Ask any Malaysian what their first Malaysian heritage song was! Nine times out of ten, they will say: Rasa Sayang. Baba Baa Founder Lee Jiun is bringing back the feel of love! Her amazing collection of songbooks are imbued with the sultry melodies of Malaysian heritage folk songs. Rasa Sang, hey!
Think back to your bygone childhood days. Imagine hours spent luxuriating in your batik baby bouncer, the faint melody of Rasa Sayang in the background. That faraway memory speaks of the soft embrace of love, a distant recollection of familiar comfort. When Baba Baa founder Lee Jiun Lok (also known as LJ) gave birth to her son, she wanted him to grow with that same familiar comfort. There was just one catch: Malaysian heritage lullabies were slowly disappearing in the modern world.
The solution? She decided it was up to her to keep these songs alive!
The easy rhymes and beautiful melodies tie the knot that connects our diverse society while instilling the Nusantara identity. Baba Baa strives to remind Malaysians and their children, even those who have spread out across the globe, to appreciate the uniqueness of our local cultural heritage.
“Those songs are deeply entrenched in Malaysian culture and were part of our lives growing up.”
– Lee Jiun, Founder of Baba Baa
‘Rasa Sayang Sing-and-Record Children Fun Book’ includes popular and personal favourites, including both the original Malay versions and English translations. Although the rich and multi-layered verses of our folksongs cannot truly be translated without the risk of losing their meaning, Baba Baa includes the translations as a ‘taster course’ for parents who want to explore, discover and together learn and love Malaysia’s cultural heritage.
Cross-Cultural Collaborations: A Musical Sojourn
Baba Baa collaborated with a studio in KL for music arrangements and a singer sourced through an Indonesian studio for the Rasa Sayang book. After its debut in its early stages, it interestingly became famous amongst Japanese moms in Singapore. The engaging nature of Baba Baa’s sound books have indeed attracted parents and their children from different backgrounds to learn not of just Malaysia’s cultural heritage, but also the neighbouring countries that share somewhat similar folksongs and folktales.
Lee Jiun hopes to share our Malaysian heritage with a growing international audience. The company’s current focus includes families in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. In the hopes of sharing Southeast Asian cultural heritage with the world, Baba Baa’s current priority is children’s growth, alongside enhancing their identity and celebrating Malaysia’s musical heritage.
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