Je m'appelle Bagdad

"Je m'appelle Bagdad"
Single by Tina Arena
from the album Un Autre Univers
Released	22 May 2006
Format	CD single
Genre	Pop
Length	4:19
Label	Columbia
Writer(s)	David Gategno Elodie Hesme
Producer(s)	David Gategno
Certification	Silver (France)
Tina Arena singles chronology
"Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible" (2005) "Je m'appelle Bagdad" (2006) "Tu aurais dû me dire (Oser parler d'amour)" (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 listings

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

Chart (2006) Peak position Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[2] 8 European Hot 100 Singles 18 French Singles Chart[2] 6 French Digital Singles Chart[3] 7 Swiss Singles Chart[2] 44

End of year chart (2006) Position Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[4] 23 French Airplay Chart[5] 86 French Singles Chart[6] 31 French TV Airplay Chart[5] 116 Certifications Region Certification Certified units/Sales France (SNEP)[7] Silver 100,000^* ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

1. Tina Arena.com News Article 12 April 2006.
2. "Je m'appelle Bagdad", in various Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved February 18, 2008)
3. "French Digital Chart, 10/06/2006" (in French). Disqueenfrance. Retrieved 1 January 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)
7. "French single certifications – Tina Arena – Je m'appelle Bagdad" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.