LISTEN: Jak de Priester’s ‘Hugo, bel die polisie’ song goes viral

After a video of a fight in Pretoria north went viral, the words “Hugo, bel die polisie!” were on the lips of many South Africans.

The group of at least eight people fighting, while a neighbour was shouting for her husband to call the police, became the topic of much laughter, amusement and memes over the past week.

Now, local singing sensation and lyrical maestro Jak de Priester has the country in stitches with his hysterical rendition of the incident.

His new song not only highlights the hilarity of the situation, but also provides social commentary on the general state of violence in South Africa.

Pretoria North Rekord spoke to Jak de Priester who said: “I received the viral video from a friend who lives in Australia while I was sitting at my keyboard, preparing for Aardklop.

“I watched the video several times, laughing, but after a while, it became a little upsetting and disturbing. Why do people think this is okay? It is not okay or normal, especially not given the current state of violence in South Africa. It made me cringe that people would fight in public like that.”

In the song, he paints a comical picture of an Afrikaans neighbourhood where men walk around without shirts and women in tracksuits stand ready to fight. It is a home where brandy and Coke is the drink of choice, often resulting in public brawling, much to the horror of the neighbour who threatens to have them evicted.

“While sitting at my keyboard, I became inspired to write a song about the incident. I wanted to the song to make people smile, but I also wanted to start a conversation because domestic violence is a social issue,” he said.

“I was in the recording studio working on my new album the next day, and we decided to record the song.

“I did not expect the song to go viral as well, but I think it is important for artists to start conversations regarding important social issues.”

Listen to the song here:

https://soundcloud.com/starburstpromotions/hugo-bel-die-polisie

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