Striking A Chord: The Songs That Made Singapore - S1E1: Part 1 of 2

Earlier this year, netizens caught a composer from India plagiarising a Singapore national day song - "Count on Me, Singapore". His claim that he came up with the tune first, sparked incredulity in most Singaporeans but also planted the seeds of doubt in others: Could our beloved national day song possibly be a copycat? The doubt betrays just how little some Singaporeans know about the backstory of our national songs.

In this two-parter, award-winning singer-songwriter and one of lead singers of the 2021 national day theme song, Shabir, goes on a journey to document the origins of some of Singapore's most beloved national tunes. He uncovers how, from next to nothing, the republic came to possess such a repertoire of national songs and exposes a few skeletons in the island's collective closet along the way.