Veteran actress and voice talent Mamen García can add yet another unexpected bill to her impressive resume: not many people know that she is the person responsible for the Mercadona jingle that has been stuck in the heads of Spaniards for many years now. The tune that repeats “Mercadoooona, Mercadona” has settled into the mind of every customer of Spanish supermarkets since it is played whenever someone walks into the store.
Born in Valencia in 1947, García is known on multiple platforms including television, cinema and theater. Her name is associated with numerous series such as Socarrats and Maniàtics as well as movies like The Bar or Live Twice. For her work on Marriage Scenes and Ladies of the (h)AMPA she also established herself in the television industry. Yet, one of her earliest works: the jingle, which she recorded in 1986, has remained the most prominent throughout her career.
At that instant, García had no idea that the song would be whistled countless times. She was just asked to step into the recording studio and cut a jingle for a supermarket that would soon become popular. What she did not expect back then was for the melody to be played in the mercadona’s stores for 38 years. It goes without saying that the tune became a staple in the advertising of the faint grocery chain.
There are remnants of her creations in nearly all places, and García was still able to perform such a remarkable song. Although she rarely mentions this role, it is still one of her most intriguing parts life career. She received just 10,000 pesetas (approximately 60 euros at the time) compensation for the recording of the jingle, which she declared was excessive pay given how successful the jingle was. It is puzzling, if not outright doubtful that any commercial has the same effectiveness as Mercadona’s light-hearted jingle did.
Such events prompt one to wonder precisely how and why certain cultural components, which appear to be so insignificant, become iconic in previously unfathomable ways and are able to stand the test of years – and even decades – without being altered.