The latest ad created by the government of North Korea is going viral on TikTok in the last two weeks. According to a BBC report, Generation Z users, born from the second half of the 90s, are the main responsible for virality.
“Friendly Father” is a song that praises North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un. The lyrics say that the Korean leader has a “warm heart, like his mother’s” and is “benevolent like his father.”
The lyrics still think about the Korean future by saying that Kim Jong Un “is holding more than 10 million children in his arms and taking care of us with all his heart.”
The exaltation does not stop there and also says that the love that the dictator gives to his people is like the sky and the sea and that the population will always be by the side of their leader to make all the wishes of North Korea come true.
The video accompanying the song on TikTok shows North Koreans singing the song all the while smiling at their jobs, civilian or military.
The British news network BBC consulted experts to understand the reasons for the song’s virality. According to Peter Moody, a North Korea analyst at South Korea University, the song has an “ABBA code,” referencing the Swedish band’s hits from the 1970s and 1980s.
“The song has a lively beat, it couldn’t be more catchy, and it brings a very rich orchestral ensemble,” said the expert.
Alexandra Leonzini, a researcher on North Korean music at the University of Cambridge, explained that the country’s music does not allow for wordplay or long sentences. The melodies need to be simple, accessible, so that they are quickly memorized by the population.
The expert also states that all artistic production in the country needs to have some educational bias, in the sense of teaching the population to be grateful for their leader.
