Strawberry Kisses, Steps and Afrobeats: The Matildas’ World Cup playlist
By Emma Kemp
Kyah Simon is the first to emerge onto the field at Brisbane’s Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre, which is odd given she’s the player least likely to participate in training.
But then you realise she’s bare-footed and carrying a big speaker. She sets it down and hits the button, and the rest of the Matildas squad make their way onto the field for mobility stretching just as Ayra Starr’s Rush gets going. It’s an Afrobeats favourite and one of the cooler tunes the squad have trained to this World Cup.
In Sydney, on the day before they beat Denmark in the round of 16, a couple of players could be seen boot scootin’ to 5, 6, 7, 8 by Steps.
During Sam Kerr calf watch last week, media were treated to some quality Kerr-engaging-in-light-training footage to the backdrop of Shania Twain’s Man! I Feel Like a Woman!
The list goes on. There’s daggy old tunes by John Farnham, Hanson and Vanessa Amorosi, and more Afrobeats such as Rema’s Calm Down Libianca’s People.
The Afrobeats in particular have been a hit with coach Tony Gustavsson (“the tunes were so good I couldn’t stop moving”). He can thank Simon, who is the team’s assigned head of music.
The veteran forward, who is still recovering from an ACL tear with fading hope she might yet play some part in the Matildas’ World Cup campaign, has effectively become the team’s unofficial beats manager. It is akin to Martin Boyle’s vibes manager role at the men’s World Cup, and its importance cannot be understated.
“It’s a combination of some requests that come through from some of the girls and a few singalongs I pick from our teenybopper years,” Simon says.
“I try to just read the vibe of the group. That’s why the training playlist varies, whether it’s singalongs one day or R&B and dance house the next, or it could be some mellow music.
“I’ll start the game day playlist off with singalongs and then kind of ramp it up to a little bit more upbeat — I would say dance electro house music. But a lot of them are remixed with either a pop or R&B song.
Kyah Simon, at Matildas training on Wednesday, is the team’s head DJ.Credit: Getty
“The one I always play in the stadiums just before we walk out is Sia’s Unstoppable (R3hab Remix).”
And the hands-down favourite of vice-captain and left-back Steph Catley? Nikki Webster’s Strawberry Kisses. Catley would have been six years old when the curly-haired child star performed at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympics in 2000, and seven when Strawberry Kisses was released the following year.
“It’s a banger of a song,” Catley said in a light-hearted Matildas video last week. It’s iconic. I had it as a CD in my Walkman. It was a single and I just listened to it over and over again, so it reminds me of my childhood. It’s happiness in a song, and it just gets me going on my day. Do you not like Strawberry Kisses? Well, I don’t like you.”
This masthead attempted to contact Nikki Webster for comment. Or her expert approval. Or a Steph Catley tribute.
Simon took over as team DJ two years ago, replacing head songstress Lydia Williams.
“Lyds was DJ before I was, and then I jumped on it one day,” Simon says. “I’ve obviously missed some tours because of injury and stuff, but I really love music and I feel like it’s definitely a good way to get people in a mood or bring a vibe or whatever.”
“I’ve been lucky enough to be able to chuck my music on and play songs that the girls like. It’s a good role to have. I don’t mind, I love music, so for me it just feels like I’m listening to some beats with the girls. It’s not anything too strenuous.”
That’s not to say Simon does not have to deal with all the usual punter behaviour.
“Sometimes when girls say ‘can we skip that song?’ I have to say to them ‘no, it’s someone else’s request so I can’t really skip it’ .
“I respect the requests that come in, but also sometimes you’ve just got to read the room. If a song’s getting too repetitive, just give it a skip.
“One of the biggest things is the fade-in and fade-out of songs. And when you turn it off and on, that’s the biggest thing. I haven’t had too many complaints so far, so I must be doing an OK job.”
The feedback has been largely positive.
“Eshays (by Australian hip-hop act Sydney Yungins) has been a song that’s played a fair bit as well,” says midfielder Tameka Yallop. “Right now it seems like there’s a fair few throwbacks and remixes, whether it’s coming from the ’90s or a bit earlier.
“I think everyone’s been feeling the vibe Kyah’s been throwing out recently.”
Goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold is more a singalong fan. “None of that doof-doof shit,” she joked last week.
In tribute to Simon’s DJ talents, we have created our very Matildas playlist. It is named World Cup’s Crazy Bruh after the players’ response to Brazil’s shock group-stage exit.
And yes, Celine Dion’s Titanic anthem My Heart Will Go On gets a start after footage emerged on the Disney docuseries Matildas: The World At Our Feet of a change-room rendition. We are not suggesting Simon has anything to do with this.
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