Are You Gonna Be My Girl

"Are You Gonna Be My Girl" is a song by Australian rock band Jet from their 2003 debut album, Get Born. It was released as the first single from the album on 18 August 2003 in the United States and on 1 September 2003 in Australia.

"Are You Gonna Be My Girl"
Single by Jet
from the album Get Born
B-side	"Last Chance" "Hey Kids" "You Were Right" "Cigarettes & Cola"
Released	18 August 2003 (2003-08-18)
Genre	Garage rock revival^[1]
Length	3:33
Label	Capitol Elektra
Songwriter(s)	Nic Cester Cameron Muncey
Producer(s)	Dave Sardy
Jet singles chronology
"Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (2003) "Rollover DJ" (2003)
Music video
"Are You Gonna Be My Girl" on YouTube

The song peaked at number 20 in Australia and reached the top 20 in Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In the United States, it reached number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it their first top-40 hit and their highest charting single; it also peaked at number three on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and number seven on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The single has sold 1.3 million copies in the United States since 2012.^[2]

In January 2018, as part of Triple M's "Ozzest 100", the 'most Australian' songs of all time, "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" was ranked number 38.^[3]

Structure

Written by Nic Cester and Cameron Muncey, the song is often cited for similarities to Iggy Pop's "Lust for Life" (particularly its drum pattern and near-identical guitar riff).^[4][5] The band, however, argues that "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" has more in common with 1960s Motown songs, namely "I'm Ready for Love" by Martha and the Vandellas and "You Can't Hurry Love" by the Supremes. Nic Cester said he was influenced by the stop-start structure of "My Generation" by the Who, as well as singers like Mick Jagger and Van Morrison who could "speak" verses and choose lyrics based on diction rather than poetry.^[6]

Chris Cester responded to media commentary regarding the similarities, stating in a Jared Story interview that the beat was taken from Motown, referring to a meeting between Pop and himself:

It's funny because I asked him point blank about that. He said I was crazy. He said that when he and David Bowie were writing "Lust for Life", they were ripping off Motown's beat. It's funny that he said that to me because we also thought we were ripping off Motown more than "Lust for Life". To be honest with you that kind of annoyed me a lot, because I always thought it was really lazy. People just go well Lust for Life is more well-known so that's what they go for, but if you listen to a song like "You Can't Hurry Love" (The Supremes) I think you'll find its closer to "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" than "Lust for Life" ever was. And that's what Iggy said as well.^[7]

Background

Nic Cester said he used to live in a bungalow with only two rooms, a bedroom and a toilet, so he would often sit on the toilet, lid down, and play around on his guitar. "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" originated there. He wrote it sometime between the ages of 17-19, when one of his main life goals was "trying, unsuccessfully, to shag as many girls as possible!" He wrote this song while frustrated about one girl, and the original hook was "She's just like every other girl", but his bandmates thought it was too negative and convinced him to make it more positive.^[6] The cough was an accident in the demo, but the producers thought it should be in the final mix. Nic refused to fake the cough, so they copied it from the demo and put it in the final mix.^[6]

Music video

The music video is shot in black and white, and shows Jet performing in a blank studio. As they play, black ink starts pouring out of their equipment and forms a landscape resembling the cover art on their album Get Born, the Beatles album Revolver and silhouettes of dancing girls. The video was shot at Vinopolis, London. Cameron Muncey can be seen wearing an AC/DC shirt.

Awards and nominations

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA).^[8][9]

APRA Awards for "Are You Gonna Be My Girl"

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2004	"Are You Gonna Be My Girl"	Song of the Year	Nominated
2005		Most Performed Australian Work Overseas	Won
2006		Most Performed Australian Work Overseas	Won
2007		Most Performed Australian Work Overseas	Won

MTV Video Music Awards

VMA Awards for "Are You Gonna Be My Girl"

Year	Nominee / work	Award	Result
2004	"Are You Gonna Be My Girl"	Best New Artist	Nominated
		Best Rock Video	Won
		Best Editing	Nominated

Track listings

Australian CD single^[10] "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" "Last Chance" "Hey Kids" "You Were Right" (demo) Australian 12-inch single^[11] A1. "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" B1. "Hey Kids" B2. "That's Alright Mama" (live) UK CD1^[12] "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" "Hey Kids" "You Were Right" (demo) "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (video)

UK CD2^[13] "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (alternative version) "That's Alright Mama" (live) "Take It or Leave It" (video) UK DVD single^[14] "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (video) "Rollover DJ" (video) "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (audio) "Ain't That a Lotta Love" (audio) European CD single^[15] "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" "Cigarettes & Cola"

