Planet of the Bass: Will a Parody Be the Song of the Summer? Alum Chrissi Poland lends her voice to the Eurodance parody thats gone viral on TikTok and beyond.
By
Bryan Parys
August 18, 2023
Posing on The Planet of the Bass: DJ Crazy Times (Kyle Gordon), left, and Ms. Biljana Electronica (played in the video by Audrey Trullinger), right
Image courtesy of Kyle Gordon/TikTok
The Eurodance parody Planet of the Bass by DJ Crazy Times (played by comedian Kyle Gordon)-now a genuine contender for Song of the Summer-owes much of its mega-viral status to its highly meme-able lyrics.
Chrissi Poland B.M. 01
The lines between parody, homage, and nostalgia here are blurry, though. Gordon doesnt take any shortcuts on quality. For one, the voice behind the character Ms. Biljana Electronica is the acclaimed soul and jazz vocalist Chrissi Poland B.M. '01, who studied performance at Berklee, and has worked with Nile Rodgers '18H, Scissor Sisters, and more. And the words and arrangement are a pitch-perfect clone of the Eurodance genre that dominated the global charts in the 1990s.
How Does It Mean? Lyrically, Gordon does his job so well that it's hard to tell apart his parody from the original sources.
Consider some of the songs most memorable lines: All of the dream / How does it mean? There is nothing to be sad. If you want parties to be making / Have some noise.
Now compare these to the refrain, What is love? / Baby don't hurt me, from Trinidadian-German singer Haddaway; Rhythm Is a Dancer by German duo Snap!; or the line from Belgian/Dutch act 2 Unlimited that goes, People started dancing a long time ago / The bass was fast, but then again it was slow.
The People Wanna Make a Fun While the song does have good-natured fun with the Eurodance trope of clumsy English translations, it highlights one of the genre's most memorable feats: shifting focus from the lyrics' literal meaning to their sound, and to the feelings they can evoke.
A close look at the actual text of these lines is bound to uncover some silliness-that's what makes the genre so ripe for parody. But that's also a comment on how transporting these songs were in their day: we rarely stopped to think about what they were saying while they danced their way to the top of the global charts.
In a Stereogum article about the Swedish pop-rock group Roxette, music critic Tom Breihan makes the argument that lyrics in this vein are a feature, not a bug. Breihan says that, for their 1989 No. 1 smash The Look, Roxette was really participating in the grand Swedish pop tradition of picking the word that'll sound the best, regardless of meaning. . . . The lyrics, ridiculous as they are, are merely part of the whole musical equation. Everything about The Look is mathematically calibrated to hit just right.
A Passion in a Million Way Making Gordon's achievement even more impressive is the fact that he was able to evoke this whole genre while still sounding distinct.
It's a task that the king of contemporary parody music, Weird Al Yankovic, says is quite difficult. In an interview with Fast Company, Yankovic said, It's certainly more work to do a genre parody, compared to parodying one specific song. For a genre parody, not only do you have to do all the work that one necessarily does with an original song, but you also have to do a fair amount of research into the chosen genre or other artist's work.
Everybody Movement Does this mean that Planet of the Bass will actually topple songs such as Vampire by Olivia Rodrigo, Troye Sivan's Rush, or Barbie World by Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice (which just so happens to feature seminal Eurodance band Aqua) as the definitive summer jam of 2023? Only time will tell. Until then, DJ Crazy Times entreats you to simply get out on the dance floor and have a body, feel the groove.
Oh wait, did you say you wanted a Eurodance playlist? Happy to oblige:
Related Categories
News
Playlists
Most Popular
Goose guitarist and vocalist Rick Mitarotonda B.M. 16 performed with the band at a sold-out Portland, Maine, show on July 6, 2023.
Image by Adam Berta
Both Sides of Goose, Americas Premier Jam Band On a new Sounds of Berklee: Goose's live act attracts a devoted following-and the bands studio work highlights the sharp songs that spark their legendary jams.
Latest
John Paul McGee, assistant chair of Berklees Piano Department
Image courtesy of John Paul McGee
Gospejazzical Pioneer to Moderate Panel with Hip-Hop Icons Dr. John Paul McGee, Berklee's assistant chair of piano, will guide a discussion with a group that includes Cheryl Salt James of Salt-N-Pepa about the influence of jazz and R&B on early hip-hop.
Danielle Queen D. Scott
Image courtesy of the artist
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill Turns 25 Berklees Arun Pandian and Danielle Queen D. Scott talk about the groundbreaking album and its impact on their lives.
cehryl
Image courtesy of the artist
Hong Kong Indie Artist cehryl Faces Her Fears The alum talks through her layered pop/R&B production, then explores some common fears of the artist and the importance of just getting to work.
Read All
Subscribe The latest sounds, stories, and ideas, sent to your inbox weekly.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
02/03/2026
NBC Sports selected Imaginary Forces to create the main title sequence for the M...
02/03/2026
The NFL announces the launch of the NFL Draft Innovation Challenge, a new crowds...
02/03/2026
The World Teleport Association (WTA) has named Skyline Communications' DataMiner SatOps solution as a finalist for the 2026 Teleport Technology of the Year ...
