We're Going to Be Friends

"We're Going to Be Friends"
Promotional single by the White Stripes
from the album White Blood Cells
Released2002
RecordedFebruary 2001[1][2]
StudioEasley-McCain Recording, Memphis, Tennessee
Genre
Length2:28
LabelV2 Records
ComposersJack White, Meg White
LyricistJack White
ProducerJack White
The White Stripes singles chronology
"Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"
(2002) 		"We're Going to Be Friends"
(2002) 		"Red Death at 6:14"
(2002)
Music video
"We're Going to Be Friends" on YouTube
Audio sample
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"We're Going to Be Friends" is a song by American alternative rock band the White Stripes from their album White Blood Cells. It was released in 2002 and tells the story of meeting a new friend at the beginning of a school year.

Background and music

"Suzy Lee", who is mentioned in the song in "We're Going to Be Friends", makes recurring appearances in White Stripes' discography, including in their eponymous album, which includes the song "Suzy Lee", as well as on Get Behind Me Satan,[3] which is dedicated to Suzy Lee, "Wherever she may be..."

The song speaks of a girl and boy who become friends while engaging in activities in and out of school. AllMusic said the song "takes a nostalgic look back at the innocence of school days with a surprisingly sensitive vocal as [Jack] expertly paints impressions of days past with deft economy."[4]

Music video

The video features Jack and Meg White on a couch in front of their house at night time. The couch was on the curb as they planned to discard of it. Jack is playing a guitar, while Meg is sleeping alongside him (Meg was genuinely sleeping as it was approximately midnight by the time the video was filmed).[5] Jack wakes Meg as the song ends. The cover of the single is a still from the video.

The video was shot in one take after the band had finished shooting for the video for the song "Hotel Yorba", which was director of photography Kevin Carrico's idea as he some extra film available after the shoot.[5]

Reception

Tom Maginnis with AllMusic called the song a "sweet acoustic ballad",[4] and NME called it "fey childhood-sweetheart folk".[6] The A.V. Club said it was "the album's most shocking track."[7]

Featured in the opening credits of the 2004 film Napoleon Dynamite, writer/director Jared Hess commented that, originally, they could not find the song they were looking for, but wanted to use "We're Going to Be Friends", so a copy of Napoleon Dynamite was sent to the White Stripes, who promptly approved the song's use in the film.[8] It was the first film to feature a White Stripes song.[9]

Singer-songwriter Jack Johnson recorded a cover of the song on his album Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George. From around 2006 or 2007 up until 2009, it was used in a promo for PBS Kids. Bright Eyes covered the song with guest First Aid Kit for the charity album Cool for School: For the Benefit of the Lunchbox Fund.[10]

This song was also played at the end of the House episode entitled "Mirror Mirror", which aired October 30, 2007, although the song is not included in the show's soundtrack. The song is also featured in the Life in Pieces episode "Sexting Mall Lemonade Heartbreak". CBS included a song in commercials for its 2006 program The Class that resembled the tune of "We're Going to Be Friends".[11] When magazine Broadcasting & Cable reached out to Monotone Management (the management company of the band at the time), the company declined to comment, but indicated that the band was aware of the song and were not pleased.[11] In subsequent commercials, CBS used a different song.[11]

This song was featured in the 2017 film Wonder. The film used two versions of the song, the original version performed by the White Stripes and a cover version performed by Caroline Pennell.

This is one of Conan O'Brien's favorite songs by the White Stripes and at his request, they performed it on the final episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien on February 20, 2009.[12] A portion of the song is also the opening theme to his podcast, Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend.

The song was featured on episode 5 ("The Jen Show") of the British show Extraordinary.

The song was also played during Season 7 Episode 2 of the Adult Swim animated series Rick and Morty titled "The Jerrick Trap", as well as being the end credits song of that episode.

Children's book adaptation

We're Going to Be Friends
AuthorJack White
IllustratorElinor Blake
GenreChildren's literature
PublisherThird Man Books
Publication date
November 7, 2017
Publication placeUnited States
ISBN9780996401692
Websitehttps://www.thirdmanbooks.com/catalog/were-going-to-be-friends

In May 2017, Third Man Records announced a children's book based on the single to be released on November 21, 2017, shortly after the White Stripes’ 20th anniversary.[13] The book became available on November 7, 2017, for pre-release events and limited distribution.[14] It was illustrated by Elinor Blake,[13] an illustrator and animator for shows such as The Ren & Stimpy Show and Pee-wee's Playhouse.[14] The book came with a digital copy of the original song and a cover version performed by The Woodstation Elementary School Singers,[13] as well as a cover by April March.[14]

Certifications

Certifications for "We're Going to Be Friends"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[15] Gold 15,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ Maerz, Jennifer (June 5, 2001). "Sister? Lover? An Interview with The White Stripes". whitestripes.net. Archived from the original on June 11, 2010. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Giannini, Melissa (May 29, 2001). "The Sweet Twist Of Success". metrotimes.com. Archived from the original on May 11, 2003. Retrieved March 4, 2026.
  3. ^ SARO (July 20, 2009). "#7 Suzy Lee". everyjackwhitesong.blogspot.com. Blogspot.com. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  4. ^ a b Maginnis, Tom. "Song Review by Tom Maginnis". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  5. ^ a b Handyside, Chris. Fell in Love with a Band: The Story of The White Stripes. St. Martin's Publishing Group. pp. 206–208. ISBN 978-1-4668-5184-9.
  6. ^ NME staff (12 March 2010). "The White Stripes : White Blood Cells". NME. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  7. ^ Phipps, Keith (Jul 3, 2001). "The White Stripes: White Blood Cells". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  8. ^ Morrison, Angela (2019-01-18). "Forever Young: 'Napoleon Dynamite' Turns 15". Film School Rejects. Retrieved 2024-05-20.
  9. ^ Napoleon Dynamite DVD audio commentary
  10. ^ "Listen: Bright Eyes and First Aid Kit Cover the White Stripes to Benefit South Africa". Cover Me. 4 October 2011. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
  11. ^ a b c Topcik, Joel (August 14, 2006). "Connecticut Candidate's Cable Connection". Broadcasting & Cable. 136 (32): 5.
  12. ^ Anita Schvitz (2023-01-28). "We're Going to Be Friends" White Stripes on last Late night with Conan O'Brien. Retrieved 2024-05-30 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ a b c Hughes, William (May 19, 2017). "Jack White is turning "We're Going To Be Friends" into a children's book". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  14. ^ a b c "We're Going to be Friends". Third Man Books. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
  15. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – The White Stripes – We're Going to Be Friends". Radioscope. Retrieved February 28, 2026. Type We're Going to Be Friends in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
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