That's Not My Name

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"That's Not My Name"
Re-release picture sleeve
Single by the Ting Tings
from the album We Started Nothing
A-side"Great DJ" (double A-side)
B-side
Released28 May 2007
12 May 2008 (re-release)
Length
  • 5:11 (Album Version)
  • 3:45 (International Radio Edit)
  • 3:28 (US Radio Edit)
  • 3:17 (UK Radio Edit)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Jules De Martino
The Ting Tings UK singles chronology
"That's Not My Name" / "Great DJ"
(2007) 		"Fruit Machine"
(2007)
The Ting Tings US singles chronology
"Shut Up and Let Me Go"
(2008) 		"That's Not My Name"
(2009)
Music video
"That's Not My Name" on YouTube

"That's Not My Name" is the debut single of British musical duo the Ting Tings. The song was originally released as a double A-side with "Great DJ" by independent record label Switchflicker Records on 28 May 2007. After heavy promotion from BBC Radio 1 and the NME, the single was re-released individually on 12 May 2008 on Columbia Records. It was later included on their first studio album, We Started Nothing (2008).

Following the Columbia re-release, "That's Not My Name" debuted atop the UK Singles Chart, seeing off competition from well-established acts like Rihanna, Madonna, and will.i.am.[1] The song was a sleeper hit in North America, peaking within the top 40 of the charts in the United States in August 2009. The single has sold over a million digital copies.[citation needed]

Composition[edit]

"That's Not My Name" is written in the key of E major with a tempo of 145 beats per minute. The vocals in the song span from G3 to G♯5.[2] Vocalist Katie White stated that the song was written "with me ranting about my frustrations with the record industry."[3]

Music videos[edit]

The song has three music videos, all of which are live action. The first features the Ting Tings with white background, performing the song on a set, with alternating scenes of White with blue and red backgrounds. This version of the video was used to promote the song and album upon its 2007 release. The video was directed by Sophie Muller and Stacey Hartly and is visually similar to the video for Toni Basil's "Mickey". By November 2023 the video had gained more than 82 million views on YouTube.[4]

Columbia produced a 2008 video for the US release, directed by David Allain and with the band performing a different set, with more equipment and flashing lights in the background. The video premiered on mtvu.com on 26 January 2009. Another video was made for the acoustic version.[5] The third music video, known as the alternate video, was directed by AlexandLiane and features the Ting Tings in a desert ghost town. Double Dutchers, cheerleaders, marching band drummers and sign spinners come out from the woods wearing black clothes with reflective material. The Ting Tings perform the song, while behind them the double dutchers skip rope, the cheerleaders cheer, the drummers drum, and the sign spinners spin signs featuring the names from the song's lyrics.

Reception[edit]

Critical[edit]

The single received favourable reviews from critics upon re-release, with the NME describing it as "no-flab electro-pop nugget",[6] while Q magazine described it as "a snatch of Hey Mickey-style handclaps and a gobbily staccato vocal, stitched together to fashion a groove that's as instant and familiar".[7] Digital Spy compared the single to a "well-shaken can of cola", and added "[the track is] brimming with sticky, yummy, fizzy goodness".[8]

Commercial[edit]

In the United Kingdom, the single entered at the top of the UK Singles Chart on 18 May 2008 – for the week ending dated 24 May 2008 – ending Madonna and Justin Timberlake's four-week reign at the top with "4 Minutes".[1] The following week, however, it slipped to number two after Rihanna's "Take a Bow" climbed to number one.[9] In Ireland, it peaked at number two for five consecutive weeks.[10]

In Australia, after slowly rising up the singles chart, it eventually peaked inside the top 10, and was certified Platinum in 2009.[11] On the Australian Physical Singles Chart, it peaked at 20, and on the Australian Digital track chart at number eight. In the United States, "That's Not My Name" peaked at number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving the band their first top 40 there. The song was certified Gold on 2 April 2009, selling over 500,000 copies.

