User:Not0nshoree/Everyone Knows That (Ulterior Motives)

"Everyone Knows That", also known as "Ulterior Motives", is the name given to a seventeen-second snippet of an unidentified song suspected to be from the 1980s or 90s. It was uploaded to the song identification website WatZatSong in 2021 by user carl92. The user claimed to have discovered the recording amongst files in an old DVD backup, and speculated it was a leftover from when he was learning how to capture audio. The recorded snippet uploaded by carl92 is the only known proof and existing recording of the song.

Since being uploaded in 2021, users have been searching for the full song and information regarding its origin and artist.

History
It is unknown when the song was recorded, but it is theorized to have been recorded in the 1980s due to its stylistic similarities to pop music, of that time. The snippet of the song was uploaded to WatZatSong on October 7, 2021, by user carl92, who asked for help in identifying the song. They claimed that the snippet file was from 1999 in the file system, and guessed that the song is from Spain, where they claimed to live.

The song gained popularity online in late 2022 and 2023, with a subreddit dedicated to finding the song and its artist being launched in June 2023. On January 7, 2024, two members of the subreddit were interviewed by French commercial TV network TF1.

An image of a hot pink boombox from an online Depop listing has become associated with the song and is its unofficial cover.

Online search and possible origins
The search for the song was initially slow to gain traction, but gained a dedicated following over time. The search eventually spread to Reddit, where a sub-forum dedicated to finding the song was created. Possible theorized sources for the song include a 1990s MTV broadcast or a commercial jingle.

On YouTube, users have created reconstructions from the original snippet to have an idea of what the full song could be like.

Analysis
Some users speculate that the drum track was created by the LinnDrum LM2 machine. Other instruments speculated to have been used are the Yamaha DX7 synthesizer and Fender Telecaster guitar have also been theorized to have been used in the song.

Further analysis of the audio waves led to the discovery of an NTSC tone, which led some to doubt the validity of carl92’s claims, as he stated he was from Spain, which uses PAL.

Potential and debunked leads
There has been speculation that Roxette is the song's creator due to its similarities to some of their songs, and because users that scaled the clip down a key claimed to hear a female vocalist, a combination that Roxette used in some of their songs, such as "Dangerous". Other users noted the bass sounded similar to the style of Guy Pratt, a well-known bassist from the United Kingdom. Savage Garden have also been proposed due to the song's vocals being similar to lead vocalist Darren Hayes. On November 17, 2023, after being contacted numerous times about the song, Hayes posted a now-deleted tweet stating simply "Everyone Knows That" on X, leading to increased speculation.

Reception
The track gained attention on TikTok, with users starting a trend where users would create videos describing "parallel universes" where Ulterior Motives would have been a hit, instead of songs like Material Girl, which would have instead become lost media.

The subreddit r/everyoneknowsthat has around 29,000 subscribers as of February 2024.