Still Breathing (Green Day Song)
A lyric video for "Still Breathing" was released on September 23, 2016, and Reprise Records made the song available for digital download the same day as the third single for Revolution Radio. The music video for the song, directed by P. R. Brown and released on November 7, 2016, depicts Billie Joe Armstrong walking solemnly through streets while Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool practice in a warehouse.
"Still Breathing" received critical acclaim from music critics, being considered one of the best songs on Revolution Radio despite some criticism towards its production and lyrics. The song topped the US Alternative Airplay, Mainstream Rock Songs, Rock Airplay, and Canada Rock charts, and appeared on various others. It was included in the setlist of the Revolution Radio Tour, the band's 2016-2017 concert tour in support of the album.
Background and release
“There’s a band called 5 Seconds of Summer who wanted me to write a song for them. All of a sudden I was writing the lyrics, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, there’s no fucking way I’m giving these guys this song.’ There’s all those [lyrics] where it’s the last moment of someone’s life — it’s so intense. It’s just a song about being a survivor.”
—Billie Joe Armstrong on the origin and meaning of "Still Breathing" for People.
In 2015, Green Day began recording material at OTIS, Billie Joe Armstrong's studio in Oakland, California, for their twelfth studio album Revolution Radio. The album was conceived by the band as a "back-to-basics" move, following the rushed ¡Uno! ¡Dos! ¡Tre! trilogy of albums and Armstrong's rehab. Armstrong had previously written "Still Breathing" for the Australian pop rock band 5 Seconds of Summer, but deemed the song too intense.
"Still Breathing" was released on September 23, 2016 as the third single of Revolution Radio through a lyric video published on YouTube, and was made available for digital download the same day. Later that year on November 7, 2016, a music video directed by P.R. Brown for the song was released on YouTube. The video features shots of Armstrong walking solemnly through streets while Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool practice in a warehouse, culminating in the band's reunification. Between scenes, various people, including a farmer, a child, and a military veteran, stare pensively as they "find simple salvation in the beauty of nature". "Still Breathing" was later released as part of the band's 2017 greatest hits album God's Favorite Band.
Composition and lyrics
"Still Breathing" is a slow-burning song which begins with "quickly strummed acoustic guitars and a spare beat", before building up to a heavier sound driven by electric guitar in its chorus. Anna Gaca of Spin described "Still Breathing" as a "paint-by-number pop-punk song", while Andrew Sacher of BrooklynVegan instead categorized it as alternative rock and Alternative Press called the song an "emo anthem". The song's production has been labeled as "radio-friendly" in reference to its pop sound. Matt Melis and Collin Brennan of Consequence noted that "Still Breathing" sounded "engineered to sit alongside other motivational pop anthems", while Chris Deville of Stereogum characterized the song as a power ballad with pop sensibilities. The song has been compared to those by Blink-182, due to its "heart-on-sleeve sugar-rush harmonies". The songwriters of the Struts' 2013 song "Could Have Been Me" received co-writing credits on "Still Breathing" due to similarities between the songs' melodies.
The lyrics of "Still Breathing", according to Armstrong, are about being a survivor and overcoming adversity. The song's lyrics are mostly similes about various characters like a gambler and a soldier confronting "all kinds of potential trauma". Gil Kaufman of Billboard suggested that these comparisons ultimately connected to the premise of "slogging through it all to make 'my way to you'". Armstrong also noted the line "I'm still breathing on my own" alludes to how "at some point, we’re all going to have to be on life support". Various critics commented that the lyrics of "Still Breathing" reflect Armstrong's personal struggles with prescription drug addiction and his drug rehabilitation. However, Armstrong responded that he avoided introspection when writing the song's lyrics in lieu of "mak[ing] people happy" and "creat[ing] a difference in some way, just by people recognizing themselves in the song".