Covers and usage in media[edit]

Dizzee Rascal performed a version of this song in the Live Lounge on BBC Radio 1, changing the chorus to: "They call me 'blood'/ They call me 'rude boy'/They call me oi/They call me mate/ ...They use the 'N-word' like it's a game/ That's not my name..."[12] During the Pittsburgh Penguins' Stanley Cup run in 2009, Pittsburgh radio station WDVE did a spoof of the song titled "That Is My Name" about Penguins player Evgeni Malkin, in which a man sounding like Malkin sang about his multiple nicknames. The song was also parodied as "He's Got My Name" for Cartoon Network's Johnny Test. Additionally, the song was used in a parody music video by Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis on their talk show I kveld med YLVIS (Tonight with YLVIS), titled "Jeg Heter Finn" ("My Name Is Finn").[13]

The instrumental of the track was used in a UK cinema advert for BBC Radio 1 during the summer of 2008.[14] A remixed version of the song was also used as the music for the PINK segment of the 2008 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show (remixed by Cho Dongho). The song is also used in Slovenian mobile operator Mobitel's commercial for their subscription package, Itak Džabest.[15] "That's Not My Name" was used in the trailer for the 2009 summer film Post Grad, and on the shows 90210 on The CW, Brothers & Sisters on ABC, Taking the Stage, and The City on MTV, as well as in the films Fired Up! (2009) and Horrible Bosses (2011), in which Charlie Day's character Dale sang it in a car while on cocaine. The song was featured in CSI: NY as track of the beginning of the episode "Point of No Return". The song was also used on the Skins series 3 episode "Katie and Emily". This song often appears in the E4 sitcom The Inbetweeners and appeared in The Inbetweeners Movie (official soundtrack).[16] Furthermore, the song was featured in Suburgatory.[17] American avant-garde and experimental band Xiu Xiu used lines from "That's Not My Name" in a cover of "Only Girl (In The World)" by Rihanna. The lines were altered to say "You call me Jamie, that's not my name."[18]

The song was also used in commercials and advertisements for Despicable Me 2, Joe Fresh, The Lego Movie, Coca-Cola, and Amazon Alexa. It has also been used in the films La Famille Bélier, Gnome Alone, Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, and Nimona. The Israeli TV series Ha-Yehudim Ba'im used the song as a basis for a satire[19] regarding the Jewish law forbidding the pronunciation of the tetragrammaton, where God complains about calling him with various names that are not truly His.

On 15 January 2022, the song first went viral on TikTok when it appeared on videos among famous pet accounts. Four days later, on the 19th, celebrities such as Alicia Silverstone and Drew Barrymore began to post videos using the song set to photos of their previous notable roles.[20][21]

The 2023 film Meg 2: The Trench features a version of the song with lyrics sung in Thai language by the actress and singer Pimprapa Tangprabhaporn.

Track listings[edit]

Chart performance[edit]

Release history[edit]

