Quarantine parodies
Matt Molyneux jams in one of his quarantine parodies, a take-off on a Blink-182 song. (Screenshot via Facebook)
What happens when you work from home, live alone and have tons of creative energy? You get creative, especially during quarantine.
Matt Molyneux, a teacher and musician living in Somerville, Massachusetts, knows all about that. He's been channeling his inner Weird Al, bringing a daily dose of hilarity to people through off-the-wall music-parody videos. They have familiar themes, including running out of things to do at home, and going to great lengths to self-entertain. Maybe that's why people keep snapping the videos up.
"I've been shocked by how these have been received," Molyneux said.
It all started out with an effort to make "real music," adds the self-described Instagram filmmaker, who is also the singer for Boston-based band Steeples and Satellites. But the project took a different turn.
The big surprise was the following from the younger crowd. He often hears from parents who can't get enough.
"They like it, but their kids can't wait for the next one," Molyneux said. "I didn't mean to have the humor be so juvenile, but it clearly is."
Familiar melodies such as “On the road again” and “I will survive” make appearances, including one of Molyneux’s favorites: the quarantine version of a Snoop Dogg song, where he’s “sippin’ on orange juice.”
“It’s taking a very heavy, inappropriate song and making it kind of family friendly for quarantine," he said.
He’s been flooded with comments thanking him for all the laughs, all the smiles.
"This feels like a public service, it's what I can do to contribute," said Molyneux. He replied to a friend of his recently, “If a 60-second video of mine keeps you happy, I'll keep doing it."
Molyneux, 43, a Middlebury College graduate, has taught filmmaking and music for about 17 years. He currently teaches filmmaking, theater and technology at Meadowbrook School in Weston, Massachusetts.
"I'm kind of that weird, goofy, fun teacher that doesn't give grades and kind of works in the basement, the back of the theater, things like that," Molyneux said.
He is also one of the many teachers who has spent the last two months teaching online.
"There was a time I was worried that computers and robots are taking over the teaching profession, and now I'm sure that it's not true."
Online instruction is nothing like teaching in person, Molyneux noted.
"It's nowhere near as good."
Check out his quarantine videos on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter, and have a few laughs. Molyneux is not running out of ideas any time soon — he promises.
— Gareth Henderson