Critical reception
"Still Breathing" received acclaim from music critics. Entertainment Weekly's Kevin O'Donnell praised the song as a "three-minute blast of life-affirming punk", while NME's Rhian Daly called the song an "air-punching punk glory full of strength, power and guts". Multiple critics regarded "Still Breathing" as a highlight on Revolution Radio, with The A.V. Club's Alex McLevy deeming it the "statement of purpose" for the album as an "acknowledgement that most of the time, all we have to hang on to is the knowledge that we’re still alive".
Critics lauded "Still Breathing" as a return to form for the band, with Uproxx's Chris Morgan praising its "Green Day sound" despite being "slightly less snotty and brash as some of their earlier tracks". However, the song's pop-like production was met with mixed reception. Loudwire's Graham Hartmann called the song the "poppiest cut from the album", yet noted it "maintain[ed] that classic Green Day feel". Far Out's Tyler Golsen called "Still Breathing" a "hell of a pop song", saying that the band was "reaching for something that lies slightly into the future" instead of sticking to the sounds of the band's "glory days". ABC News noted that the song sounded as though it were "written to please bland, modern radio-ballad standards", while Sputnikmusic's Raul Stanciu deemed the song "too light for its own good".
The lyrics of "Still Breathing" were positively received, with critics calling them "inspirational" and "powerful". Morgan wrote how "there’s something about a punk band that has been around for more than 25 years singing a song with lyrics like 'I’m still alive'". Pitchfork's Ivy Nelson praised the song for having "Armstrong's most convincing lyrics" on Revolution Radio, despite being "restricted to the traditional designs of pop-punk". The song's lyrics have also been praised for being "immensely vulnerable", despite DIY's Emma Swann noting that the song's vocals were "not as vulnerable as the lyrics might warrant". However, the lyrics of "Still Breathing" have been criticized for being clichéd, with Spin's Anna Gaca writing that "sometimes overcoming personal challenges and tragedies leads to heartbreaking lyrical insight, and sometimes it leads to 'Still Breathing'". Paste's Reed Strength similarly critiqued the song's lyrics for being "cringe-inducing".
Chart performance
"Still Breathing" peaked at number one on the US Alternative Airplay, Mainstream Rock, and Rock Airplay charts, marking the third time that a single by the band has topped all three charts (after "Know Your Enemy" and "Bang Bang"), and the first time that a single topped all three concurrently. The song also peaked within the top 20 of the US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (11) and Adult Alternative Airplay (17) charts. Outside the United States, the song peaked at number one and number two on the Canada Rock and UK Rock & Metal Singles charts, respectively. The song also charted on Belgium's Ultratip Flanders (11), the Czech Republic's Rádio – Top 100 chart (21), Scotland's Singles Sales chart (65), and Slovakia's Rádio – Top 100 chart (82).
Live performances
Green Day first performed “Still Breathing” live as part of their Revolution Radio Tour, the concert tour in support of Revolution Radio which ran from September 26, 2016 to November 19, 2017. The band performed the song on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on December 13, 2016, alongside "American Idiot”. On March 21, 2017, the band performed "Still Breathing" on the The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Critics generally praised the performance, calling it “hard-hitting” and “ear-pummeling”, but Zac Gelfand of Uproxx noted that Armstrong’s vocals sounded “strained” due to the Revolution Radio Tour. Green Day performed the song on The Late Late Show with James Corden on May 4, 2017. On May 19, 2017, the band performed the song in Central Park as part of their setlist for Good Morning America’s televised “Summer Concerts” series. The band later performed the song as part of the setlist of the Hella Mega Tour, a concert tour with Fall Out Boy and Weezer which ran from July 24, 2021 to July 2, 2022.
Credits and personnel
Credits are adapted from iTunes.
Green Day
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Additional personnel
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Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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Release history
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | September 23, 2016 | Reprise | ||
| Italy | September 30, 2016 | Radio airplay | Warner | |
| United States | November 1, 2016 | Modern rock radio | ||
| November 15, 2016 | Active rock radio | |||
| United Kingdom | January 2017 | Promotional CD single | Reprise |