Dumb Ways to Die: the song lyrics & the story

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One of the trends spreading on TikTok in 2023 is about a short melody singing the words “Dumb ways to die,” and not everybody knows this sound’s origin. The hashtag #dumbwaystodie is populated with videos made by creators who ride the trend of this song, referring to stupid behaviors that people do, applied to many areas of life. There is an actual song, though, behind this simple line, with interesting lyrics and a long story that starts in 2012. Let’s discover it.

You can find the sound used on TikTok for the trend “Dumb Ways to Die” here.

Dumb Ways to Die: the song lyrics & the story

Dumb Ways to Die was born in 2012 in Australia as part of a public campaign promoted by Metro Trains, Melbourne’s railway service. The campaign intended to raise awareness about the fact that most of the deadly accidents are caused by behavior that can be avoided by paying little attention. The advertising agency who ideated it, McCann, explained: “The aim of this campaign is to engage an audience that really doesn’t want to hear any kind of safety message, and we think dumb ways to die will.”

A song was written dedicatedly to this campaign, airing on local radio, and an official video was shared on Youtube. You can still watch it below. The protagonists of the videos are a group of animated, colored beans doing stupid things that can cost their lives.

Dumb Ways to Die

The song was also released on iTunes, attributed to “Tangerine Kitty”: in fact, the music was in fact Ollie McGill, a member of the Australian band The Cat Empire, and the voice belongs to Emily Lubitz, the vocalist of the band Tinpan Orange. Thanks to the song Dumb Ways to Die and its memorable lyrics, the campaign went viral in 2012, and it’s estimated that it contributed to a 30% reduction in the accidents that occurred in the months following its launch.

The lyrics of Dumb Way to Die describe several absurd behaviors that can cause an accidental death and can be easily attributed to the decisions someone makes with his behavior. Most of them are obvious and surreal, like setting fire to your hair or using “your private parts as piranha bait,” but then the song also introduces some safety practices to keep in the metro stations, like avoiding the edge of the platform when the train is approaching, and never cross the tracks.

The campaign was so viral that a video game was created out of it, in 2013: it became a real franchise, with the fourth installment Dumb Ways to Die 4 set for release in 2023, on iOS and Android. In 2022, the owner of the franchise also released the branded NFT called BEANS: you can find it here.

The full lyrics of the song Dumb Ways to Die are a funny reading, recommended while listening to the song. You can find them in the full version below.

Discover other viral TikTok trends on Auralcrave

Set fire to your hair
Poke a stick at a grizzly bear
Eat medicine that’s out of date
Use your private parts as piranha bait

Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die
Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die

Get your toast out with a fork
Do your own electrical work
Teach yourself how to fly
Eat a two-week-old unrefrigerated pie

Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die
Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die

Invite a psycho killer inside
Scratch a drug dealer’s brand new ride
Take your helmet off in outer space
Use your clothes dryer as a hiding place

Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die
Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die

Keep a rattlesnake as pet
Sell both your kidneys on the internet
Eat a tube of super glue
“I wonder what’s this red button do?”

Dumb ways to die
So many dumb ways to die
Dumb ways to die-ie-ie-ie
So many dumb ways to die

Dress up like a moose during hunting season
Disturb a nest of wasps for no good reason
Stand on the edge of a train station platform
Drive around the boom gates at a level crossing
Run across the tracks between the platforms
They may not rhyme but they’re quite possibly

The dumbest ways to die
The dumbest ways to die
The dumbest ways to die-ie-ie-ie
So many dumb
So many dumb ways to die