Region Date Format Label Ref(s).
United Kingdom 28 May 2007 7-inch vinyl Switchflicker [51]
12 May 2008 Digital download Sony BMG [52][53]
Australia 1 September 2008 CD single [54]
United States 13 October 2008 Alternative radio Columbia [55]
11 November 2008 Digital download (L.A. Riots remix) Sony BMG [56]
27 January 2009 Contemporary hit radio Columbia [57]
3 February 2009 Digital download (remix bundle) Sony [58]
8 September 2009 Digital download (Skeet & Tito remix featuring Wale) [59]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Geoghegan, Kev (19 May 2008). "Ting Tings celebrate number one". BBC News. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  2. ^ De Martino, Jules (2 February 2009). "The Ting Tings "That's Not My Name" Sheet Music in A Major (transposable) – Download & Print". Musicnotes.com. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
  3. ^ The Guardian: 1000 Songs You Must Hear – Party Songs, Writing Party Songs, pg. 7
  4. ^ That's Not My Nam on YouTube
  5. ^ "Music Video for the Acoustic Version". 17 May 2008. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2009 – via YouTube.
  6. ^ "The Ting Tings – The Tings Tings – Track Reviews". NME. 13 June 2007. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  7. ^ "The Q Daily / News / New To Q: The Ting Tings". News.q4music.com. Archived from the original on 15 April 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  8. ^ "Digital Spy Review". Wap.digitalspy.co.uk. 12 May 2008. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  9. ^ "BBC News – Rihanna climbs to the top". BBC News. 25 May 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  10. ^ "Digital Spy News". Digitalspy.co.uk. 24 May 2008. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  11. ^ a b "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  12. ^ Jones, Damian (4 July 2008). "Dizzee eyes biggest chart single". BBC News. Retrieved 3 August 2008.
  13. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Ylvis – Jeg heter Finn,english subtitles" – via YouTube.
  14. ^ "Radio One Cinema advert on YouTube". 29 June 2008. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2009 – via Youtube.
  15. ^ "Mobitel Itak Džabest commercial". 21 November 2008. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2009 – via YouTube.
  16. ^ ""The Inbetweeners" Night Out in London (TV Episode 2009) – IMDb". IMDb.
  17. ^ "Music Lounge – Suburgatory". ABC.com. 15 January 2013. Archived from the original on 13 April 2013. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  18. ^ "Xiu Xiu's 'Only Girl in the World' – Discover the Sample Source". WhoSampled. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
  19. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: ""זה לא השם" – היהודים באים חוזרת לעונה שניה! | כאן 11 לשעבר רשות השידור" – via YouTube.
  20. ^ Sicha, Choire (February 2022). "'That's Not My Name': TikTok's Most Corporate Celebrity Meme, Explained". Vulture. Vox Media, LLC. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
  21. ^ Weekman, Kelsey. "The "That's Not My Name" Trend Was Created By And For Celebs. Normies Can't Join In". BuzzFeed News. BuzzFeed. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  22. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  23. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  24. ^ "The Ting Tings Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  25. ^ "Top Lista Hrvatskog Radija". Croatian Radiotelevision. Archived from the original on 15 September 2008. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
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  27. ^ "Hits of the World – Eurocharts" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 120, no. 22. 31 May 2008. p. 55. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  28. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  29. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – That's Not My Name". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  30. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  31. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  32. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  33. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  34. ^ "The Ting Tings – That's Not My Name". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
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  37. ^ "The Ting Tings Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  38. ^ "The Ting Tings Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  39. ^ "The Ting Tings Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  40. ^ "The Ting Tings Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  41. ^ "The Ting Tings Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
  42. ^ "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2008". ARIA. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
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  45. ^ "End of Year Singles Chart Top 100 – 2008 – Official Charts Company". Official Singles Chart. Retrieved 25 September 2016.
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  47. ^ "Guld og platin i september" (in Danish). IFPI Danmark. Archived from the original on 8 October 2011. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  48. ^ "Latest Gold / Platinum Singles". Radioscope. 21 August 2011. Archived from the original on 31 August 2011. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
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  53. ^ "Music Upfront: May 12". Music Week. 3 May 2008. p. 13.
  54. ^ "New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 1st September 2008" (PDF). The ARIA Report. No. 966. Australian Recording Industry Association. 1 September 2008. p. 32. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 October 2008. Retrieved 27 March 2022 – via Trove.
  55. ^ "Modern Rock – Airplay Archive". FMQB. Archived from the original on 3 February 2010. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  56. ^ "That's Not My Name: MP3 Downloads: The Ting Tings". Amazon Music (United States). 11 November 2008. Archived from the original on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
  57. ^ "CHR – Airplay Archive". FMQB. Archived from the original on 1 January 2010. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
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  59. ^ "That's Not My Name: The Ting Tings: MP3 Downloads". Amazon Music (United States). 8 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 December 2009. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
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