Sing (My Chemical Romance song)

"Sing"
Single by My Chemical Romance
from the album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys
ReleasedNovember 3, 2010
Genre
Length4:30
LabelReprise
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
My Chemical Romance singles chronology
"Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)"
(2010) 		"Sing"
(2010) 		"Planetary (Go!)"
(2011)
Music video
"Sing" on YouTube
"Sing (Director's Cut)" on YouTube

"Sing" (often stylized as "SING") is My Chemical Romance's fourth track and third single from their fourth studio album, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys. The official single artwork was posted on the band's website in October 2010.[4] "Sing" marked the first time a song from the band had reached adult contemporary stations; it began airplay through Chicago radio station WCFS-FM by March 2011.

It was the second-best selling rock song of 2011 in the UK, ahead of Paramore's "Monster" and behind Foo Fighters' "Rope".

Background and composition

Following the success of their third studio album The Black Parade (2006), My Chemical Romance began sessions to record their fourth studio album; however, the band shelved the project due to being unsatisfied with the final result.[5] Subsequently, My Chemical Romance reworked the album, taking advantage of the momentum they found after Gerard Way wrote "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)" and placing an emphasis on experimentation.[6][7] "Sing" was the fourth song recorded during this period, following "Na Na Na", "Vampire Money", and "Planetary (Go!)".[8][9] According to Gerard Way, the song was built around a beat which the band "mediated on" for several days.[8] He also noted how the song was the one from Danger Days that he was the most proud of, and that it marked the band's acceptance that they were creating a new album.[8]

"Sing" is an anthemic pop rock[10] and emo[11] song, which Megan Ritt of Consequence characterized as being "very open-genre, reminiscent of the late 90s radio rock that seemed like it would live forever".[12] The song instrumentally contains drums, piano, and guitar in its first verse, before a "cavernous" bassline is introduced during the first chorus.[13] Gerard Way has named Britpop as an influence on the track,[14] while Chris Mandle and John Doran stylistically compared the song to those by Whitesnake and Starship.[15] Lyrically, Al Shipley and Maura Johnston of Rolling Stone observed how the lyrics expressed a desire to both leave behind enemies and look towards the future with hope.[16] Additionally, both Jake Richardson of Alternative Press and Chad Childers of Loudwire identified "Sing" as a "call to arms", with the latter further writing how the track encourages listeners to "seize the day".[17][18]

Release

The song debuted on BBC Radio 1 and subsequently on the band's MySpace and several other radio stations on November 3, 2010. The song was released on iTunes the same day.[19] The song has been described as "poppy" and with a "surprising different sound than previous MCR tracks" by Wendy Rollins of Philadelphia's Radio 104.5. Dan Martin from NME reviewed the album and said the following of the song: "Starting off synthy, slinky and just a little bit funky, 'Sing' then erupts into another euphoric call to mass doing-stuff-together as waves of filthy bass cascade around Gerard as he sings, "You've got to be what tomorrow needs" as he dodges elephant-stomp drums."[20] Trash Hits said of the song: "This is a slower, smouldering effort which jangles in a Depeche Mode style while Gerard Way murmurs his way through."[21]

Music video

The music video premiered on MTV.com and VH1.com and was directed by Gerard Way and Paul Brown. Picking up after the events of the "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)" music video, "Sing" opens with My Chemical Romance as their alter-egos (The Fabulous Killjoys) driving down a freeway tunnel on their Pontiac Firebird with brief "television advertisement" clips from Better Living Industries (BL/ind), running over a BL/ind security guard and a draculoid at a toll booth/checkpoint. The band arrives in the album's dystopia known as Battery City, stopping in front of BL/ind headquarters.

Upon discovery of the Killjoys' arrival, BL/ind places their guards on stand-by all around the headquarters. The Killjoys quickly shoot their way into the building, arriving in the main security center and rescue The Girl (Grace Jeanette), aka Missile Kid, who was previously kidnapped in "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)". During this time, Korse (Grant Morrison) is activated by BL/ind headquarters' head of security and accompanied by reinforcement draculoids and guards to stop the Killjoys. A gunfight between the Killjoys and Korse's minions follows in BL/ind's lobby. At one point, Party Poison (Gerard Way) kills and pulls off the mask of one of the draculoids, discovering him to be Agent Cherri Cola (Jimmy Urine), an ally of the Killjoys (who was captured by BL/ind while trying to infiltrate their headquarters, and turned into a draculoid).

