Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post presents information about Erykah Badu's song "Tyrone" and includes my comments about the names Erykah Badu used in that song.
This post also presents YouTube commenters playful suggestions of names that could be used if this song was specifically directed to Latinos or White people, or Haitians.
The content of this post is presented for cultural and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to Erykah Badu for her musical legacy and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/01/erykah-badu-tyrone-live-1997-concert.html for the pancocojams post entitled "Erykah Badu - "Tyrone" (Live 1997 concert -YouTube video & lyrics)".
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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG "CALL TYRONE"
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyrone_(song)
"Tyrone" is a song by singer Erykah Badu. It was released as the lead single in support of her album Live and does not feature on her debut album Baduizm. The song was recorded professionally during a Badu concert and is the version sent to radio. The song has been referenced in other media, most notably in the film Next Friday (1999), when Tyrone (Deebo's accomplice/younger sibling) is making a fake call at a restaurant. The song title is also referenced by Beyoncé in the song "Kitty Kat" off her second album B'Day and in the rap of 3LW's hit single "No More (Baby I'ma Do Right)," as well as R. Kelly in the song "When a Woman's Fed Up" from its 1998 double album R.
Release and reception
Tyrone was played in heavy rotation on radio, although the song failed to chart on either Billboard's R&B or pop singles chart. The song reached #1 on R&B's airplay chart.[1]"...
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From https://genius.com/Erykah-badu-tyrone-lyrics
"About 'Tyrone'
Erykah told the Power 105 Breakfast Club that her most famous song was “a total freestyle” that she made up on the spot and just happened to record.
Erykah has had enough with her no-good, do-nothing man and is kicking him out of the house. Tyrone isn’t actually the boyfriend here: Tyrone is the boyfriend’s homeboy, and Erykah suggests that he “call up Tyrone” to help him move his sh&t* out of her house.
The boyfriend put his friends above her, disrespected her, and basically acted like a scrub. Since he loves Tyrone so much, maybe Tyrone can help him carry his things out: but he can’t call Tyrone on Erykah’s phone, because he never helped her with the bill.
Some have suggested that this song is about Andre 3000 of Outkast, an allegation that he vehemently denies in his song “A Life in the Day of Benjamin Andre.”
-snip-
*This word is fully spelled out in this article.
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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S COMMENT
In her 1997 hit song "Tyrone", the boyfriends' hanging buddies Jim, James*, Paul, and Tyrone are named but not the boyfriend himself. (The name "James" was changed to "John" in the studio recorded version).
I've read most of the comments on three YouTube discussion threads for this song and it's interesting that none of those commenters noted that of the names listed in that song-"Jim", "James", "Paul" and "Tyrone". the only so-called "Black name" is "Tyrone". I wonder why Erykah Badu chose those particular names. In 2017 Erika Kane, a commenter in the discussion thread for Erykah Badu Live [https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=erykah+badu+tyrone, the 1997 concert where she first sang "Tyrone" wrote:
"I JUST got it...
"Jim" Jim Beam
"Paul"
Paul Mason"
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I suppose that commenters is suggesting that Erykah Badu's man and his hanging partners were straight out alcoholics. I never thought of that.[??!]
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To conform with that line's beat, the first three names are one syllable and the ending name is two syllables. Maybe Erykah just came up with those one syllable names and the ending two syllable name "Tyrone" because those names were easy to remember. But, if that singer would have used one syllable so-called "Black" (African American) names, instead of "Jim", "James", and Paul", what names would she have used?
"Dre" is a distinctive Black (African American) nickname that would have fit that beat pattern. But since she was involved (or had recently been) involved with André 3000 (part of the Hip Hop duo Outkast along with Big Boi), she couldn't use that name unless she really wanted people to believe that song was about him. Erykah probably couldn't have used the African American male nicknames "Tre" (pronounce "tray") and "De" (pronounced "Day") because those names sound a lot like "Dre" and people may have thought she was alluding to André 3000 being friends with Tyrone and the rest of his homies.
Maybe Badu didn't use any so-called "Black names" besides "Tyrone" because most male names and nicknames that are categorized as distinctly Black names have two syllables and that line in Erykah's song calls for one syllable names except for the ending two syllable name.
