by Jill Riley and Luke Taylor
May 19, 2022
Each year, the Social Security Administration publishes totals for every first name that has appeared in all Social Security card applications for births that occurred in the United States since 1880. With more than 140 years of data behind it, the Social Security Administration’s publication is the most thorough record of first-name usage in the United States.
Using that data, the website Names.org tracks name popularity for each state, and it tries to predict the most popular names in the coming year. Meanwhile, the Minneapolis Star Tribune has used the data to create a website where you can track the popularity of your own name in Minnesota since the early 20th century up to the present day.
That’s a lot of fun with names — so let’s extend that to music. For today’s 9:30 Coffee Break, what songs do you want to hear that feature a name in the title?
Respond with your song ideas in the comments below.
Have an idea for a Coffee Break topic? Submit your idea for a future theme and browse past Coffee Breaks in our archive.
Songs played:
Trip Shakespeare - Jill Can Drive
Cowboy Junkies - Sweet Jane
Mike Doughty - 27 Jennifers
Ramones - Judy Is A Punk
The Ting Tings - That's Not My Name
The Vaselines - Molly's Lips
Siouxsie and the Banshees - Christine
Walk The Moon - Anna Sun (bonus track!)