The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)
"The Ketchup Song " is the debut single by Spanish pop group Las Ketchup, taken from their debut studio album Hijas del Tomate. It was released on 10 June 2002, and became an international hit later that year.
In addition to the original Spanish version, the song exists in forms with Spanglish and Portuguese verses, although the nonsensical chorus is identical in all three versions. This song reached number one in the United Kingdom, as well as in 26 other countries worldwide. As of 2006, the song had sold over 7 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time.
The song tells the story of a pimp-like gypsy with mystical qualities. The song's dance routine was a popular novelty dance in the early 2000s.
Background
Las Ketchup was first introduced to Columbia Records through Shaketown Music, a small record label in Córdoba, Andalusia, who sent out the group's demo to a number of different record companies. The demo featured the songs "Asereje" and "Kusha Las Payas". When A&R Javier Portugués and Columbia director Raúl López listened to the demo, they stared at each other in delight exclaiming, "Wow, this is fantastic!" At first the intention was to arrange a distribution deal with ShakeTown Music but upon hearing the song they realised its international potential and so negotiated for Las Ketchup to sign with Sony.Composition
The song is written in the key of E♭ minor and follows the chord progression of E♭m–D♭–C♭–A♭m–B♭7 in the chorus. The pre-chorus uses an altered chord, or a modal interchange, as the cadence. According to Pandora.com, the song features "mixed acoustic and electric instrumentation, humorous lyrics, and electric guitar riffs".Content
"The Ketchup Song" is about a man named Diego who enters a nightclub. The DJ, a friend of Diego's, plays Diego's favorite song, "Rapper's Delight" by the Sugarhill Gang, and Diego dances and sings along to the song, imitating its chorus with Spanish gibberish."Aserejé" is therefore a meaningless word, with the chorus "Aserejé, ja, de je, de jebe tu de jebere..." being a somewhat incorrect imitation of the Rapper's Delight's "I said a hip-hop, the hippie the hippie to the hip hip hop..."
Music video
The music video was shot at Palm Beach, Estepona in Spain, at Chiringuito bar.The video starts with the female band members laying out a carpet on the ground and putting the bar stools on display to set up their musical show. They then serve people exotic beverages at the beach bar. A male bar attendant with dreadlocks enthusiastically pours drink in a glass and juggles a bottle around. Meanwhile, more and more beach-goers are shown drawing in to the bar, to watch the trio's performance. In some shots of the video, the trio would be performing near wooden window frames which are laid individually on the sandy beach.
During the song's chorus, the band members perform their signature dance moves of this song, alongside other visitors who also joyously participate. The band is then assisted to stand up on a table, where they execute their Aserejé dance in front of a larger, jubilant crowd who gleefully jive in to the dance. By the end of the video, the crowd becomes jam-packed and in multitudes, with the young and old dancing to the song near the beach bar.
Dance routine
For the first dance move, the hands must be held open facing down and continuously waving them over another two times for six beats. The second involves tossing the thumb over the shoulder twice, right before spinning one's arm around each other while raising from the waistline to face level. The last move of the dance involves placing the back of one's hand on the forehead and the palm of the other hand on the back of the head while knocking one's knees together a couple of times.The song and its dance moves were featured in the 2012 game Just Dance 4.
Critical reception
Andy Thomas from Drowned in Sound gave the song a 9 out of 10, stating, "The Ketchup Song is better than the Macarena...", while acknowledging that the song is "not smart, it's not clever, and it's not going to get a single positive review outside of the teeny bop press." Thomas described the song's band members as "three slightly odd-looking women from Spain who are the proud exponents of this year's Macarena. It's got dance moves and a sunny video where the trio serve drinks in a beach bar."Commercial performance
The song reached the top of the charts in virtually every country it charted, except for the Billboard chart, where it peaked at number 54. In France, the song reached number-one for eleven weeks and eventually sold 1,310,000 copies, making it the best-selling single of 2002, and the second best-selling of the 21st century in the country, behind "Un Monde parfait" by Ilona Mitrecey. Furthermore, the song was the 50th best-selling single of the 2000s in the UK.Controversy
Although the band has explained that "aserejé" is a meaningless word derived from the theme of the 1979 hip hop song "Rapper's Delight" by The Sugarhill Gang, rumors spread through e-mail that the gibberish lyrics included hidden demonic references that would lead the listener to Satanism and heresy.The phrases from the Spanish lyrics which were claimed to be references to Satanism include:
- "Aserejé", which can be broken down into the Spanish phrase "a ser hereje", meaning "a heretical being".
