Reviews about Disney’s new live-action version of “The Little Mermaid” are mixed, but one aspect of the movie that’s mainly drawing negative attention is one of the new songs, “Scuttlebutt.”
Clips of a song featuring Ariel’s (Halle Bailey) sidekick bird pal Scuttle (voiced by Awkwafina) rapping have been circulating online, with many deeming it obnoxious and unnecessary.
“Listening to it makes me want to throw myself into the sea,” Daily Wire podcast host Matt Walsh said. “Words cannot capture just how terrible it is. If I heard this song, and then over the next 12 hours my house burned down, and I lost my job, and I was diagnosed with a terminal illness, the song would still be the worst thing that happened to me that day.”
The Daily Wire’s Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro had a similar take. “If ever you want to get information out of a terrorist and time is running out, violate the Geneva Conventions by strapping him to a chair and playing this at full volume,” he said of “Scuttlebutt.”
“This is incredible. I didn’t know music could get much worse than it has been since 2010-ish. But this just hit a low point I didn’t even know exists,” one commenter wrote on the YouTube audio version.
“Bravo, Disney, bravo. This song. This song right here. It has made me want to drown myself in the bottom of the ocean. This truly is the real ‘The Little Mermaid’ experience,” another person said.
“This song is so beautiful,” a third person wrote. “It makes me contemplate all of my life choices and realize that no matter how many mistakes I have made, listening to this truly will forever be the biggest one of my life.”
The song involves Scuttle relaying information about Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) to Sebastian (Daveed Diggs). It was written by “Hamilton” composer Lin-Manuel Miranda and features a fast-paced rap sequence.
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Besides the award-winning musical about America’s founding fathers, Miranda is known for contributing massive hits to other animated Disney films, including composing Moana’s “You’re Welcome,” and Encanto’s “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.”
According to the Disney blog Inside the Magic, Awkwafina initially hesitated about the song’s inclusion in “The Little Mermaid.”
“It was so cool to perform a song that [Manuel-Miranda] wrote for the character. It’s an honor. It’s like, ‘Are you sure even want to do this?” But then I was like, ‘At the end of the day, if it doesn’t work, you don’t have to use it,’” she said.
Disclosure: The Daily Wire has announced plans for kids entertainment content.