Campus Superstar Alum Featured On Soundtrack Of DC League Of Super-Pets

The animated movie DC League of Super-Pets features a Singaporean artist on its soundtrack.

Ben Hum, 31, can be heard singing the ballad ‘Count on Me’ during a minute-plus montage sequence in DC League of Super-Pets, which opened in cinemas last Thursday. In the special Singapore edition, Hum’s cover of the song replaced the original version by R&B singer Jac Ross.

This is the first time Warner Bros Singapore has partnered with a local artiste to sing a song featured in a movie.

DC League of Super-Pets follows Krypto the Super-Dog (voiced by Dwayne Johnson) as he teams up with a motley group of super-powered pets (Kevin Hart, Diego Luna, Vanessa Bayer and Natasha Lyonne) to save an imperiled Superman.

According to a Warner Bros Discovery Theatrical spokesperson, Hum — who was first runner-up in the male category in Campus Superstar Season 2 in 2007 and a veteran performer of mainly Mandopop tunes at live-music venues like Shuffle, 2mm Talent Hub, and Timbre — was chosen from a shortlist of candidates.

Hum’s version of ‘Count on Me’ was recorded over two days in mid-July and remixed in the US. The rep didn’t reveal who else they considered. 

But securing permission to use the cover took a bit longer. “We had to work closely with our US Publicity, Tech Ops and Legal departments to approve the recording, social media assets and partnership deal,” says the rep. “The process took almost four months.”  

So why did Warner Bros go with Hum, a relative unknown, over someone more famous like JJ Lin or Nathan Hartono?

“We wanted to work with an artiste with a bubbly, positive personality and Ben is the right fit for this movie,” explains the rep. “We [also] want to reach out to both English and Chinese-speaking audiences and support an emerging local talent like Ben.”

Besides his singing prowess, Hum remembers being asked Warner Bros if he has pets at home. “They actually asked questions like, ‘Do you like animals?’ he tells 8days.sg. “I’m lucky because my girlfriend has a dog and I do love playing with it every time I go over to her place.”

Another question: Does Hum know the difference between DC and Marvel? “Then I was like, ‘Yea?’” quips the singer-songwriter, who released his debut EP Milky Way last year.

How did he react when he first saw the movie with his version of ‘Count on Me’ in it?

“I was actually pretty surprised that everything fit quite seamlessly,” he recalls. “I didn’t even realise the song had started. I was mentally prepared that my song will just sound like a Singaporean-Chinese guy singing English songs. I was afraid of that kind of reaction. But when the song played, I was pretty shocked.”

He doesn’t think the audience will notice the difference. “But if they do, then I hope they’re proud because being able to have a Singaporean cover a song for a Hollywood production, that’s something I should be proud of, and I am very happy and honoured to be in it.”

Hum plans to catch DC League of Super-Pets “six, seven or maybe 10 times” at the cinema, each time with his friends and family.

“I hope through this opportunity, I will be able to spread positivity to more people through my music.”

Check out our review on CNA 983Live's Trending with Daniel Martin here:

DC League of Super-Pets (PG) is now in cinemas.

Photos: Funkie Monkies Entertainment, Warner Bros Discovery