Personnel

• Nic Cester – lead vocals, guitar
• Chris Cester – drums, tambourine, backing vocals
• Cameron Muncey – lead guitar, backing vocals
• Mark Wilson – bass guitar

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" Chart (2003–2004) Peak position Australia (ARIA)^[16] 20 Canada Rock Top 30 (Radio & Records)^[17] 15 Germany (Official German Charts)^[18] 49 Ireland (IRMA)^[19] 18 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[20] 21 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[21] 22 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[22] 17 Scotland (OCC)^[23] 13 UK Singles (OCC)^[24] 16 UK Rock & Metal (OCC)^[25] 2 US Billboard Hot 100^[26] 29 US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)^[27] 5 US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)^[28] 16 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)^[29] 3 US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)^[30] 7 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)^[31] 16 US Top 40 Tracks (Billboard)^[32] 22 Chart (2013) Peak position France (SNEP)^[33] 168

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" Chart (2003) Position Australia (ARIA)^[34] 96 Chart (2004) Position US Billboard Hot 100^[35] 76

Certifications

Certifications and sales for "Are You Gonna Be My Girl"

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)^[36]	Gold	35,000^^
Italy (FIMI)^[37]	Gold	25,000
United Kingdom (BPI)^[38]	Platinum	600,000
United States (RIAA)^[39]	Gold	500,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "Are You Gonna Be My Girl"

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	18 August 2003	Mainstream rock active rock alternative radio	Elektra	^[40]
United Kingdom	25 August 2003	12-inch vinyl CD		^[41]
Australia	1 September 2003		Capitol	^[42]
United States	8 December 2003	Triple A radio	Elektra	^[43]
	26 January 2004	Contemporary hit radio		^[44]
United Kingdom (re-release)	24 May 2004	12-inch vinyl CD DVD		^[45]

References

1. Heather Phares. "Are You Gonna Be My Girl review on Allmusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 July 2013. 'Are You Gonna Be My Girl?' is one of the most immediate – if not creative – singles to come out of the garage-rock revival of the early 2000s.
2. "Jet Breaks up". Billboard.
3. "Here Are The Songs That Made Triple M's 'Ozzest 100'". Musicfeeds. 27 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
4. Eliscu, Jenny (8 April 2004). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 27 November 2006. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
5. musicOMH.com single review 6 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine
6. Slater, Aaron (11 March 2019). "How I Wrote 'Are You Gonna Be My Girl' by Jet's Nic Cester". Songwriting Magazine. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
7. . Uptown Magazine. 15 October 2009. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009.
8. . Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
9. . Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
10. Are You Gonna Be My Girl (Australian CD single liner notes). Jet. Capitol Records. 2003. 5529432.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. Are You Gonna Be My Girl (Australian 12-inch single sleeve). Jet. Capitol Records. 2003. 724355294364.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. Are You Gonna Be My Girl (UK CD1 liner notes). Jet. Elektra Records. 2003. E7456CD1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
13. Are You Gonna Be My Girl (UK CD2 liner notes). Jet. Elektra Records. 2003. E7456CD2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
14. Are You Gonna Be My Girl (UK DVD single liner notes). Jet. Elektra Records. 2003. E7599DVD.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
15. Are You Gonna Be My Girl (European CD single liner notes). Jet. Elektra Records. 2003. E7599CD.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
16. "Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
17. "R&R Canada Rock Top 30" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1556. 21 May 2004. p. 65. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
18. "Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
19. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Are You Gonna Be My Girl". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
20. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 51, 2003" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
21. "Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
22. "Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
23. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
24. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
25. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
26. "Jet Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
27. "Jet Chart History (Adult Alternative Songs)". Billboard.
28. "Jet Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard.
29. "Jet Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
30. "Jet Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
31. "Jet Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard.
32. "Jet awards on Allmusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
33. "Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
34. "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 2003". ARIA. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
35. "Billboard Top 100 – 2004". Billboardtop100of.com. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
36. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2003 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
37. "Italian single certifications – Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 27 November 2020. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
38. "British single certifications – Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
39. "American single certifications – Jet – Are You Gonna Be My Girl". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
40. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1517. 15 August 2003. p. 24. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
41. "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 23 August 2003. p. 23. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
42. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 1st September 2003" (PDF). ARIA. 1 September 2003. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 October 2003. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
43. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1533. 5 December 2003. p. 23. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
44. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1539. 23 January 2004. p. 22. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
45. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 22 May 2004. p. 31.