新加坡的国庆造人计划

All that talk of making babies does seem to be having some impact. In 2003, according to surveys by condom maker Durex, Singapore was among the bottom three nations in the world when it came to frequency of having sex. Five years later, more Singaporeans were having sex at least once a week than Australians, Americans, British and Canadians, according to a similar survey by Durex.
所有这些“多生孩子”的倡议似乎产生了一些效果。根据避孕套生产商杜蕾斯公司(Durex)做过的调查，2003年时，新加坡是全世界性生活频率最低的三个国家之一。五年后，根据杜蕾斯的类似调查，每周至少有一次性生活的新加坡人在比例上超过了澳大利亚人、美国人、英国人和加拿大人。

But the birthrate has continued to decline steadily, although with a slight improvement in the number of babies born last year, according to government statistics.
然而，据新加坡政府的统计数据，这个国家的出生率仍在稳步下降，只有去年的新出生婴儿数量稍有回升。

Enter the Mentos campaign, which was composed independently of the government as a parody of officially sanctioned National Day songs that play in the months leading up to Aug. 9 each year, and are sung during National Day parades.
曼妥思的广告应运而生，这首非官方的歌曲有意模仿了那些政府指定的国庆日主题曲，后者在每年8月9日之前的数月就开始播放，并在国庆巡游上演唱。

There is a new official song each year. This year, it is called 'Love at First Light,' and comes with a music video highlighting Singapore's newest attractions, like a new billion-dollar public park called Gardens by the Bay. It also celebrates Singapore's 'lively ways' and 'warm sunny days.'
新加坡每年都有一首新的官方国庆日主题曲。今年的歌曲名为“爱在晨曦中”(Love at First Light)，并配有音乐电视片展现新加坡最新热点，如在滨海湾(Bay)建设的耗资上十亿美元的公众公园Gardens等。歌曲还着意勾勒新加坡的“生机蓬勃”和“阳光明媚”。

The Mentos rap has other ideas.
然而，曼妥思的说唱音乐另有主意。

'Let's not watch fireworks, let's make 'em instead,' the rap's male vocalist croons. 'It's National Night and I want a baby, boo, I know you want it, so does the SDU.'
一位男歌手这样唱道：“大家不必看烟花，我们自己做烟花，国庆之夜值千金，你的心思我明白，我们来个小宝宝，SDU也喜欢。”

The song, devised by ad agency BBH Asia-Pacific and spread via social media, is part of Mentos's plan to launch a special 'I Heart SG' pack of their signature mints for this year's National Day. The agency was asked to come up with a campaign to 'prove how much Mentos really 'hearts' ' Singapore, according to the project's creative director, Adrian Chan.
这首歌由百比赫亚太广告公司(BBH Asia-Pacific)策划，并通过社交媒体传播开来，其目的是宣传曼妥思为今年国庆日推出的一款主题薄荷糖“我爱新加坡”(I Heart SG)。该项目的创意总监阿德里安•陈(Adrian Chan)说，曼妥思要求百比赫公司想出一个广告方案来，“证明曼妥思真的很爱新加坡。”

'Mentos has always stood for 'fresh thinking,' so we decided to apply some to an issue that is very close to home: our declining national birthrate,' said Mr. Chan.
阿德里安说：“曼妥思的广告一直以‘全新思考’而著称，因此我们决定把曼妥思与新加坡本土的一件大事联系起来：即不断下降的出生率。”

In one part of the song, one of the singers advises, 'come on now, let's get that baby bonus.' And in case any locals might be offended, a singer says listeners should just get over it and, 'well, get [their] National Night on.'
在歌曲中，一位歌手唱道：“现在行动起来，去拿生育奖金。” 有一位歌手说，即使一些新加坡人觉得歌词不动听，他们也应该把不快抛在脑后，“在国庆之夜行动起来。”

Some Singaporeans were tut-tutting as the song went viral.
当这首歌广为传播时，有些新加坡人却对此不以为然。

'The clip should not be shown during the National Day Parade season. . .you do not want to trivialize the baby issue,' said Lee Chun Wah, a professor at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore specializing in brand communication.
“这首歌不应该出现在迎接国庆的日子里……出生率这种大问题不能拿来随便调笑。”新加坡南洋理工大学(Nanyang Technological University)讲授品牌沟通技巧的教授Lee Chun Wah说道。

'The conservative folks - the traditional 'heartlanders' - may be offended,' he said, adding that he personally finds the song 'hilarious.'
“新加坡的保守人士──即传统的‘本土核心人群’(heartlander)──可能会感觉不快。”他说，并表示自己觉得这首歌“滑稽可笑”。

Mr. Chan said he hopes the government will like it, given the importance and urgency of the issue of fertility in the city-state. Officials contacted about the song and its video said only that Singapore's government wasn't involved.
阿德里安说，他希望政府喜欢这首歌，因为它唱出了生育问题对于这个城市国家的重要性和紧迫性。接触过这首歌曲及其音乐电视的官员只是表示，新加坡政府没有参与这首歌的制作和宣传。

The video does come with an important disclaimer. Only 'financially secure adults in stable, committed, long-term relationships should participate,' it advises.
音乐电视中倒是有一条重要的免责声明：建议只有那些“经济条件良好且双方关系长期稳定的成年人才应参与国庆造人计划。”