Controversial Namewee returns with pig-themed Chinese New Year video

By his usual standards, Malaysian singer Namewee's latest Chinese New Year music video looks mild on first viewing.

But still.

The ethnic-Chinese entertainer, who has courted controversy in the past for producing content critical of his country's government and Malay majority, released a pig-themed song on Saturday (Jan 19) ahead of the lunar Year of the Pig.

This comes on the back of his contentious video a year ago to celebrate the Year of the Dog.

Pigs are taboo in Islam while dogs are considered unclean by some Muslims.

Namewee's new music video features children in pig onesies singing and dancing with him, even claiming in its caption that this is his "first kid's song so far".

Most of Piggy Piggy's lyrics also seem safe, cycling through the other zodiac animals, such as the rat and the dragon.

However, half of the chorus of the English song uses the Malay word for pig "babi", which can be offensive in some scenarios.

The word is also used together with "buta", which although means pig in Japanese, also means blind in Malay.

"Blind pig" is sometimes used as an insult in Malay.

Regardless whether anyone takes offence to the 35-year-old's new tune, Namewee has clearly de-escalated from his sting of last year.

That video featured satirical lyrics and dancers in dog masks dry-humping with the Prime Minister's office building in the background.

It had an 18-and-above warning, which the 2019 edition does not.

His Piggy Piggy caption also includes: "Last year's song about dogs put me in jail for five days, this year…"

More tellingly, the popular vlogger hashtagged, "We respect your religion but please respect our zodiac animals and Journey to the West."

The latter is a famous Chinese tale featuring a pig character. A poster of a 2016 movie adaptation excluded him, drawing suspicions that he was censored by the authorities.

Piggy Piggy has racked up 180,000 views as of 1pm today, with most commenters surprised at the relatively-sanitised work.

WadtheEel wrote, "This year no hidden meaning?"

Several of them, presumably fans of Namewee's, faked offence, with s w.s. writing, "Hurry watch it in case it gets banned."

Before he was arrested for last year's Like A Dog and 2016's Oh My God!, which was about Malaysia's major religions, Namewee was most notorious for his parody of the national anthem in 2007.

That led to threats against him from the Malay community and his subsequent apology.

tanthiampeng@asiaone.com