A funny song Little Apple by Chopsticks Brothers from China became very popular in summer 2014. In the beginning of 2015 Little Apple was included into a program of almost every cabaret show in Thailand. It was a perfect timing: right before Chinese New Year when many Chinese tourists were taking holiday in Thailand. Many people have noticed that in this season there were more Asian tourists and less from other countries than usual, especially from Russia.
Dance steps from original video are taken from a square dance. Square dance is a fitness dancing program in China which takes place at squares and parks. It's popular between middle-aged and retired women who have been referred to as "dancing grannies". There is a similar thing in Thailand too ("aerobic"). As you can guess these dance moves are easy to follow and that' why many cabaret shows could implement this song into their program very easy.
The original music video of the song shows scenes of a square dance, interweaved with several short stories about love and romance resultant of a male partner's disapproval of his girlfriend's appearance, resulting in a failed attempt at plastic surgery. It contains elements from 1950s of Korea and the legend Adam and Eve and uses Chinglish in an expressive manner to portray the underlying tension of appearance. The square dance in the music video has also gained popularity in the public. Bae Seul-ki also starred in the video.
You can watch this hilarious video below:
Little Apple triggered the creative passion for millions of Chinese netizens, with all versions of the song popping up here and there. To date, there are more than 2,000 different versions of Little Apple online. Army and doctor versions, especially Kim Jong-un’s versions are particularly popular. North Korea even released a declaration to request netizens to take off the music video, which was considered disrespectful, and an insult to their country and leader.
South Korean girl band T-ara released a Korean/Chinese cover of "Little Apple", featuring Chopstick Brothers, on 24 November 2014. The song was produced by Shinsadong Tiger and was released as a digital single by MBK Entertainment and distributed by KT Music. Chopstick Brothers also featured in T-ara's music video.
Little Apple became a big hit in almost every cabaret show in Thailand. Simon Star Show even updated their Facebook cover with Little Apple poster. Below you can see this picture and watch the video from Chiang Mai Cabaret Theatre:
