April 24, 2009 0:47

Oklahoma governor overrides House's rejection of Flaming Lips tune

He upholds people's choice of 'Do You Realize??' as state song

Oklahoma governor Brad Henry announced today (April 23) that he will sign an executive order overriding the Oklahoma House Of Representatives' decision to reject the use of The Flaming Lips' 'Do You Realize??' as the state's song.

Earlier today, the House voted 48-39 against Senate Joint Resolution 24, which would have upheld the people's choice to name 'Do You Realize??' the state's official song. Representatives who voted against it said that they didn't approve of the Oklahoma band's reputation for "using obscene language" and wearing "offensive" t-shirts.

When The Flaming Lips heard of the House's decision, they posted the following response via a MySpace bulletin:

"As many people around the world know, The Flaming Lips are proud to be from Oklahoma. We want everyone to understand that only a minority of the representatives voted against this law. The facts are that 'Do You Realize??' won over 50 per cent of the popular vote in the original poll, passed unanimously in the Senate, and won over a majority of the Representatives in the House (48 were for the law passing, 39 against – 14 were absent from the vote – you need 51 to pass the law).

"Regardless of what the minority in the House Of Representatives wish, The Flaming Lips remain proud ambassadors of the state. We are honoured that the majority of the people who voted hoped to have 'Do You Realize??' be the Oklahoma State Rock Song. Perhaps there is still a way it can be."

Now it appears that a way has been found, as Governor Henry said he intends to honour the people's choice.

“For more than 20 years, Oklahoma’s own Flaming Lips have produced creative, fun and provocative rock music,” Henry said in a statement.

“The music of The Flaming Lips has earned Grammys, glowing critical acclaim and fans all over the world. A truly iconic rock'n'roll band, they are proud ambassadors of their home state. They were clearly the people’s choice, and I intend to honour that vote.”

--By our Los Angeles staff.
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