Everyone Knows That (also known as Ulterior Motives, Shapes, or Tell Me The Truth; acronymed as EKT) is the name given to a lost song, of which 17 seconds have surfaced only. It first appeared on the website WatZatSong, in 2021, when a low-quality, seventeen second recording was uploaded by user carl92.^[2] The user discovered the snippet in an old DVD backup, but did not know where it was from, which prompted them to upload it to the internet for identification.^[1]

History

It is unknown precisely when the full song was recorded, but given the song's stylistic similarities to synth-pop, theorists have surmised it was probably recorded sometime in the 1980s or 1990s. Rolling Stone described the song as being in line with the new wave music of the 1980s.^[2] The seventeen second snippet of the song was uploaded to WatZatSong (a precursor of sorts to Shazam) on October 7, 2021, with carl92 asking for help in identifying the song. The original poster claimed that the snippet's file was dated 1999 in the file system, and guessed that the song was from Spain, where the user allegedly lived.^[2] However, the song or original snippet was not necessarily recorded or originated in 1999.

The EKT gained more popularity in late 2022 and 2023 with a subreddit about the song launched in June 2023.^[2]

Online search and artists

The uploading of the song snippet was slow to gain traction at first, but after several months of ruling out artist after artist, the process of identifying this song took on a cult-like following.^[2] The identification process spread to Reddit, where a sub-forum dedicated to the song was created. Possible theorized sources for the song include a 1990s MTV broadcast, a commercial jingle, or a piece of Japanese Musak played in McDonald's throughout Eastern Europe.^[2] One such distributor of muzak later confirmed that they did not have this track in their database.^[2]

Several YouTube users have recorded covers which expand the snippet into a full song. Many AI-generated covers have appeared on YouTube as well.

Many artists have been suggested as possible creators of this song, such as the Swedish band Roxette, and Australian duo Savage Garden.. Some have even speculated that the snippet was created by artificial intelligence, however this theory is considered by many to be implausible.

There has been some speculation that Roxette were the song's creators due to similarities to some of Roxette's own songs, and because users who scaled down the clip by a key alleged to hear a previously unheard female vocalist, a combination that Roxette used in some of their songs, such as "Dangerous". Other users noted the bass sounded similar to Guy Pratt, a popular session bassist in the 1980s who may have worked with Roxette. However, there has been a lot of doubt surrounding this theory due to Roxette's popularity.

Savage Garden, who gained popularity in 1997 with their eponymous debut album, have also been considered a possible artist due to the vocals' similarity to lead vocalist Darren Hayes.^[3] On November 17, 2023, after being contacted numerous times about the song, Hayes posted the words "Everyone Knows That" on the social media platform X, leading to increased speculation.^[4]

Instruments

The following are the instruments thought to be used in this song:

• LinnDrum LM-2 drum machine
• Yamaha DX7 synthesizer
• Bass guitar
• Telecaster guitar

See also

• The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet
• Lostwave

Notes

References