What's On Tonight & Pop Culture: Totally Tunes: Self-Referential

Artists can be shallow, so instead of just weaving their songs out of their own experience, they go overboard and write literal songs about themselves, kinda in a Moon Moon level situation. But that's fine, I guess it's not enough with having your adoring fans singing your melodies, but you also have them chanting your name while in song. ♫ Whistler, I'm the best, Whistler, top this thing...♫

There was one that said "I love me" but was vertical via Pexels

Let's begin with the most modest example I can think of: a song that literally keeps telling the listener the band rules the world, this is their world, and the whole band's name is spelled out in the chorus. That's The Hives for you.

There's also this very fun Monkees tune, that also happens to be the theme song of their TV show. The band was always weary of playing it live, as they'd find it to be kinda weird, with all the self-referentialness. In some shows of the latter tours, they'd have the backup band play it instrumental as they got on stage to avoid singing the lyrics.

Eminem has been through some nicknames or alter-egos or whatever throughout his career, with Slim Shady being possibly the most famous one of them all, and so this track, in which he not only hypes himself but also somewhat disses everyone, fits this theme wonderfully.

Sometimes self-referential songs are in protest of other people, otherwise look at this Clash tune that's all about peeing everywhere to show Mick Jones whose turf was there.