KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 11 — They have been together for 12 years and friends even longer still.

Still, there is no rest in sight for Bunkface.

Not when they just added writing the theme song for this year’s National Day to their list of achievements.

The band’s song Kita Punya Malaysia was composed by lead vocalist Sam and reportedly chosen by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad from a list of tunes.

With an upbeat feel, the song definitely runs contrary to the others that have been picked for previous National Day celebrations.

It may sound pop-ish but the lyrics are patriotic with this year’s theme Sayangi Malaysia neatly woven in.

Sam said inspiration for the song came from the band members and their journey through music.

"We believe a Merdeka song can bring people together,” he said.

"It is our greatest honour to write a song for the country. Hopefully, it will be remembered for generations to come.”

The band also performed the song during the launch of the National Month and "Fly the Jalur Gemilang” campaign in George Town, Penang last Saturday — with none other than Dr Mahathir in the audience along with his wife Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali.

"Our fans in Penang have always been great. There was such a huge crowd,” Sam said.

"We performed Kita Punya Malaysia for the first time in front of Dr Mahathir. It was a pleasure.”

The band made up of Sam and Pa’an (vocals and guitar) and Youk (bass and vocals) started jamming in secondary school before entering the music scene seriously.

They have released several hit songs and are planning to release an album soon.

There will also be collaborations with other artistes.

"Hopefully, Malaysia is ready,” Sam said.

This coming from a band that decided to release the single Apa Pun Tak Boleh on election day.

The song featured a collaboration with Datuk Jeffrydin and Caprice.

Sam said the band saw having their song chosen for National Day as an acknowledgement of their music and creativity.

"We are very thankful to the government for choosing our song. It’s time for a new Malaysia,” he added.

The song was initially pitched to the Information Department prior to the general election and the band eventually recorded a demo after Hari Raya.

They then sent it out to various parties and Media Prima Bhd was the first to respond positively to it.

However, after the Information Department director-general heard the demo, he too was interested in the song.

This ended with a tie-up between the two parties.

As Malaysian musicians who are still relatively young, Sam said they will continue to follow where the music takes them.

"There will be no rules. We just follow our hearts and do it,” he said.

"As Malaysians, we hope to live in peace, enjoy our beautiful country and stand together as one.”