YouTube channel The Liberators love getting the public involved in their vids. Whether they’re inviting random passers-by to snip away at the YouTubers’ own hair in a tourist location, or conducting “eye contact experiments” around the globe, The Liberators know how to craft a viral gimmick out of any unsuspecting crowd. But when the YouTubers stepped on a tube train with a carriage-wide sing-along in mind, they moved their audience to tears!
This unexpected karaoke clip has since gone viral, amassing over 1.1 million YouTube views to date. Music Man readers can watch the magic unfold in the video below… The train rendition of “Loosen” (written by Aly Halpert) is performed live by Simone Alexander.
The spontaneous sing-along begins with a bunch of moody commuters crammed in a rush hour train carriage, with one smiling lady, Simone Alexander, in their midst. Out of nowhere, Simone breaks the silence with her soft harmonious voice, singing a verse of an original song written by Aly Halpert called, “Loosen,” spurring passengers to turn their heads, smiling, stunned, and annoyed.
With each repetition of Simone’s simple, lullaby-like verse, more and more passengers join in the soft sing-along, their pure voices like a church choir and steeped with emotion that treads a fine line between bliss and melancholy. Soon, one of The Liberators starts strumming his acoustic guitar in the midst of the packed train, spurring more commuters to flesh out the sound with their own voices.
Don’t miss the hilarious moment the train stops to collect more passengers, who step on the karaoke carriage flabbergasted by what’s going on! Even more comical are the passengers who don’t want anything to do with this performance, watching on with death stares and blocking out the sing-song with their eyes glued to their phones. It’s a side-splitting contrast to the pure positive vibes Simone radiates.
Like Simone’s will to get the public up and singing during the dreariest time of day, Aly’s song, “Loosen” comes with a wholesome, poignant backstory. The Philadelphia-based singer-songwriter and activist included this song on her 2022 “album for the queer Jewish community,” with the main goal of her music being to “help fellow Jews believe they’re worthy of joy,” whilst cultivating “Jewish spiritual life through song.”
But why did so many passengers, across all walks of life, sing along with Simone’s live train rendition of Aly’s song? Well, “Loosen”’s lyrics transcend all bounds, capturing a message that almost anyone can relate to: “Loosen, loosen, baby / You don’t have to carry / The weight of the world in your muscles and bones / Let go, let go, let go.”
This is hardly the first time The Liberators have spurred an impromptu tube train sing-a-long. Curious readers can check out the group’s most viral clip above: the time they got a whole carriage singing “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” to the tune of 38 million YouTube views!
If you loved the lyrics and music in this beautiful train performance, check out Aly Halpert’s version of her song “Loosen” on YouTube by clicking here. You can also visit her official website for more information and beautiful music by clicking here.