Disney Channel's Theme: A History Mystery
6,658,148
Published 2022-11-20
Special Thanks to Dallas Taylor. For more deep dives into sonic branding check out:
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[SPOILERS]
Listen to Alex's Music:
open.spotify.com/artist/5qfqk02ws8p355HpMpDjFd?si=…
All Comments (21)
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It started as "Who wrote the Disney Channel theme?" and ended as "What sort of legacy should artists leave behind?" And it is beautiful.
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Kevin being genuinely flabbergasted at the 9/11 “express yourself” segment was so fucking funny
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It's so funny that the first female name you tried when looking for G.Owen was Glenda when Glen was the name you needed
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I took a film analysis class in high school and I will never forget what that teacher told us. He said "Remember...everything you see or hear in film or television costed money, time and more importantly effort. Every single thing you hear or see was put there for a reason, find the reason."
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You know what got me? If you google "who wrote the Disney channel theme?" now, Alex's name comes up in bold at the top of the screen... You did that. You made that happen.
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The music in this video is so incredibly good. Edit: oh.
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"Isn't it weird that we don't know who wrote that theme?" "No." lmfao
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I got so teary eyed when you spoke to Alex's colleagues and family. What an incredible tribute to his artistry and legacy.
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My favorite part about all of this is the fact that you’re shedding light on a guy who realistically should have had a documentary made about him.
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Defunctland has its own Wikipedia article, this episode has its own IMDB and Letterboxd pages, and in a few websites, you're even credited as a documentarian. You've done it, man. You've made it into the history books, and what a way to do it
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"This theme song consists of a four-note mnemonic jingle composed by the late Alex Lasarenko, former executive of Tonal Sounds and creative director at Elias Arts.[38][39]" —Wikipedia (Disney Channel article) Thank you, Kevin, for contributing to history.
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Just asked my Google Home who wrote the theme song and she said the right answer AND called this a documentary! Absolutely incredible work.
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I just want to say a big thank you to Defunctland for spotlighting all the "little" composers in the industry. Most people never even think about the fact that there are people behind all the music they listen to. It's really nice to see working composers who aren't the big stars being spotlighted.
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Yesterday it was clear that FastPass: A Complicated History was Kevin's magnum opus. Now, that is no longer the case.
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The reveal that we'd been listening to Alex Lasarenko's music the entire time gave me chills.
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They say that a person dies twice. Once, when their body dies, and twice when their name is spoken for the last time. Thanks to your efforts, Alex Lasarenko lives on.
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Just think: Andrea taylor single handedly transformed Disney Channel into a media juggernaut which influenced an entire generation of kids worldwide and launched an entire generation of teen actors into superstardom - and absolutely no one who actually grew up watching all this happen knew who she was until now.
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Honestly, as someone who studies archives and recording history, this is a documentary and this is archival work. This is remarkable, not only in its dedication and completeness, but in the fact that it puts a name to someone's work. We have this now. We know who composed this work, we can remember him now. Thank you for this. It's absolutely fantastic.
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Notice that the music starts right after the short pause following the "The Disney channel theme was created by."? It makes SO MUCH SENSE in retrospect.
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This is a rare case on YouTube where the 2nd watch through is better than the first. There are so many details I didn't pick up on that play into the themes about legacy as a creator, and not being able to choose what you'll be known for. And the background MUSIC is soooo much more meaningful in the re-watch. So good.
