You have a new opportunity to sing “Shallow” (or any of your favorite tunes for that matter) besides when you’re alone in the shower. And it’s in the name of public health.
A new website created by 17-year-old UK designer William Gibson generates handwashing infographics timed to your favorite song—simply input the name and artist, and voilá. The resulting poster shows how to properly wash your hands with step-by-step images above the corresponding song line. (I plugged in Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5,” which illustrates that initially sudsing my hands should take as long as singing “pour myself a cup of ambition.”)
Both the UK’s National Health Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention consider handwashing one of the easiest ways to prevent germs from spreading and keep people from contracting respiratory illnesses like the flu and COVID-19. The agencies recommend that people wash their hands for at least 20 seconds, or as long as it takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice. But why would you want to sing “Happy Birthday” when you could sing your own personal anthem instead?
The posters this site generates are certainly much more engaging when compared to current options available from the CDC. So far, the generator has provided a way for boring instructional graphics to saturate the general public, as major companies like Netflix, YouTube, and MTV have tweeted out versions set to “On a Roll” by Ashley O (from the Netflix show Black Mirror), “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X, and “Fine Line” by Harry Styles. Miley Cyrus, meanwhile, tweeted “wash your damn hands” along with a poster set to her song “The Climb.”
So lather up, and start singing “Truth Hurts.” You’ll know you’re sufficiently rid of germs by the time you get to “sit down in the salon chair.” Or, make your own—the options are limitless. Even if you can’t carry a tune, your singing is for the greater good.
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