| "That's Not My Name" | |||||||||||
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| Single by The Ting Tings | |||||||||||
| from the album We Started Nothing | |||||||||||
| Released | 9 May 2008 (Europe) 12 May 2008 (UK) 27 January 2009 (U.S. Radio)[1] |
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| Format | CD single, digital download | ||||||||||
| Genre | Dance-punk, new rave | ||||||||||
| Length | 5:11 (Album version) 3:45 (UK radio edit) 3:28 (US radio edit) 3:17 (International radio edit) |
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| Label | Columbia | ||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Katie White & Julian de Martino | ||||||||||
| Certification | Platinum (ARIA),[2] (RIAA),[3] (RIANZ)[4] | ||||||||||
| The Ting Tings UK singles chronology | |||||||||||
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"That’s Not My Name" is the third single by British duo The Ting Tings from their debut studio album We Started Nothing. Vocalist Katie White states that the song was written "with me ranting about my frustrations with the record industry."[5] 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 and support from BBC Radio 1 and the NME, the single was re-released individually on 12 May 2008 on Columbia Records.
"That's Not My Name" went to number one in the United Kingdom on 18 May 2008, seeing off competition from well-established acts like Rihanna, Madonna and will.i.am.[6] The following week, however, the single was replaced by Rihanna's single "Take a Bow" at number one.[7] The song was a sleeper hit in North America for about five months before finally becoming a Top 40 hit on the charts. The single has sold over a million digital copies.
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The single received favourable reviews from critics upon re-release, with the NME describing it as "no-flab electro-pop nugget",[8] 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".[9] Digital Spy compared the single to a "well-shaken can of cola", and added "[the track is] brimming with sticky, yummy, fizzy goodness".[10]
The song has three music videos. The first features The Ting Tings on a white background performing the song on a set, with alternating scenes of Katie with blue and pink backgrounds. This version of the video was used to promote the song and album upon its 2007 release. This video is visually similar to the video for Toni Basil's "Mickey," in keeping with the audio similarities. This video was directed by Sophie Muller and Stacey Hartly
Columbia produced a 2008 video for the US release, with director David Allain and with them performing again on 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. All videos are live action.[11] The third music video was directed by AlexandLiane and features The Ting Tings in a park, where some people costumed by skeletons start to show themselves, with some words of the lyrics of That's Not My Name.
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 entitled "That Is My Name" about Penguins player Evgeni Malkin, in which a man sounding like Malkin sang about his multiple nicknames.
In 2010 Boston based radical cheerleading group Boston Sass Attack rewrote the song as an anti-catcalling cheer and performed it at TraniWreck
The instrumental of the track was used in a UK cinema advert for BBC Radio 1 during the summer of 2008.[13] 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 new subscription package, Itak Džabest.[14] This song is used in the trailer for the 2009 summer movie Post Grad, with Alexis Bledel, and on the shows 90210 on The CW, Brothers & Sisters on ABC, Taking the Stage, and The City on MTV, and in the movie Fired Up.
The single was used in the 2011 film Horrible Bosses. The character played by Charlie Day, Dale, sang the song in a car.
In the United Kingdom, the single entered the UK Singles Chart at number one on 18 May 2008, ending Madonna and Justin Timberlake's four-week reign at the top with "4 Minutes".[6] The following week, however, it slipped to number two after Rihanna's "Take a Bow" climbed to number one.[7] In Ireland, it peaked at number two for five consecutive weeks.[15]
In Australia, after week after week of slow rising, it eventually peaked inside the top 10, and was certified Gold on 3 November.[2] 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" has 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.
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart[2] | 8 |
| Austrian Singles Chart[16] | 39 |
| Canadian Hot 100 | 57 |
| Czech Airplay Chart[17] | 7 |
| Danish Singles Charts[16] | 10 |
| Eurochart Hot 100[18] | 7 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart[16] | 8 |
| Swedish Singles Chart[16] | 23 |
| Turkey Top 20 Chart (Billboard)[19] | 12 |
| UK Singles Chart[6] | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[20] | 39 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop Songs | 34 |
| Country | Certification | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Platinum[21] | 70,000+ |
| New Zealand | Gold[4] | 7,500+ |
| United Kingdom | Platinum[22] | 300,000+ |
| United States | Platinum[3] | 1,141,280+ |
| Country | Chart | Ranking |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | ARIA End of Year Singles | #48[23] |
| New Zealand | RIANZ End of Year Singles | #50[24] |
| United Kingdom | UK Year-end Singles Chart 2008 | #22[25] |
| Preceded by "4 Minutes" by Madonna featuring Justin Timberlake and Timbaland |
UK Singles Chart number-one single 18 May 2008 – 24 May 2008 |
Succeeded by "Take a Bow" by Rihanna |
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