When NASA JPL’s Dr. Alvin Smith mentioned that he wanted to hear more Mars music, “professional space geek” and musician Kayla Dio Robinson decided to “reimagine and rewrite” Karen O and Spike Jonze‘s Oscar-nominated The Moon Song (2013), transforming it into The Mars Song.
She shared the rewritten cover performance in honor of NASA Perseverance‘s Red Planet arrival on February 18th, 2021. “Percy” landed in Jezero Crater, an ancient river delta that might have been the watery home of microbial life at some point in Mars’ history.
The rewritten lyrics hint at Perseverance’s mission to search for traces of ancient life. She also includes NASA’s four previous Mars rovers and Percy’s helicopter: Ingenuity.
i’m on my way to mars
just coastin’ through the stars
it’s a dark & dangerous place
6 months flyin’ through outer spacethere are things i wanna know
was life here long ago?
it’s a lonely, dusty place
with answers for the human race
a hundred million miles awaySojourner, Spirit, Oppy [Opportunity]
piqued our Curiosity
now with Ingenuity
we’ll Persevere surelyhope to see you here someday
but I don’t mind the wait
got the best at N-A-S-A
making sure that I’m okay
a hundred million miles away
and safe
a hundred million miles away
Previous videos about Mars on TKSST:
• What did Mars look like 4 billion years ago?
• Tour all six NASA spacecraft to reach the Red Planet
• Mars in a Minute – How Do You Get to Mars?
• How NASA’s InSight Will Plumb the Depths of Mars
• A topographic model of Mars by the ESA’s Mars Express mission
Curated, kid-friendly, independently-published. Support this mission by becoming a sustaining member today.