Mere days prior to the devastating plane crash on October 20, 1977 that claimed the lives of Lynyrd Skynyrd‘s lead singer Ronnie Van Zant along with band members Steve and Cassie Gaines, the group released their fifth studio album, Street Survivors. The album quickly soared up the charts, even though the band didn’t release a single right away.
When Skynyrd finally did release a single, they chose the opening track to the album, called “What’s Your Name.” Written by Ronnie and guitarist Gary Rossington, the lyrics are based on a true story.
One night, the band had been drinking at their hotel bar and one of their roadies became involved in a fight, so the whole band was kicked out. The story is reflected in the second verse to the song, as the narrator sings “Lord we got such a mess/It seems that one of the crew/Had a go with one of the guests.“
Ten years after the crash, Skynyrd regrouped with Ronnie’s brother Johnny Van Zant as lead singer. The group kicked off an extensive tribute tour, and used footage from one of their performances of “What’s Your Name” to finally make an official music video for the song.
After Skynyrd’s ten-year hiatus, their fans were excited to watch them perform again. The camera often panned out to the audience to show many people in the crowd singing along at the top of the lungs.
The footage from the concert was also intertwined with clips of the crew setting up, the band hanging out backstage, and fans meetings their favorite band members. At the end of the clip, the band pays tribute to Ronnie by showing a shot of a hat similar to the one he always wore resting on top of a microphone.
You can watch Skynyrd’s energetic music video for “What’s Your Name” below!
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