This morning, Today sat down for a chat with Delilah DiCrescenzo, the young Olympic hopeful who inspired the Plain White T’s “Hey There Delilah” and who’ll be attending the Grammys next month as lead singer Tom Higginson’s date. Even though she has a boyfriend! Who, she claims in her delay-plagued chat with Meredith Vieira and Matt Lauer, is actually completely fine with her going on said date, although one wonders how much he was gritting his teeth when he reiterated that fact. DiCrescenzo is, bless her heart, saying that her Grammy appearance will be a good opportunity for her to humanize track and field before this summer’s Olympics in Beijing, although one does wonder if her definition of “humanize” means, in part, “getting a sweet correspondent’s gig if the whole running thing doesn’t work out come Olympic Trials time.”
-
-
Editor:
Maura Johnston | E-mail
Idolator plays in WFNX's Sandbox every Thursday at 7:30 a.m. ET
F2K: The Worst Songs Of The '00s
This morning, 
Gosh, pretty. Too bad I hate that song.
TGY, Good, Bad, and Teh Pretteh
@OnAHeartbeatGlide: Simon never dated Sinatra, and she has revealed that it was about someone she had a relationship with.
I knew this song was over as soon as my mom asked for the CD for this song.
She seems sweet and all, but this interview is pretty cringe-inducing. Why do we even need to know the face behind the song?
This only makes things worse.
This is so weird. I went to high school with this girl. Every Monday morning the announcements would have something in it like, “And Delilah DiCresenzo took first place in [some race that I didn't know about].” Great for her though, for the Olympics, not that terrible, terrible song.
@MiseAmiee: Nope. It’s allegedly about Warren Beatty, but Carly Simon refuses to confirm or deny this. Mick Jagger is singing back up. Others:
“Angie” The Rolling Stones about David Bowie’s wife
“Dear Prudence” The Beatles about Mia Farrow’s sister
“Hey Jude” The Beatles about Julian Lennon
“Peggy Sue” Buddy Holly about his niece Cindy Lou but changed for the drummer’s wife Peggy Sue
“Beautiful Boy” The Beatles about Sean Lennon
“Cindy C” Prince about Cindy Crawford
“Athena” The Who about Theresa Russell
“My Hero” The Foo Fighters about Kurt Cobain
“Roseanna” Toto about Roseanna Arquette
“My Sharona” The Knack about a 17-year-old girl named Sharona
And everything Eric Clapton did in the late 60’s and early 70’s was about George Harrison’s wife.
So “the young Olympic hopeful who inspired the Plain White T’s “Hey There Delilah” –I know what all these words mean individually but I am mystified when you string them together like so. :::SIGH::: I must really be living under a rock, as my son is fond of telling me.
She’s boring and kinda bitchy. Then again, so’s the song. I really hope this guy doesn’t still have a thing for her, because she clearly thinks he’s sad and gross.
@Macloserboy:
I think Dave Grohl has denied that “My Hero” is about Kurt Cobain. He has newer songs about Cobain, but I thought he was pretty insistent that “My Hero” was not. I don’t understand why people care about the Plain White T’s muse though…it’s one thing if she was already famous. Are we going to do this with every love song released now?
It’s creepy that she’s going on as the “date” to that singer who wrote a love song about her. I wouldn’t dignify that type of stalking, and I don’t think my boyfriend would let me.
Yes, stalking.
I need someone to refute the rumor I heard that Big Star’s “Thirteen” aka one of my favorite songs of all time, is actually about Alex Chilton’s relationship with a, uh, thirteen-year-old. Tell me it’s not true!
@Macloserboy: And more recently revealed, “Sweet Caroline” Neil Diamond about Caroline Kennedy.
@Macloserboy: And don’t forget Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes,” which is also about Rosanna Arquette
@Macloserboy: @katxyz: Yeah My Hero is definitely not about Kurt. I mean, every song he writes people think about that Kurt, but I think in that same record the song that’s about Kurt is actually Hey Johnny Park
Fun fact of the day: I went to school with Tom Higginson and the Plain White Ts first incarnation (as Willowbrook High’s resident “punk” band) used to practice in the garage across from my best friend’s house.
It’s a small world
@katxyz: My bad. And while Courtney Love insists “Stacked Actors” is about her, he insists it isn’t.
‘Dude Looks Like A Lady’ =Vince Neil
I’m a radio DJ and our station played this song AD NAUSEUM, so my fellow jocks and I would just wander around ad libbing lyrics to this tune; they were often just a hyper-boring, mundane running random commentary. It might going something like, “Hey there Delilah I can’t stand that I’m at work now I just wish I could go back home and injest another poptart and a drink…a drink so I don’t have to think…about this song…”.
Try it - it’s fun!
@michaelpop: Are you sure you’re not thinking of Glen Hansard and the songs from Once? ;)
@Leiakat:
I know all of this. Someone else here thought it was about Sinatra, which is baffling.
@itchykooParker: Agreed; it’s a “Yankovic Generation” thing.
Clucking like a chicken furiously relieves the anger of hearing that crap song again.
@OingoBobo: Exactly. Yankovic generation indeed.
I’ll have to try the clucking thing. Just thinking about it might work.
@Macloserboy: where did I get Paul McCartney from then? Wierd.
@itchykooParker: Oh gosh. I’m so sorry. I always wondered about radio DJs and figured the had to have high suicide rates after hearing Nickelback 84 times in one day. And they always seem so enthusiastic about every single song coming up! I also wondered if they were fed meth at the start of their shift.
@MiseAmiee: No - It’s about James Taylor! Or were you joking?
@Moimeme: That’s what I always thought. “You’re So Vain”= James Taylor. Only I thought everyone knew that.
I really wish this song would go away!
@Macloserboy: Actually ‘Angie’ is about Anita Pallenberg, Keith Richard’s ladyfriend. He wrote the song, Mick Jagger just sung it.
I can only hope Paul McCartney tracks down that meter maid and takes her as HIS date to the Grammys.
Yeah, uh, hate is a strong word….but I really really really don’t like this song.
@Macloserboy: god i need you on my pub quiz team.
I hear Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make-Up Is Running)is actually about Anderson Cooper.
Beautiful boy is a John Lennon song, not a Beatles song.
Just saying.
Now you have a face to blame.
Please let her be remotely related to a former P4K scribe.
aw damn, i loved that song because i really really hoped it was written for an actual GF.
She was cute. And they asked her if the Grammy win or qualifying for the Olympics was more important to her. Um, duh.
I hate this fucking song.
Yawn.
@blackmailismylife: I was thinking the same thing. That would be too awesome.
For a show called “Today” it seems to be stuck in 2007.
Haven’t watched the clip, but why is it a “Today Exclusive?” Why does everything have to be exclusive? Don’t they realize that some “exclusives” are just that because no other media oulet really cares that much?
I’m so tired of that word. It’s been used so much I don’t even really know what it means anymore.
that song is everything that’s wrong with music today.
It’s kinda disappointing to find out the real story behind this song because, like the song, the truth is pretty boring.
Anyone wanna inspire me, what are the top songs with GOOD stories behind them, like Carley Simon’s ‘You’re So Vain” being about Frank Sinatra… others?
@MiseAmiee:
Sinatra? I thought “You’re So Vain” was about Warren Beatty?
@Dead Air ummm Dead Air: Maura did call the interview ‘delay-plagued.’
@ineffable.me: Yeah, an acoustic ballad. That sums up everything.