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The Naked and Famous are a New Zealand rock band comprising Thom Powers, Alisa Xayalith, Aaron Short, David Beadle and Jesse Wood. Their debut album Passive Me, Aggressive You was released on the Somewhat Damaged label in September 2010.
Frontwoman Alisa Xayalith recalled to the NME the inspiration for this song: "I remember being up at two in the morning playing with a main key line, the next day I showed it to Thom and we made a demo. I spent the rest of the day watching Skins and I got inspired by that rebellious spirit. Everything is so romanticised and exaggerated on that show. It makes you wish you had a teenage life like that. So I wrote lyrics that inspired dreaming and youthful exuberance."
The song became the first New Zealand #1 single by a homegrown act in three years and the first debut by a Kiwi band in 16. "Most Zealand bands still live at home and work locally," explained Alisa to NME. "The charts here are dominated by Katy Perry and the like but we're so far from that. That's what was so amazing, it wasn't just that a homegrown band were getting a number one, but an alternative band. That was such a feat."
The Naked and Famous took the name from a line in UK trip hop singer-songwriter Tricky's track, "Tricky Kid."
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