To demonstrate this point, here's a list of late 20th century African American male names and early 20th century African American male names from the November 13, 2019 online article entitled "Black names: Past, present, and future" by Lisa Cook, Trevon Logan, and John Parman https://voxeu.org/article/black-names-past-present-and-future
"Late 20th century Distinctly Black Names
Darnell
Hakim
Jamal
Jermaine
Kareem
Leroy
Rasheed
Tremayne
Tyrone
Faction of Black male births-3.1%
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Early 20th century Distinctly Black Names
Abe, Abraham
Alonzo
Ambrose
Booker
Elijah
Freeman
Isaac
Isaiah
Israel
King
Master
Moses
Percy
Perlie, Purlie, Pearlie
Presley
Prince
Titus
Faction of Black male births-2.3%"
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My list of late 20th century and early 20th century distinctive Black (African American) male names would be significantly different from those list. However, those list reinforce my point that most African American male names have two syllables. And that line in Erykah Badu's "Tyrone" song flows because the first three names she listed were one syllable. Can you think of any one syllable distinctly Black names Erykah Badu could have used to replace the names "Jim", "James", and "Paul"?
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PLAYFUL YOUTUBE COMMENT EXCHANGES ABOUT ALTERNATIVE RACIAL OR ETHNIC NAMES INSTEAD OF THE NAMES ERYKAH BADU LISTED IN HER SONG "TYRONE"
These comments are numbered for referencing purposes only.
In addition to being playful, these comments document how people consider specific names as being associated with a particular race, ethnicity, or nationality.
Notice that these names don't necessarily adhere to the beat pattern the Erykah Badu had of listing one syllable names except for the two syllable ending name.
"Erykah Badu Live" https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=erykah+badu+tyrone
1. Vince Cruize, 2018
"white version: See everytime you come around, you got to bring Josh, Ryan,Bryson & Logan.
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REPLY
3. Because Iknow, 2019
"Henry Cruize For the older generation ... John, Bob, Walt and Harv"
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REPLY
4. arrian998, 2019
"Henry Cruize 😂 too funny"
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REPLY
5. jeleah swan, 2019
"Vince Cruize 😂😂😂😂💀💀💀"
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REPLY
6. Jaden DuBois, 2019
"AND BILLIE"
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REPLY
7. Derrick Crawford, 2019
"The way I just hollered 😂😂😂"
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REPLY
8. Cheetah, 2019
"Jeremiah Anthony Bryson’s a black name tho but bryce is"
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"Jeremiah Anthony" appears to be an earlier screen name for "Vince Cruize"/"Henry Cruise".
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REPLY
9. Velvet Rose, 2019
"OMG......I want ready, SO funny!
Music brings people TOGETHER!
For the Latino listeners: See every time you come around, you got to bring.......Luis, Juan, Jose & Carlos."
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REPLY
10. GB MD, 2019
"😂😂😂😂😂"
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REPLY
11. MrBdubsr, 2019
"And where the heck has Chet been lately!!"
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REPLY
12. GB MD, 2019
"@MrBdubsr LMAO at Chet!"
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REPLY
13. Agent Smidt, 2019
"Cody up in there too."
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REPLY
14. Jamie Cox, 2019
"And Kyle"
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REPLY
15. Van Wheeze, 2019
"You forgot Kyle. There is always a Kyle."
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REPLY
16. Jazz Echols, 2019
"Tyler, Logan, John and Ryan"
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REPLY
17. she snappin, 2019
"Lmaooooo"
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REPLY
18. Jacqueline Magdaleno, 2019
"@Velvet Rose don't forget angel"
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REPLY
19. Jacqueline Magdaleno, 2019
"@Velvet Rose and Jesus"
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REPLY
20. SiSi, 2019
"You got to call Bryce, Leif, Jebediah, & Tanner"
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REPLY
21. Mo Minor, 2019
"Lol"
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22. Ascary Navarro, 2019
"Latino versión: See every time you come around
You got to bring Juan, Jose, Carlos, and Ramón"
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REPLY
23. Singh. H, 2019
"Ascary Navarro lol 😂"
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REPLY
24. Nathalie Joseph, 2019
"😂😂😂😂😂 I’m dead"
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REPLY
25. Emy C, 2019
"HOLLERIN😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏"
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REPLY
26. SoLo_Revenge, 2020
"Lmao and Diego"
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REPLY
27. no one, 2020
"I love it! I needed that laugh!"
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REPLY
28. JJ CZ, 2020
"I think I better call Ramon! Lol"
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29. J Douce, 2020
"Haitian version-
You gotta bring Duclot, Makout, Vacabon ak Jean-Jaques"
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30. Amityville M., 2020
"Jerome is next lol tyrone"
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