Inside the Secret Ferry Gig That Had All of Sydney Talking
Lipton launched its new Zero Sugar Sparkling Ice Tea with The Jungle Giants and DJ Mistah Cee to uplift the commuters ride home aboard the Manly Fast Ferry.
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The Manly Fast Ferry became a floating stage on Thursday, September 10, as commuters heading home across Sydney Harbour were treated to The Jungle Giants, a DJ set and free tastings of Lipton's new Zero Sugar Sparkling Ice Tea. With the sun out and the water looking particularly good, the usual trip home suddenly had a very different soundtrack.
The floating gig was part of Lipton Sparkling's Sparkling Sessions, which saw the Manly Fast Ferry transformed into an unexpected live music venue across multiple afternoon crossings. DJ Mistah Cee got things underway from behind a shopping trolley-turned-DJ booth, spinning crowd favourites including 'Sweet Caroline', 'Beat It', 'Hip Hop Hooray' and 'Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough'.
Then, it was time for The Jungle Giants. The band brought its recent triple j Like A Version cover of Underworld's 'Born Slippy' to Sydney Harbour, alongside 'Heavy Hearted', 'Tell Me How It Feels' and some of its other well-known tracks. Accordingly, the ferry's usual soundtrack of phone notifications, conversations and whatever you've got playing through your headphones was replaced by a live band.
The unusual setting arrived off the back of new research commissioned by Lipton Sparkling, which found that 59 percent of Gen Z respondents described the daily commute as the most boring part of their day. Almost two-thirds, or 62 percent, said they'd used tactics to avoid the journey, including 23 percent who admitted to calling in sick, while 21 percent said they'd made up an excuse to work from home.
For those still making the trip, 68 percent of respondents said they spend their commute glued to their phone, while 54 percent said they look out the window to pass the time. Music is already doing some of the heavy lifting, with 77 percent saying they listen to tracks on their commute, while 30 percent said a great song had completely changed their mood. Another 32 percent said they wished their commute was more entertaining.
A live set from The Jungle Giants on a ferry, then, was one way of shaking things up. The band was also playing its final Australian show before heading to the US, making the Sydney Harbour stage a fitting place to wrap up its time at home.
"We've played some pretty wild places over the years, but never on the high seas, so this is going to be a fun new experience. Absolutely loving the idea of livening up everyone's daily commute with a live show," said The Jungle Giants' lead singer Sam Hales.
The experience also celebrated the launch of Lipton's new Zero Sugar Sparkling Ice Tea, made with real tea leaves, tiny bubbles and refreshing fruit flavour. Available in Lemon Lime, Berry and Tropical, the new range comes in 1.25-litre bottles, giving commuters something sparkling to sip while taking in the music and the harbour views.
As for the ferry itself, it went from a means of getting home to a live music venue for the afternoon — complete with a trolley DJ booth, The Jungle Giants playing 'Born Slippy' and Sydney putting on perfect gig weather. It was a very different way to make the commute home.
Lipton's new Zero Sugar Sparkling Ice Tea is available in Lemon Lime, Berry and Tropical in 1.25-litre bottles for an RRP of $4.00. Follow @liptonicetea_anz on TikTok for more.
Images: Supplied
