and Chef Wan. The film had more than 2.4 million YouTube views and 3.7k reactions on Facebook at the time of writing.

Watsons' spokesperson told A+M that its main intention for this year's Raya film was to use a musical theme to uplift the spirits of all Malaysians as a lot of the festivities are not celebrated differently since the pandemic. One of the main things Watsons considered was how much things may have changed between family members and relatives for the past year.

"Realistically speaking, most family members typically have their styles and unique characteristics and with these differences, we wanted to portray how relationships, distance and time apart make their hearts grow fonder using music," the spokesperson said.

To amplify each family's uniqueness, it decided to go on a path less travelled and use top musical genres in Malaysia to portray them. According to Watsons, this approach allows the brand to utilise its signature Raya song "Ada hati Raya menjadi-jadi", and after two years of popular demand from the netizens, it decided to release a full version of the song together with elements such as rock, K-Pop and hip-hop. The spokesperson said this gives the Raya tune an iconic twist.

Watsons Malaysia's MD Caryn Loh said even as consumers are celebrating Raya differently this year due to the pandemic, Watsons wants to constantly instill unity and togetherness to remind Malaysians that no matter how different their styles may be, blood is always thicker than water.

Naga DDB Tribal's head of brand management Kevin Teh explained that the development of the campaign idea revolved around using data tools to understand what consumers are expressing within the social space. Based on this, the key theme of family togetherness, regardless of generational differences, became the strategic inspiration behind the campaign. Aside from the film, Watsons Malaysia also produced two TV commercials and six product videos to showcase its upcoming promotions in-store and online.

Watsons also previously featured a star-studded cast for its Chinese New Year video earlier this year. While the film focused on a famous singing duo instead of a family gathering, it also had elements of glitz and glamour, culminating in a musical performance. Similarly, music was also the driving force behind the Chinese New Year video, which also featured Ayda Jebat.

Meanwhile, Watsons is also donating various products and supplies to the National Cancer Society of Malaysia, Rumah Titian Kaseh and 23 other homes nationwide. They include masks, sanitisers, and health supplements. According to Loh, the company has donated over RM500,000 worth of essentials to various charitable organizations in Malaysia in the second quarter of this year.

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