21 Guns

"21 Guns"
Single by Green Day
from the album 21st Century Breakdown
Released	May 25, 2009 (Digital Download) July 14, 2009 (CD single)
Format	Digital download, CD single, vinyl
Recorded	2008
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	5:21 (Album Version) 4:37 (Radio Edit)
Label	Reprise
Writer(s)	Billie Joe Armstrong, Green Day
Producer	Butch Vig, Green Day
Certification	Platinum (RIAA) Gold (ARIA), (RIANZ)
Green Day singles chronology
"Know Your Enemy" (2009) "21 Guns" (2009) "East Jesus Nowhere" (2009)
Audio sample file info · help

"21 Guns" is a song by American rock band Green Day. It was released as the second single from their eighth album, 21st Century Breakdown. The single was released through Reprise Records on May 25, 2009 as a digital download and July 14, 2009 as a CD single. The song has been a success on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 22, which has become their highest charting single since 2005.

It was nominated for a Grammy for Best Rock Performance by a Duo/Group with Vocals and Best Rock Song in 2010. "21 Guns" has sold over 2,151,000 copies as of December 2011.^{[citation needed]}

Release

"21 Guns" was released to modern punk radio stations on May 25, 2009, although it had already been played on some radio stations, such as KROQ in Los Angeles and 101.9 in New York City.^[1] In the radio edit, the song is over forty seconds shorter than the album version due to the bridge being shortened and the intro being taken out. The CD single and clear 7" single were released on July 14, 2009.

The song is featured heavily in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and appears on the soundtrack, which was released on June 12, 2009.^[2] It became available for download on the music video game series Rock Band on July 7, 2009, along with the songs "East Jesus Nowhere" and "Know Your Enemy.^[3]

The song was featured in episode 6 of The Vampire Diaries.^[4]

A live version was also released on 21 Guns Live EP in September 2009.^[5]

The song is featured in the video game Green Day: Rock Band and is downloadable content for the Rock Band series.^[6]

Music video

A music video was directed by Marc Webb and filmed in Los Angeles on June 6, 2009. It premiered on MySpace on Monday, June 22, 2009 at midnight EDT.^[7] A shorter version of the video also exists, which is set to the radio edit of the song.^{[citation needed]}

It is the third Green Day video to feature touring touring guitarist Jason White performing with the band, following "Wake Me Up When September Ends", and "Working Class Hero". He is also seen briefly in the music videos for "When I Come Around" and "Jesus of Suburbia" but he is not performing with the band.^{[citation needed]}

After spending the previous week at number 3, the video peaked at number one on VH1 Top 20 Countdown on August 22, 2009 and again on September 19, 2009. It also won "Best Rock Video", "Best Direction in a Video" and "Best Cinematography in a Video" for the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.^[8]

The video takes place with the band and the album's two protagonists Christian (Josh Boswell) and Gloria (Lisa Stelly) taking refuge in a white room after robbing a bank. The police arrive outside the room and open fire through the window, to the couple's terror.^[9] As bullets rain through the room, the band continues playing. Gloria picks up the phone and throws it into a fish tank. As the bullets continue to fly and tear apart the room, Christian and Gloria become calm and walk toward each other, unharmed by the bullets. They embrace and kiss as the room goes dark, recreating the 21st Century Breakdown cover art. As the song ends, the room lights up again, and they are still uninjured. After the room lights up, there are various shots of destruction in the room, including a shot of some of the writing on the walls. The writing that they show is an excerpt of the lyrics of the song "See The Light" which also appears on "21st Century Breakdown". The video may represent the meaning of the song in the 21st Century Breakdown story.

Musical cast version

"21 Guns"
Single by Green Day and the cast of American Idiot
from the album American Idiot: The Original Broadway Cast Recording
B-side	Like a Rolling Stone (Bob Dylan Cover)
Released	December 3, 2009
Format	Digital download, CD single
Recorded	2009
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	4:41
Label	Reprise
Writer(s)	Billie Joe Armstrong / Green Day
Producer	Green Day
Green Day and the cast of American Idiot singles chronology
"21 Guns (Musical Cast Version)" (2010) "When It's Time" (2010)

Green Day has recorded two versions of "21 Guns" with the cast of American Idiot. The recording was produced by Billie Joe Armstrong. The recording with Armstrong singing the male solo parts was released on December 3 to Spinner.com and also released for digital download on December 22.^[10] The video was released February 1.^[11][12]

The second version of the song with the cast of American Idiot features Stark Sands, John Gallagher Jr., and Michael Esper singing their respective solos instead of Armstrong.

It was performed with Armstrong singing lead male vocals at the 52nd Grammy Awards.

Chart positions

Live EP

"21 Guns Live EP"
EP / Live album by Green Day
Released	September 4, 2009
Recorded	2009, Live in New York
Genre	Pop punk, punk rock, alternative rock
Length	17:52
Label	Reprise
Producer	Green Day

Green Day released a live EP for the song including live performances of "Welcome To Paradise", "Brain Stew/Jaded" and "F.O.D." recorded live in New York.

Track listing

• Original version:

• Musical cast version:

• Live EP:

• Other:

Chart positions

The song debuted at No. 55 on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 22 (becoming their highest peaking song since the 2005 hit "Wake Me Up When September Ends"), and No. 81 on the Canadian Hot 100, reaching #15. It reached No. 3 on the Alternative Songs chart and No. 17 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. Also, on the Billboard Pop Songs it reached #30. On the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, the song peaked at #14. On the UK Singles Chart, it debuted at No. 100 and rose to #36. In New Zealand, the song debuted at No. 23 and peaked at No. 3 in its seventh week on the chart.^[15] In New Zealand, it was certified Gold after 13 weeks on the chart, selling over 7,500 copies.^[16] It is Green Day's fifth single to be certified Platinum by the RIAA. The single was also certified Gold in Italy.^[17]

Year-end charts

Personnel

• Billie Joe Armstrong – lead vocals, acoustic guitar, piano
• Mike Dirnt – bass guitar, backing vocals
• Tré Cool – drums, percussion
• Jason White – electric guitar, backing vocals

References