Arabic version: عشر أغانٍ تستعير أسماء مشاهير
According to ABC News, celebrities have long been referenced by musicians, but having an entire song named after a prominent person is a rarer distinction. The broadcaster highlighted 10 tracks whose titles range from Nicole Kidman and Elizabeth Taylor to Princess Diana and Elon Musk. In several cases, the famous name is less a biographical subject than a device that gives the song a mood, association or attention-grabbing hook.
Slovak artist Adéla’s Nicole Kidman, from her debut album Prima, rose to number nine on the Billboard Hot 100. Kidman used the song in an Instagram reel, while Madonna and Lizzo also shared it on TikTok. Adéla told W Magazine that the idea came after she attended the Golden Globes and felt, in a tight corset, like Kidman. Taylor Swift’s Elizabeth Taylor, from her 12th studio album The Life of a Showgirl, is described by Swift as a love song seen through parallels with the actress’s life.
Other selections reach back decades. Elton John’s Roy Rogers, on 1973’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, is not really about the cowboy singer and actor, but about the comfort of watching a beloved character on late-night television. The Eagles’ James Dean, mostly written by Jackson Browne, refers to Dean’s role in Rebel Without A Cause and alludes to his 1955 death. David Bowie’s Andy Warhol appeared on Hunky Dory; Bowie later played Warhol in the 1996 film Basquiat.
Some titles have little connection to their namesakes. Weezer’s Buddy Holly is not about the late rocker, though its video blended the band’s performance with episodes of Happy Days. Duck Sauce’s 2010 hit Barbra Streisand used the singer’s name repeatedly and reached the top 10 in Australia. Charlie Puth and Meghan Trainor’s 2015 single Marvin Gaye reached number four in Australia and went two times Platinum. Ice Spice’s Princess Diana was linked to memes comparing the rapper with the late princess, while a Nicki Minaj remix peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100. DDG featuring Gunna released Elon Musk, inspired by Musk going viral on X.
