The beloved children’s band The Wiggles have recently responded to reports that their song ‘Hot Potato’ was being played on a loop near a homeless shelter in the Australian city of Bunbury.
Mayor Jayson Miguel of Bunbury stated that the music was intended to deter people from congregating in the area and unwanted behavior. According to him, music had been playing near the shelter “for more than six months without incident” and is a standard practice across the state.
The news of this was met with public outcry, and The Wiggles themselves made a statement about it, claiming that their music was created to bring joy and happiness to children and families around the world and that they were deeply disappointed to hear that it was being used in any other way.
Locals who had stayed at the shelter said that the music was driving them “nuts” and that they were “getting sick of it”, and it was reported that the music was switched off on Thursday following the intervention from The Wiggles.
The city council is now reviewing their approach to using music, as Mayor Miguel stated that they do not want to be in a situation where they are causing any agony to any person. Western Australia’s Homelessness Minister John Carey expressed his deep disappointment with the city’s approach, saying that it is clear that music won’t be the method of choice.
In 2016, there was a similar incident involving the same music shell and Peter Allen’s ‘I Go To Rio’.
In 2021, The Wiggles released their cover of Tame Impala’s ‘Elephant’, which was produced for Triple J’s Like A Version and ended up topping the radio station’s Hottest 100 of the year. The band were joined onstage by Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker to perform ‘Hot Potato’ and ‘Elephant’ together.
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