Je m'appelle Bagdad explained

Je m'appelle Bagdad
Cover:TinaArenaJem'appelleBagdad.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Tina Arena
Album:Un Autre Univers
Released:22 May 2006
Genre:Pop
Length:4:19
Label:Columbia
Producer:David Gategno
Prev Title:Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible
Prev Year:2005
Next Title:Tu aurais dû me dire (Oser parler d'amour)
Next Year:2006

"Je m'appelle Bagdad" is the second single to be released from Tina Arena's fifth studio album Un autre univers. It is a ballad with various orientalist themes. The song received significant airplay on French radio as did its predecessor "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible".

Arena is quoted as saying the song's title, which roughly translates as "My Name Is Bagdad", is misleading. "This is not a political song and it’s not about a political subject. It’s a metaphor - like a poem. It’s a woman saying ... I was once beautiful and now I’m in ruins, I’m destroyed."[1]

Track listing

CD single

  1. "Je m'appelle Bagdad" (David Gategno, Elodie Hesme) – 4:19
  2. "Si j'avais le temps" (Tina Arena, Patrick Fiori, Vincent Hare) – 4:11
  3. "Je m'appelle Bagdad (Remix)" (Gategno, Hesme) – 3:50

Music video

The video for the song was filmed in February 2006 in the Tunisian desert and the Palace of Tozeur by Thierry Vergnes, who also directed the video for "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible". About the video, Arena said, "There's always pressure to make a beautiful video but I really wanted tell the story of how complex humans are and how they can both create and destroy beautiful things." An Iraqi orthodontist living in France has also created a video, hosted on YouTube, of the song.

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Chart (2006)Peak
position
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[2] 8
European Hot 100 Singles18
French Singles Chart6
French Digital Singles Chart[3] 7
Swiss Singles Chart44

Year-end charts

Chart (2006)Position
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[4] 23
French Airplay Chart[5] 86
French Singles Chart[6] 31
French TV Airplay Chart116

Certifications

Notes and References

  1. http://tinaarena.com/news.php Tina Arena.com News Article
  2. "Je m'appelle Bagdad", in various Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved February 18, 2008)
  3. Web site: French Digital Chart, 10/06/2006 . Disqueenfrance . French . 1 January 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101224170050/http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/page-260585.xml?cid=261394 . 24 December 2010 .
  4. 2006 Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved April 20, 2008)
  5. 2006 French Airplay and Video Charts Yacast.fr (Retrieved May 14, 2008)
  6. 2006 French Singles Chart Ifop.com (Retrieved April 20, 2008)