Airport announcement song on NPR today?

November 5, 2015 7:06 PM

Today on my local NPR affiliate (KUOW), there was an interview with someone who sang a song using the standard airport "unattended baggage" announcements as the the lyrics. It was during the all things considered time slot, but I'm not sure if it was actually ATC, or if it was a local piece. I'm trying to figure out who the artist is, or if I was suffering from an extended hallucination. I have checked the ATC and KUOW websites, and also googled every combo I could think of. Who is the artist and what is the piece called?
posted by shrabster to Media & Arts (4 answers total)

Nick Lowe Christmas at the Airport?
posted by cecic at 7:21 PM on November 5, 2015 [1 favorite]

Nick Lowe isn't listed among today's bumper music in ATC, so I'd say it was a local fill-in. I've had good luck with questions like these by emailing KUOW directly. Chances are there's a music log (recorded for artist rights purposes) that could definitely rule Nick Lowe in or out, even if the person replying doesn't themselves recall.

Searching google for lyrics containing baggage comes up with Miranda Lambert's "Baggage Claim" (YTL w/lyrics in description-- this is a maybe, but I doubt it), and Staind's "Excess Baggage" (no relevant lyrics that I see).
posted by Sunburnt at 8:01 PM on November 5, 2015

I heard it too. It was an extended piece on how a specific airport (in Aisa? Singapore?) had implemented this strategy of using sung in-airport service announcements in place of spoken announcements for such things as where the baggage claim was located. The piece you heard was the performer/composer singing one such announcement. It's not on the KUOW ATC story feed.
posted by mwhybark at 11:12 PM on November 5, 2015

If you want to follow up mwhybark's suggestion, try this: Tallinn Airport puts security announcements into song.
posted by MonkeyToes at 5:53 AM on November 6, 2015