Lisa Loeb on Tweaking 'Stay' Into a Fan Anthem for the Return of Old Bay Goldfish

Consumers love a good brand collaboration. From mustard beer, nail polish that smells like cheese or Vlasic pickles on your pickleball gear, we eat this stuff up!

Like last year, when Goldfish teamed up with Old Bay seafood seasoner to create limited-edition flavored snacks for Pepperidge Farm. They sold out, and fans flocked to social media demanding their return. Now, one year later, the treats are back, with singer Lisa Loeb joining the collab.

She turned her 1994 hit, “Stay (I Missed You),” into “Stay (We Missed Old Bay Goldfish),” using lines from social posts as lyrics. 

Look for sentiments like “You say ‘OMG… Old Bay Goldfish,'” “Hands down the best cracker ever” and “The greatest snack to ever grace my tongue.” There’s even a music video that lampoons Loeb’s original song promo from 30 years ago:

A two-pack of Old Bay Goldfish retailed for $7.38 in-stores and online. They sold out in 36 hours.

Muse spoke with Lisa Loeb about the project:

Muse: How did you get involved with Goldfish and Old Bay?

Lisa Loeb: Ever since I was a kid, one of my favorite snacks was Goldfish—I love Parmesan, Original and Cheddar. When Goldfish and Old Bay approached me about partnering to help bring back one of the most requested limited edition flavors, I knew I had to be part of this.

Since I was young, I’ve loved bringing humor into music, especially at summer camp. I have always really enjoyed playing around with classic song lyrics to make the songs funnier. This new version turns the thousands of fans’ tweets and posts begging for the snack’s return into new lyrics, which you’ll now hear in the song.

What was the most fun and what was the hardest aspect of the campaign?

My song “Stay,” is about an argument in a relationship, life and a broken heart, but we were able to have a good time playing with lighthearted humor in comparing people’s passion about missing Old Bay-seasoned Goldfish. You can hear the passion I have in my voice when I sing my song “Stay,” as well as fans’ passion in, “Stay (We Missed You Old Bay Goldfish).” The hardest aspect of the campaign was not being able to include all tens of thousands of fan requests as lyrics!

Do you have a favorite advertising jingle?

As kids of the ’70s, my sister and I used to act out commercials growing up, so I have always loved a fun commercial jingle. While I don’t have a particular favorite, I have always been drawn to the commercials that have clever lyrics, a catchy tune and creative visuals. The ones that get you singing the jingle as soon as the product is even mentioned.