YouTube Singer Follows Up 'iPhone Antenna Song' With Sticky MacBook Keyboard Tune - MacRumors
Skip to Content

YouTube Singer Follows Up 'iPhone Antenna Song' With Sticky MacBook Keyboard Tune

by

Popular YouTube singer-songwriter Jonathan Mann has uploaded a humorous Apple-related tune that is currently doing the rounds on social media and tech blogs.

Mann originally rose to prominence among Apple watchers for catching the eye of Steve Jobs, who opened his iPhone 4 press conference by playing to the audience Mann's 2010 "iPhone Antenna Song", which criticized parts of the media for its "Antennagate" fixation. But it's unlikely Mann's latest song will receive a similar reception in Cupertino.

Screen Shot 11
Titled "I Am Pressing the Spacebar and Nothing is Happening", Mann's new song centers on the singer's hatred for the "butterfly" keyboard on his MacBook Pro.

Apple introduced a revamped butterfly-mechanism keyboard on its first-generation 12-inch MacBook, and later on the 2016 and 2017 MacBook Pro, which featured flatter keys built using a second-generation butterfly mechanism. However, a significant number of customers have run into issues with both versions, the most common being sticking keys – the theme of Mann's latest song.

In the music video, Mann's chorus sees him persistently pressing the space bar of his 2016 15-inch MacBook Pro, frustrated that it no longer works.

He refers to the MacRumors Buyer's Guide to express how long he waited to upgrade, and that his "very expensive" MacBook Pro is only about a year old, and yet here he is, victim to an unresponsive spacebar.


Mann laments that Apple has informed him that his machine will need "extensive surgery for a speck of dust lodged beneath the butterfly" mechanism – referencing Casey Johnston’s article in The Outline about a piece of dust breaking her MacBook Pro.

Mann's solo continues by explaining that Apple's arguably awkward-to-follow keyboard-cleaning instructions didn't work for him, leaving him feeling like an idiot.

If you don't fancy listening to this potential earworm, the full lyrics to the song can be found below.

I'm pressing the space bar / I'm pressing the space bar / I'm pressing the space bar / I'm pressing the space bar / And nothing is happening / This computer is about a year old / And it was very expensive / I had been waiting to upgrade / For a long time / And now you're telling me / It would need extensive / Surgery for a speck of dust / Lodged beneath the butterfly / I found your instructions / They were not helpful / I bought this can of air / I feel like an idiot

Top Rated Comments

M.PaulCezanne Avatar
118 months ago
I've also been waiting to upgrade for a long time and have been in a holding pattern for almost a year. All products have their quirks and issues, but for the money they charge and the relatively useless "innovations" coming out of the pipeline in the last several years, I just can't find the justification to plunk down the cash.

Have at me fanboys.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
maflynn Avatar
118 months ago
Isn't dust a fairly typical issue for computer keyboards though? I've had that issue with non-butterfly desktop keyboards before.
Many people who own the new MBPs have had issues with the keyboard failing
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarlJ Avatar
118 months ago
Your 2 MBP's fall outside of the issue so I imagine you haven't had this problem. Your anecdote doesn't provide a counter to the claims of sticky 2016 and 2017 butterfly keyboards. If anything, it's anecdotal evidence that the previous keys provide superior reliability.
Yep, their older keyboards, from, say, the first unibody MBP up until just before the recent travesty keyboards, were a thing of beauty - unbelievably rigid, nice travel, great feel, super reliable, a joy to type on. But, as everybody knows, the primary requirement of all Apple devices (except the Watch) is that they get thinner, and the previous keyboard was standing in the way of progress on this vital quest. So they developed a new keyboard which is, indeed, thinner, and has reduced key travel down so far it's harder to type on, can be stopped dead in its tracks by a speck of dust, and works up to one-third of the time. Hooray!

I hear the newest iterations of the travesty keyboard are getting better, but that's a pretty low bar to get over. And on a laptop, this is pretty inexcusable - if it were the keyboard for a desktop system, you could simply choose another, but a laptop's keyboard is its primary input device and can't be swapped for another brand by the user. A laptop you can't type on is not functional.