02/03/2026
Ventum Tech announces a strategic partnership with Pixotope, a real-time graphic...
02/03/2026
Victory , a free, ad-supported sports streaming service, announces the launch of...
02/03/2026
Global powerhouse Delta Goodrem to represent Australia at this year's Eurovi...
02/03/2026
SBS brings together prominent voices to discuss rising social division and seek ...
02/03/2026
NITV Unveils Wednesday Night Sport Night
Media releases
A Midweek Hub for Blak Sport
Flagship NRL program Over The Black Dot moves to Wednesdays at 9:30pm
...
02/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz demonstrates FR1-FR3 carrier aggregation, advancing 6G readiness Rohde & Schwarz and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. have reached another pivotal ...
02/03/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., March 2, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) today announc...
02/03/2026
Harvey Norman tops New Zealand's biggest ad spenders as retail leads and telcos and beverages sure Auckland March 3, 2026 - Nielsen's New Zealand'...
02/03/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, and Arqit Quantum Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQQ, A...
02/03/2026
Advanced Systems Group, LLC (ASG), a technology and services provider for media creatives and content owners, has appointed Jody Boatwright as Chief Strategy Of...
02/03/2026
Lightware, an industry leader in signal management, is reinforcing its commitment to simplifying complex AV environments with the continued evolution of its TPN...
02/03/2026
ZEISS Cinema opens its doors to an exclusive screening, filmmakers Q&A and hands-on showcase of the new ZEISS Aatma lens family on Tuesday, March 10, 6:00-9:00 ...
02/03/2026
To expand the creative potential of the compact Astera QuikBeam, DoPchoice introduces the SNAPBAG Round. The new light-shaping accessory transforms the powerfu...
02/03/2026
Douglas Dubler
On a rooftop in New York City, veteran photographer Douglas Dubler watched the sun's angle shift across the urban landscape, his internal cl...
02/03/2026
ZEISS is expanding its Otus ML lens family with the introduction of the new ZEISS Otus ML 1.4/35. This manual-focus lens is designed for photographers who live ...
02/03/2026
Matthews Studio Equipment now offers the new Dinkum Systems White FlexiMount and Phone Mount Kit, a compact, highly adaptable setup for mobile content creation...
02/03/2026
Luxembourg, February 26, 2026 - SES and Africa Mobile Network (AMN) have expande...
02/03/2026
02 03 2026 - Media release Ausfilm and Screen Australia launch joint UK market initiative
Ausfilm and Screen Australia have announced Partner with Australia (...
02/03/2026
Monday 2 March 2026
Saturday Night Live UK announces writing team
L-R: Jonno Johnson; Charlie Skelton; Celya AB; Omar Badawy; Gr inne Maguire; Laura Claxton; ...
02/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the Trailer for 53 Sundays, the New Film by Cesc Gay
Entertainment
02 March 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Dis...
28/02/2026
With two features seen in Formula 1 coverage, the broadcaster aims to bring view...
28/02/2026
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth addresses a crowd of approximately 1,500 L3Harris employees in Camden, Arkansas, as part of his Arsenal of Freedom tour....
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Berklee Presents Mambo Mania: Eguie Castrillo and the Berklee All-Stars Big Band...
28/02/2026
Berklee Announces Two New Summer Programs in Los Angeles The Berklee Music Business Program and Electronic Music Production and Sound Design Workshop bring imme...
28/02/2026
AI-RAN is moving from lab to field, showing that a software-defined approach is ...
28/02/2026
Autonomous networks - intelligent, self-managing telecommunications operations -...
28/02/2026
Back to All News
Final Trailer for BEASTARS Final Season Part 2' Roars Tow...
28/02/2026
New way to intentionally discover molecular glues could expand drug discovery Scripps Research scientists and colleagues show how drugs that eliminate certain d...
27/02/2026
The E.W. Scripps Company names Oliver Gray as Vice President, Network Sports and...
27/02/2026
The Gotham Sports App, the exclusive direct-to-consumer streaming home of MSG Networks and the YES Network, is now available for purchase through Prime Video fo...
27/02/2026
ESPN and the Horizon League announce a new multi-year, multi-platform media rights agreement, continuing a 38-year collaboration that began with the 1988 Midwes...
27/02/2026
At the 2026 NAB Show in Las Vegas, NETGEAR will highlight its new switch models and major updates to its Engage Controller software. The company's network d...
27/02/2026
Riedel Communications announces that Fondazione Teatro alla Scala has deployed a...
27/02/2026
Lyuno specializes in media localization, including translation, dubbing, subtitling, and voice-over services for a wide array of entertainment content. The comp...
27/02/2026
Chyron Weather 2.3, the latest edition of Chyron's weather visualization suite for broadcasters and meteorologists, recently launched.
The release includes...
27/02/2026
Telestream, which concentrates in media workflow technologies, announces expanded practical AI enhancements across its Vantage, Vantage Cloud, EDC, Stanza, and ...
Planet of the Bass: Will a Parody Be the Song of the Summer? Alum Chrissi Poland lends her voice to the Eurodance parody thats gone viral on TikTok and beyond.
