David Duchovny, Why Won't You Love Me?
Does anyone else know this song? And why do I?
Hello friends!
I’m back in your inbox a week earlier than planned! Like I said, curiosity never takes a break — at least mine doesn’t.
And when your curiosity helps you discover a story that is light and fun and goes great with an ice-cold lemonade or glass of Pimms, you’ve got to share it.
So, get ready to open Spotify or Apple Music, because (I hope) you’ll want to download this song in a few minutes.
Here we go…
It’s funny the associations you make with people that stick.
When I saw this picture of actor David Duchovny on the picket line last week, I immediately said: “David Duchovny, why won’t you love me?” a reference to an obscure song that somehow popped into my head.
I checked in with a few of my pop culture loving friends to see if they knew the song.
Nope…
“How do I know it?” I wondered.
It wasn’t a hit as I recall, and I didn’t watch The X-Files or pay much attention to David Duchovny.
I’m not sure why I know it.
But where did it come from?
I was curious…
“Some guys get into music to meet chicks.
“I have to say that at the most basic level, I got into the business to meet David Duchovny.”
So said a 23-year-old singer named Bree Sharp, in 1999.
She wrote an ode to the actor, then well-known for playing FBI agent Fox Mulder on the sci-fi television drama, The X-Files.
The song was called “David Duchovny, Why Won’t You Love Me?” though it is often shortened to just “David Duchovny.”
Listening to the lyrics, we learn that the narrator (i.e. Bree) is a big fan of The X-Files, and its leading man.
She’s got it bad for Duchovny, who is “so smooth and so smart, he’s abducted my heart.”
But it’s not just a song about unrequited love.
“It’s a multilayered song,” Sharp said back in 1999, after the song began getting attention.
“On the surface, it seems like a fun song about being infatuated with a TV star, but it's a lot more than that.
“It’s a song about unrequited love and how you deal with having a crush on someone unobtainable.
“I love the idea of people coming to the song for one thing and leaving with something more.”
But the song would actually do what Sharp intended – eventually connecting her with David Duchovny, after he received a copy of the song from a friend.
“And I was like, ‘Wow! I have my own song!’ and I would play it in the car because I thought it was a good song,” Duchovny said in an interview in 2013.
“I was pleased, I thought the tune was really good.
“And then I memorized it because I listened to it a number of times.
“And then I got caught singing along to it with the window down in the car.”
A demo tape of the song was also sent to X-Files creator Chris Carter, where it was discovered by his assistant, Chuck Forsch.
Forsch thought it was a good song, and asked Will Shivers, a writer’s assistant on the show, what they should do with it.
“Let’s make a music video,” Shivers responded.
The two assistants worked together to produce and direct a music video that they hoped to share as a surprise at the show’s Christmas party.
“We put the whole crew in it, but then thought, ‘What if we put celebrities in it?’” Shivers said, reflecting on the video more than 20 years later.
As Carter’s assistant, Forsch knew a lot of other assistants in the entertainment industry, and reached out to see if they could help get other celebrities to participate.
“It was quite an undertaking, but we filled it all in. It was a 3-4 month process,” Shivers said.
The video is pure 1990s in its graininess, and you can tell that the two assistants must have walked around the lot where The X-Files filmed to catch other shows in production.
A few minutes in, it’s like a who’s who of the shows and stars of that era.
Roz and Daphne from Frasier. Ally McBeal. Buffy. Pamela Anderson.
But you’ve also got Brad Pitt (in full Tyler Durden Fight Club attire), the members of KISS, Garry Shandling, David Spade, Janeane Garofalo... Even Jerry Springer and Jeopardy’s Alex Trebek appear!
My favorite moment is Dennis Franz (aka Andy Sipowitz from NYPD Blue) lip synching about wanting Duchovny to “debrief and debug me.”
It’s like taking a virtual trip back in time, and believe me when I say this song will get stuck in your head.
Check out the video (with final thoughts provided by Jerry Springer):
And though the music video was made for fun, Duchovny showed his appreciation for the effort Shivers and Forsch made.
“He sent us on a paid weekend to Vegas as a gift in response to all the work we did,” Shivers said.
“It’s a good song. I didn’t know that I rhymed so well with lots of stuff.”
- David Duchovny
Though David Duchovny, Why Won’t You Love Me? was not a Top 40 hit, it received enough attention that Sharp got a record deal, and an invitation to perform on the Lilith Fair tour in the summer of 1999.
And, she achieved her goal of meeting David Duchovny — and her song certainly made an impression on the star.
In a 2018 “Confirm or Deny,” the New York Times asked Duchovny if he was still singing Sharp’s song to himself in the car.
“Confirm,” he said.
“And to anybody else who’s in the car.
One more thing…
After the attention from David Duchovny (the song), Sharp continued working as a singer, as well as an actor and activist.
But her connection to Duchovny (the man) was still evident in 2015, when he asked her to join him at an event promoting his debut novel.
Here she is serenading him in front of a crowd at a Barnes & Noble in New York City:
Other Things On My Mind…
Obscure songs from the 1990s are not the only thing on my mind…
You can find other stories I write (mostly about business, leadership and life) on my blog, including:
This Arcade Game Took Me Back in Time — Who knew seeing the Claw Game would bring back so many memories?
Three Obvious Lessons from a Family Vacation — None of this is rocket science, but these reminders may help if you’re taking a family vacation.
The Helpers Are Out There — Mr. Rogers was right. The world is not as bleak as the news might have you believe.
How Can I Help?
I’ll keep saying it: Communication matters.
And if you want to improve your communication (and get all the good things that come with that), I’m your gal.
So many companies could reap significant benefits – from performance and culture to retention and engagement – by improving their communication.
So, if you know someone who could benefit from some help (as even the most seasoned leaders do), please get in touch and check out my website for more information.
You can also see my Top 10 list of what I can (and can’t) do for you here.
And if you see any communication examples (the good, the bad, and the ugly) that you think are worth analyzing or sharing, please send them my way!
Until next time, Stay Curious!
-Beth
Thanks, Beth. Now I have terminal earworm. Ed
I had never heard that song! I loved the video and yeah, I'll be singing it all day. :)