- "Ja, de je, de jebe tu de jebere" – "Ja" would here be the beginning of the Tetragrammaton referring to Jehova. The phrase would therefore be "Jehova, deja tu ser".
- "Y donde más no cabe un alma", supposedly referring to hell.
- "Y el DJ que lo conoce toca el himno de las 12", referring to Satanic rituals which occur at midnight.
Track listings
Charts and sales
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
| Chart | Position |
| Australia | 8 |
| Austria | 23 |
| Belgium | 62 |
| France | 24 |
| Germany | 58 |
| Sweden | 51 |
| Switzerland | 45 |
| UK Singles | 171 |
Decade-end charts
Certifications
Rouge version
"Ragatanga" is a song by the Brazilian girl group pop Rouge. It is an adapted version in Portuguese of the song "The Ketchup Song", of the group Las Ketchup. Columbia Records and Sony released "Ragatanga" on August 31, 2002, only in Brazil and Portugal in the same year as the original, as the second single from the debut single from the band's debut studio album, self-titled Rouge. It was among the most successful songs of that year in Brazil and is the biggest success of the group, and there were records that the song reached to play more than fifteen times a day on Brazilian radio stations.Background and composition
In selecting the tracks for the group's first album, Liminha went to a meeting with Sony representatives from around the world and commented that he needed a repertoire for a group that would release in Brazil, receiving from Spain the song "Asereje", sung Las Ketchup. But the song, however, hardly came on the album. "The list of songs was ready when I heard about Ragatanga," said Alexandre Schiavo, vice president of marketing for Sony Music Brasil.Hence, Rick Bonadio made a version and transformed it into Ragatanga, whose refrain, "Aserehe ra de re De hebe tu de hebere seibiunouba mahabi", does not mean anything, according to Schiavo. In Schiavo's explanation, it's the crap that people who do not know English usually sing. "The thing that Las Ketchup teenagers invented," he says. Bonadio says: "the secret of a good version is to have fidelity to the original, not to try to invent". The Brazilian version has a mix of Spanish and Portuguese, since it counts on the participation of Las Ketchup.
Commercial performance
"Ragatanga" became a viral success in Brazil, winning the charts quickly and quickly. The song reached the first position of the radios, remaining for 11 consecutive weeks in the first place.Legacy
"Ragatanga" was a resounding hit in Brazil, making Rouge not only popular in Brazil, but in some parts of the world. The single was taken as the song that boosted sales of the band's first album. In two months in the stores, the album reached the mark of 730,000 sold copies and became favorite to the title of commercial champion of 2002. Besides, the song did not leave the top of the charts. The song was also considered as the reason for the tickets for the group's debut on 14 November 2002, at ATL Hall in Rio de Janeiro, to be exhausted. By that time, the album had already reached the mark of 950 thousand copies.Billboard magazine, which features the biggest names in the music world, brought a photo story of the Rouge in the October 2002 issue. The report showed production details, a crossover of hits on the radio, and talks a little about the first tour they did for Brazil. In addition to talking about the hits "Ragatanga" and "Não Dá pra Resistir", he also spoke about the international career, in which Rouge performed in Argentina with great success, and the intention to launch the group's CD in Chile and Peru.
Music video
On 31 August, he premiered the music video for "Ragatanga". The video for "Ragatanga" is simple, counting on the girls dancing the choreography of the song, on a giant stage, while the lyrics of the chorus are displayed in the clip. The participation of the band Las Ketchup in the video clip, is obtained from the original music video. The choreography was also imported from Spain, but according to the girls, "We added a new movement, which is the sign of asking for a ride."Track listing
CD single- "Ragatanga "
- "Ragatanga "
- "Ragatanga "
- "Ragatanga "
- "Ragatanga " – 4:09
- "Ragatanga " – 4:09
Charts