Brazilian rapper MC Fioti’s Covid-19 ‘vaccine anthem’ goes viral

The remixed song boasts a music video filmed at a São Paulo research institute that is producing the CoronaVac

Brazilian rapper MC Fioti's Covid-19 'vaccine anthem' goes viral (YouTube / KondZilla)

Brazilian rapper MC Fioti, also known as Leandro Aparecido Ferreira, has become an unexpected viral sensation thanks to a remix of his biggest hit that celebrates Covid-19 inoculation and has a music video filmed at one of Brazil's top biomedical research centres.

The song, originally named after the Portuguese word for bottoms and the sound of percussion ("Bum Bum Tam Tam"), first dropped in 2017. Now, it has been updated to “Vacina Butantan”, a clever play on words, as “Butantã” is the Tupi-Guarani name of the São Paulo research institute that is producing the CoronaVac.

The song's lyrics, meanwhile, have been updated to praise doctors. “This is the intriguing vaccine, that messes with your mind … and will cure us from the virus and save loads of lives,” Fioti sings in the updated version.

The music video, shot at Butantã’s research centre, features appearances from the building's staff – including scientists – who can be seen dancing along to the upbeat track.

“It was all so natural – they wanted to do it as much as me. This energy comes across in the clip," Fioti told The Guardian.

Since being posted on 23 January, the video has amassed more than six million views on YouTube.

As for how Fioti managed to film inside the research centre, that's all thanks to São Paulo’s governor, João Doria, who is a rival of Brazil’s Covid-denying president, Jair Bolsonaro, and recognized the song's marketing potential. Fioti was subsequently invited to film the music video at Butantã’s research centre prior to the start of vaccinations on 17 January.

“I’m still trying to get my head around everything that’s happened but I can see I quit my job in that fast-food restaurant to make history,” the rapper said.

Fioti said he hoped his remixed song would help get the message across that being inoculated from Covid-19 was a good thing, a sentiment that is decidedly not shared by the nation's populist president, who has been accused of failing to secure enough vaccines for Brazil's 212 million citizens. (220,000 Brazilians have died of Covid-19.)

“When I started thinking about doing this version, I told my followers on social media and lots of people said they wouldn’t get vaccinated. After hearing the song the very same people got back to me to say they had changed their minds,” he said.

Fioti added, “We are getting the message across. But more than 2 million people have already died around the world. We’ll only get rid of this virus together and by getting vaccinated.”