Removing floppy drives and serial/parallel ports was a good thing, even though there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth at the time. One can even argue that there was sufficient justification for, say, getting rid of the 3.5mm headphone jack (opinions vary, of course, but they can argue it). But with the keyboard, they've made the primary input device worse is most respects, and apparently all in the name of making thinner laptops. The MacBook Pro doesn't need to be any thinner! Sigh.

(And the TouchBar is cute, but they did away with the physical Escape key, which, as a Vim user, I need approximately seven thousand times a day, taking away all tactile feedback - can't tell with certainty that you've pressed it without looking at your hands because it isn't separate and doesn't press, you can't rest your finger on it waiting to press it at the right moment, and just for fun, from what I've seen it isn't the very end of the bar, there's a little dead area at the end that doesn't count, to make it even harder to press by feel. If they'd made the TouchBar with a TouchID sensor at one end and a real, separate Escape key at the other, it would have been completely fine, but it would have caused Jony Ive great pain in its lack of complete symmetry. Apple's trying to chase away another segment of its userbase, but nobody else makes comparably great Unix laptops.)
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
118 months ago
I tried out the new keyboards instore and couldn't' get used to it with the shallow key travel.
I *love* the new keyboard - when it works. Problem is I've had 4 complete top cover replacements, and just recently, the entire laptop replaced with a 2017 model for this issue.

I don't see this issue getting any better any time soon.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
118 months ago
Isn't dust a fairly typical issue for computer keyboards though? I've had that issue with non-butterfly desktop keyboards before.
FWIW, I'm running 2 MBPs at least 5 years old and I've NEVER had this problem.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
118 months ago
Found the song hilarious...was linked on Daring Fireball. This is a big problem if the new keyboards are having issues....that needs fixing.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display family lineup feature

Apple Announces OLED MacBook Pro With Touch Display

Wednesday October 28, 2026 10:11 am PDT by
Apple today announced a new high-end MacBook Pro, which is available in 14-inch and 16-inch sizes. The new device has a PROLED XDR display that supports touch gestures, and a glowing rear Apple logo. Pricing on the MacBook Pro starts at $2,899 for the 14-inch model and $3,399 for the 16-inch model. Apple says the MacBook Pro has the "world's best display in a pro laptop." The PROLED...
iPhone Duo Display Cracking

Apple Alerts Stores to iPhone Duo's Display Cracking Issue

Friday October 30, 2026 3:20 pm PDT by
In a memo shared with Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers this week, and later obtained by MacRumors, Apple provided technicians with guidance on how to diagnose and address the iPhone Duo's inner display cracking issue. If a customer reports the issue, Apple advised technicians to inspect the iPhone Duo and repair or replace it in accordance with their standard procedures....
iPad mini OLED feature 1

