All My Famous Friends

Album: Secrets I'll Never Tell (2021)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • There was a time when our screens were filled with celebrities and other famous folks. They still are, but now they're joined about streams of pictures and videos from our friends and family, putting them on the same level. The British singer-songwriter Benedict Cork explores this on "All My Famous Friends," a track from his EP Secrets I'll Never Tell. Cork grew up in the digital age, but spent a lot of time working in a piano bar, which was still very analog.
  • Benedict Cork discussed this song when he was a guest on the Songfacts Podcast, saying: "It's all about social media and how we're living in a very strange time now, where on one hand, having all these devices which connect us to everyone around the world has been such a godsend throughout the pandemic - I've been having monthly Zoom calls with my family in Australia, and I've got family in America as well, and friends around the world - and it's been so amazing to have that and to be able to do that. If we were in lockdown 10 years ago, it would have been so different.

    Yet at the same time, we've all been living our lives online, and I'd say that song came out of the dark side of social media and how it can become quite overwhelming. At times it feels like everybody is sort of famous in their own lives and they're curating their own TV shows every day with photos and videos all filtered and carefully selected to paint this idea of what we all are. I do it as well and I'm really trying not to these days more and more because I want to just live my life truthfully. So, if I'm having a bad day, I'll just say it, and if I'm having a great day, I'll try not to over-egg it so that other people who are having a bad day don't feel worse because of that. So I'm just trying to live as authentically as possible. That song was kind of born out of that feeling."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Elton John

Elton JohnFact or Fiction

Does he have beef with Gaga? Is he Sean Lennon's godfather? See if you can tell fact from fiction in the Elton John edition.

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Rick Astley

Rick AstleySongwriter Interviews

Rick Astley on "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Cry For Help," and his remarkable resurgence that gave him another #1 UK album.

Band Names

Band NamesFact or Fiction

Was "Pearl" Eddie Vedder's grandmother, and did she really make a hallucinogenic jam? Did Journey have a contest to name the group? And what does KISS stand for anyway?

90s Music Quiz 1

90s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

First question: Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson appeared in videos for what artist?

Mick Jones of Foreigner

Mick Jones of ForeignerSongwriter Interviews

Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.