Meaning of “Dance Monkey” by Tones and I

This song (“Dance Monkey”) harps back to Tones and I’s days as a busker. Busking is the professional name of the vocation of street musicians.  And in that regard, the singer is more or less comparing herself to a ‘dancing monkey’. Or more specifically to the sentimental foundation of this song, she bases this idea on the pressure that modern buskers face from their audiences. The listening public now wants these musicians to perform at a furious pace. 

In interviews, Tones attributed this reality to the current click culture we live in where the attention spans of individuals has diminished from times past.  And the way this manifests in the song is by people constantly urging her to “dance for” them. But part of the reason they behave this way also is because they are impressed with her artistry. 

So basically, Tones and I has been able to transform a certain aspect of her previous professional life into a hit tune.

“So they say
Dance for me, dance for me, dance for me, oh-oh
I’ve never seen anybody do the things you do before
They say, move for me, move for me, move for me, ay-ay
And when you’re done, I’ll make you do it all again”

Summary

All in all, Tones and I is feeling like a dancing monkey, ya know? Like everyone’s just waiting for her to put on a show. She’s feeling the heat, big time. The song’s theme is quite similar to Lil Darkie’s 2019 song “HAHA“.

Facts about “Dance Monkey”

Bad Batch Records released “Dance Monkey” on 10 May 2019.

It is the second single from Tones and I’s debut EP, “The Kids Are Coming”.

Tones and I is actually an individual – an Australian singer/songwriter by the name of Toni Watson.

This song proved to be a mega success. For instance, it broke the record for most weeks at number one on the Australian Singles Chart by an Australian artist.

“Dance Monkey” also managed to score a number 1 on the UK Singles Chart and in almost 15 other countries.

And outside of these nations, it also charted in additional 13 countries.

The music video to the song, which came out on 24 June 2019, was directed by Liam Kelly alongside Nick Kozakis.

“Dance Monkey” was written by Tones and I, and she also co-produced it alongside Konstantin Kersting.

Tones and I must have been really talented as a busker. And why is this so? Simply because during the first night of her performing, she was given a business card by one Jackson Walkden-Brown, who later proved to be one of her professional managers.

“Dance Monkey” sheds some Light on Performance Pressure Musicians Face

The life of a professional musician may be exciting, fulfilling, and loaded up with conceivable possibilities and may likewise be intense, stimulating, and overflowing with challenges that can take over the profession. A common hazard that all musicians face in having a successful career is performance pressure.

What is Performance Pressure?

It is a type of psychological stress associated with expectations to perform well in all situations. In musicians, this pressure can either be self-induced by the musicians or from their close relations and society.

Research has shown that performance pressure can motivate musicians to perform at high levels. It has also shown that excessive performance pressure can negatively affect a person’s mental and physical health.

This negative pressure on musicians tends to peak when they are young and in their prime. In young musicians, it can be real or perceived. Thus, a young musician may face situations where high demands need to be met in order to gain the desired results.

Again, the perception most young musicians have of utilizing all available resources, to make the most out of every opportunity, in order not to waste their rise to fame, may put too much pressure on them. The high demands from society can cause young musicians to push themselves very hard in their early careers and this puts a lot of pressure on them.

The Pressure from the Music Industry

The music industry is a very competitive field. Therefore, for a young artist to find their feet in the industry, a lot of hard work and creativity is often invested in their career. This competitiveness causes many of them to cultivate bad habits like staying in studios for excessive periods of time. Often, they don’t have sufficient sleep and engage in negative habits such as eating only junk food and consuming a lot of alcohol.

These habits lead to many health problems such as headaches, insomnia, heart disease, and many kidney diseases. Young musicians also feel the pressure to work very hard to develop their creative and artistic strength to write and perform songs that can become big hits in the industry.

Some of them turn to substances like marijuana and amphetamine, which are believed to enhance a person’s creative ability.

Research has shown that these drugs are addictive and that regular consumption is harmful to the health. The economically demanding nature of the industry also makes a lot of them work more than two jobs aside from their music career also. This situation causes them intense stress that can negatively affect their health.

In order to overcome the stressful nature of their life, some turn to drug and substance abuse. Some have even lost their lives prematurely because of the abuse of these drugs. A good example of such an artist is Michael Jackson. The King of Pop actually lost his life due to this pressure. The late Swedish DJ, Avicii also committed suicide because of the unbearable amount of pressure that came along with his profession.

Conclusion

Performance pressure has led many young talents to do many desperate things to succeed at the expense of their health. This is generally because of the extremely competitive and economically demanding nature of the music industry. The world has lost many great musicians due to this canker. And this is what Tones and I creatively addresses in the lyrics of “Dance Monkey”.

Tones and I

Tones and I, real name Toni Watson, gained international stardom with her breakout single, “Dance Monkey”.

Born in Mornington Peninsula, she grew up and schooled in Melbourne. At age seven, she began to realize she had a singing talent when her relatives gave her praises and gifts when she sang during family gatherings. In secondary school, she joined the music team and learned to play keyboards and drum pads.

She gained popularity in Melbourne in 2009 after she created a YouTube channel where she posted acapella cover versions of popular songs. She then began busking on the streets of Melbourne for passing crowds when she had free time from her job. Prior to that, she actually worked as a retail assistant at a store.

Professional Career

She quit her job when she became very popular and did busking as a career full time. Writing songs and busking all over Australia, the songwriter won the Battle of the Buskers at Buskers by the Creek. This is a well-known busking competition in Australia. This made her earn a lot of recognition and accolades from the locals. By 2018, the singer and songwriter had drawn the attention of many music producers and record labels in Australia. She signed to Sony affiliated Bad Batch records in February 2019.

She released her debut single, “Johnny Run Away“, a month later through the record label. Johnny Run Away became a viral sensation shortly after its release. The song racked up views with over 14 million streams on YouTube alone. It gained spots in the top twenty positions for some weeks, on the Australian music chart category for singles in that year.

Her second single, “Dance Monkey” which has broken records in Australia and worldwide was released on May 10, 2019. The two songs are part of her debut EP, “The Kids are Coming”. The EP also features other hit songs like the following:

• “Colourblind“
• “Jimmy“
• “Never Seen the Rain”
• “The Kids Are Coming”  

The EP earned the number 3 position for albums on the Australian music chart in 2019.

Dance Monkey, her greatest hit as of this writing, holds the record for the most weeks at first position by any artist on the ARIA Singles Chart, for staying at number one for sixteen weeks. It also holds the record for all-time Australian record after staying at number one for twenty-five weeks. The song also topped charts in over 20 countries across the world. The song has a 14-time platinum certification by ARIA and has earned over 980,000 sales for the musician. The video of the song has over a billion views on YouTube.

Tones and I won four awards out of eight nominations, at the 2019 ARIA Music Awards, making her the most awarded artist at the ceremony. Her age remains a debate in public since she chooses to keep it secret.