"U Drive Me Crazy" is the first single taken from American boy band

NSYNC NSYNC (, ; also stylized as *NSYNC or 'N Sync) was an American boy band formed by Chris Kirkpatrick in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich. Their self-titled debut album was successfully released to European ...

's seasonal studio album, '' The Winter Album'', as well as on the UK version of their self-titled debut album. The song was a major hit in Spain, reaching number four on the AFYVE chart and spending five weeks in the top fifteen.

Music video

Background

The video for "U Drive Me Crazy" was released in 1998 outside of the US, and was directed by

Lionel C. Martin Lionel C. Martin is an American music video director, film director and VJ (media personality), VJ from Queens, Queens, New York. While he is known primarily as a music video director, he has also film director, directed the films ''Def Jam's How ...

Lou Pearlman Louis Jay Pearlman (June 19, 1954 – August 19, 2016) was an American record producer. He was the person behind many successful 1990s boy bands, having formed and funded the Backstreet Boys. After their massive success, he then developed NSYNC. ...

is briefly seen in the video.

Synopsis

The video begins with a montage resembling a TV sitcom opening. The members of

are introduced in the apartment in a frame freeze;

Justin Justin may refer to: People * Justin (name), including a list of persons with the given name Justin * Justin (historian), a Latin historian who lived under the Roman Empire * Justin I (c. 450–527), or ''Flavius Iustinius Augustus'', Eastern Rom ...

is making a sandwich,

Lance A lance is a spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior or cavalry soldier ( lancer). In ancient and medieval warfare, it evolved into the leading weapon in cavalry charges, and was unsuited for throwing or for repeated thrusting, unlike si ...

is making

papier-mâché upright=1.3, Mardi Gras papier-mâché masks, Haiti upright=1.3, Papier-mâché Catrinas, traditional figures for day of the dead celebrations in Mexico Papier-mâché (, ; , literally "chewed paper") is a composite material consisting of p ...

, JC is playing the guitar,

Joey Joey may refer to: People *Joey (name) Animals * Joey (marsupial), an infant marsupial * Joey, a Blue-fronted Amazon parrot who was one of the Blue Peter pets Film and television * ''Joey'' (1977 film), an American film directed by Horac ...

is reading "Girlymag" and

Chris Chris is a short form of various names including Christopher, Christian, Christina, Christine, and Christos. Chris is also used as a name in its own right, however it is not as common. People with the given name * Chris Abani (born 1966), N ...

is trying to get his dog to pull him on his wagon. Lance sees an advertisement which states that a famous producer by the name of Johnny Correcto (played by their manager Johnny Wright) is looking for a new star. They drive to the audition where they get rejected at the reception desk. Feeling dejected, the group notices a girl holding a bouquet of flowers and decide on a plan. They return to the hotel dressed as a

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam r ...

band and while Justin distracts the receptionist with the flowers, the rest sneak in and play for Johnny before getting kicked out, dressing as

Slash Slash may refer to: * Slash (punctuation), the "/" character Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Slash (Marvel Comics) * Slash (''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'') Music * Harry Slash & The Slashtones, an American rock band * Nash ...

and

Axl Rose W. Axl Rose (born William Bruce Rose Jr.; born February 6, 1962) is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead vocalist and lyricist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, and has been the band's sole constant member since its incep ...

from

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

, as well as members from

Twisted Sister Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band originally from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York. Their best-known songs include " We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock", both of which were associated with m ...

. The NSYNC members are able to figure out where Johnny is and attempt to play for him but are constantly rejected by the producer and the audience present. They arrive to a dinner for international dignitaries and pose as

The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

, show up at a pool party dressed as the

Spice Girls The Spice Girls are a British girl group formed in 1994, consisting of Melanie Brown, also known as Mel B ("Scary Spice"); Melanie Chisholm, or Melanie C ("Sporty Spice"); Emma Bunton ("Baby Spice"); Geri Halliwell ("Ginger Spice"); and Vict ...

, and appear as rappers. The group eventually dance as themselves to the delight of the audience, as Johnny offers them a contract.

Reception

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' noted that the video's message was about "being yourself", despite commenting on the absurdities of "dressing up in drag to distract a record executive's secretary or infiltrating a dinner party for world leaders dressed as, more or less, the Jackson 5."

Track listings

# "U Drive Me Crazy" (Radio Edit) – 3:34 # "U Drive Me Crazy" (Extended Version) – 4:40 # "U Drive Me Crazy" (2-4 Family 7" Remix) – 3:24 # "U Drive Me Crazy" (Trime'n Delgado 12" Remix) – 5:33

Charts

Release history

References

{{NSYNC 1998 singles 1998 songs NSYNC songs RCA Records singles Songs written by Toni Cottura Torch songs Songs written by Bülent Aris