Apple Executive Comments on New iPad Mini Lacking 120Hz Display

Thursday October 29, 2026 1:47 pm PDT by
While the new iPad mini has an OLED display, the device does not support ProMotion, meaning the display's refresh rate is limited to 60Hz instead of 120Hz. ProMotion support would have allowed for the iPad mini's refresh rate to automatically adjust from 10Hz to 120Hz depending on the content being displayed, but evidently Apple has kept the feature exclusive to the iPad Pro among iPad...
Latest Stories
Apple Watch Ultra 4 Hits All-Time Low Price With Amazon's $99 Discount
Apple Watch Ultra 4 Hits All-Time Low Price With Amazon's $99 Discount
4 hours ago
Reminder: Apple's Big Discount on Beats 360 Ear Cushions Ends Today
Reminder: Apple's Big Discount on Beats 360 Ear Cushions Ends Today
4 hours ago
Here's a New Tour of Apple's HomeView Software
Here's a New Tour of Apple's HomeView Software
4 hours ago
Apple Reveals New iPad Mini's Battery Capacity
Apple Reveals New iPad Mini's Battery Capacity
5 hours ago
Top Stories: Apple's Big MacBook Pro, iPad mini and iMac Updates
Top Stories: Apple's Big MacBook Pro, iPad mini and iMac Updates
7 hours ago
'Pluribus' Season 2 Reportedly Starts Production Today
'Pluribus' Season 2 Reportedly Starts Production Today
13 hours ago
iPhone 18 Pro Sales Surge in China, Offsetting Decline in U.S. and Japan
iPhone 18 Pro Sales Surge in China, Offsetting Decline in U.S. and Japan
14 hours ago
HomeView Software 27.2: Wallpapers, Control Center, and More
HomeView Software 27.2: Wallpapers, Control Center, and More
20 hours ago
Apple Alerts Stores to iPhone Duo's Display Cracking Issue
Apple Alerts Stores to iPhone Duo's Display Cracking Issue
21 hours ago
iOS 27.3 Will Enable These Apple Intelligence Features in China
iOS 27.3 Will Enable These Apple Intelligence Features in China
22 hours ago
Apple Says iOS 27.3 Beta Coming Next Week
Apple Says iOS 27.3 Beta Coming Next Week
22 hours ago
Apple's Flash Storage Suppliers Are Finally 'Getting Their Revenge'
Apple's Flash Storage Suppliers Are Finally 'Getting Their Revenge'
23 hours ago
14 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 27.2
14 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 27.2
1 day ago
iPhone Duo Review: One Week Later
iPhone Duo Review: One Week Later
1 day ago
Samsung Mocks iPhone Duo Display Cracks in New Ad Campaign
Samsung Mocks iPhone Duo Display Cracks in New Ad Campaign
1 day ago
The MacRumors Show: OLED MacBook Pro, iPad Mini 8, and More
The MacRumors Show: OLED MacBook Pro, iPad Mini 8, and More
1 day ago
MacBook Pro With Touch Display: 15 More Details Revealed
MacBook Pro With Touch Display: 15 More Details Revealed
1 day ago
Russia Places Apple on State Surveillance Registry
Russia Places Apple on State Surveillance Registry
1 day ago
Halloween Weekend Brings Discounts on Apple Accessories and Pre-Orders
Halloween Weekend Brings Discounts on Apple Accessories and Pre-Orders
1 day ago
Apple Has Released More Than 25 New Products in the Past Two Months
Apple Has Released More Than 25 New Products in the Past Two Months
1 day ago
Local Code Launches as Free, Private AI Assistant Tool for Mac
Local Code Launches as Free, Private AI Assistant Tool for Mac
1 day ago
Apple Acquires Ascend.io
Apple Acquires Ascend.io
1 day ago
HomePod Mini 2 Launches Today: All the New Features
HomePod Mini 2 Launches Today: All the New Features
1 day ago
AirTag 2 4-Pack Drops to New Low Price of $69.99
AirTag 2 4-Pack Drops to New Low Price of $69.99
1 day ago
Rian Johnson's iPhone Camera App Goes Viral
Rian Johnson's iPhone Camera App Goes Viral
1 day ago
Where Did All the iPhone Duos Go? Mostly to Apple's Stores
Where Did All the iPhone Duos Go? Mostly to Apple's Stores
1 day ago
Apple's Touchscreen MacBook Pro Could Ship 1.5M Units in 2027
Apple's Touchscreen MacBook Pro Could Ship 1.5M Units in 2027
1 day ago
New Apple TV 4K and iPad Mini: RAM Amounts Revealed
New Apple TV 4K and iPad Mini: RAM Amounts Revealed
2 days ago
Apple Executive Comments on New iPad Mini Lacking 120Hz Display
Apple Executive Comments on New iPad Mini Lacking 120Hz Display
2 days ago
Here's a Hands-On Look at HomePod Mini 2's New Two-Tone Colors
Here's a Hands-On Look at HomePod Mini 2's New Two-Tone Colors
2 days ago