American Songwriter highlights four rock tracks whose titles are also their bands’ names, presenting them as examples of musicians playfully foregrounding their own identity. The selection ranges from foundational heavy metal to indie rock and reflects how self-titled songs can introduce a sound, comment on fame or answer critics.

Black Sabbath’s “Black Sabbath”, from the band’s self-titled debut, is built around an ominous tritone riff and establishes its heavy-metal style without directly naming the group in its lyrics. Bad Company released “Bad Company” on its 1974 self-titled album, while Wilco opened 2009’s Wilco (The Album) with the deliberately promotional “Wilco (The Song)”, whose album received a Grammy nomination; Arctic Monkeys used 2006’s “Who The F*** Are Arctic Monkeys?” as a defiant response to growing hype and criticism.