This causes Party Poison to hesitate in the fight and be grabbed by Korse who grasps him by the neck and tragically shoots him beneath his chin. With Party Poison dead, the remaining Killjoys continue their escape. Shortly after Party Poison's death, Kobra Kid (Mikey Way) manages to wound Korse in the knee before getting shot himself by the draculoids and is killed. At the lobby door, Fun Ghoul (Frank Iero), Jet-Star (Ray Toro) and Missile Kid decide to retreat; however, after running outside, Fun Ghoul closes the building door, bravely leaving himself inside to give his allies a better chance of escaping before getting shot twice in the back. Outside BL/ind headquarters, Jet-Star is shot, bleeding out on the hood of the Trans Am. Before the draculoids and BL/ind guards can get to The Girl, she is rescued by pirate radio DJ Dr. Death Defying and his crew, including Show Pony[22] (Ricky Rebel) and DJ Hot Chimp (Kristan Morrison). They all escape in Dr. Death Defying's van, leaving behind their dead comrades whose bodies are bagged by BL/ind.

As of January 2024, the song has 43 million views on YouTube.

Other versions

This song was performed on the TV series Glee in the second-season episode "Comeback", which was released as a single on iTunes in February 2011. It was then performed on The Glee Project. It charted higher than My Chemical Romance's version on the Billboard Hot 100, debuting and peaking at number 49.

It also was performed by the contestants of Team Cee Lo Green and Team Christina Aguilera during the Live Playoffs of the third season of American reality television The Voice, and by contestants of the a capella competition and American reality television show the Sing Off, season 3, episode 2.[23]

On March 10, 2011, My Chemical Romance published a director's cut of the music video of "SING". It includes sound effects, among other additions.

On April 13, 2011, My Chemical Romance released a re-envisioned version of "Sing", entitled "Sing It for Japan", in support of those affected by the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from Apple Music.[24]

My Chemical Romance

  • Gerard Way – lead vocals, songwriter, producer
  • Raymond Toro – background vocals, lead guitar, songwriter, producer
  • Frank Iero – background vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter, producer
  • Mikey Way – bass guitar, songwriter, producer

Additional performing artists

Additional personnel

  • Rob Cavallo – producer
  • Chris Lord-Alge – mixing engineer
  • Doug McKean – recording engineer
  • Dan Chase – recording engineer, additional engineer
  • Lars Fox – engineer
  • Joe Libretti – drum technician
  • Alan Bergman – guitar technician
  • R.J. Ronquillo – guitar technician
  • Todd Schofield – guitar technician
  • Andrew Schubert – additional engineer
  • Brad Townsend – additional engineer
  • Steve Rea – assistant recording engineer
  • Russ Waugh – assistant recording engineer
  • Keith Armstrong – assistant mixing engineer
  • Nik Karpen – assistant mixing engineer

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[40] Silver 200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[41] Gold 500,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Country Date Format Label
United States November 3, 2010 Airplay Reprise
February 15, 2011 iTunes-exclusive
April 13, 2011 "Sing It for Japan"

References

Source

  • Bryant, Tom (2014). Not the Life It Seems: The True Lives of My Chemical Romance. Boston: Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0306823497.

Citations

  1. ^ "CD Review: My Chemical Romance — Danger Days; Playing The Tabernacle, May 11". Atlanta Music Guide. 13 December 2010. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  2. ^ New Zealand Herald (December 2010). "Album Review: My Chemical Romance Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys". Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  3. ^ "THE BEST EMO SONGS OF THE DECADE THAT DEFINED THE 2010'S". Alternative Press. 20 December 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2021.
  4. ^ "Artwork for upcoming single "Sing"". My Chemical Romance. October 29, 2010. Archived from the original on April 6, 2012. Retrieved October 29, 2010.
  5. ^ Richardson, Jake (November 22, 2023). "The courageous story of My Chemical Romance's Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on December 4, 2024. Retrieved January 27, 2025.
  6. ^ Montgomery, James (September 24, 2010). "My Chemical Romance Say 'Na Na Na' Saved The Band". MTV News. Archived from the original on September 26, 2010. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  7. ^ Bryant 2014, pp. 264–265
  8. ^ a b c Mapes, Jillian (November 17, 2010). "My Chemical Romance's 'Danger Days' Track-By-Track". Billboard. Archived from the original on June 8, 2025. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  9. ^ Bryant 2014, p. 266
  10. ^ "Album Review: My Chemical Romance Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys". The New Zealand Herald. December 1, 2010. Archived from the original on May 19, 2025. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  11. ^ Shoemaker, Whitney (December 19, 2019). "The best emo songs of the decade that defined the 2010s". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on July 7, 2025. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  12. ^ Ritt, Megan (November 24, 2010). "Album Review: My Chemical Romance – Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys". Consequence. Archived from the original on June 8, 2025. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  13. ^ Hewitt, Ben (November 16, 2010). "My Chemical Romance's Danger Days: Track By Track Review". The Quietus. Archived from the original on March 25, 2025. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  14. ^ Chow, Katie (November 23, 2010). "Something In The Way: A Q&A With My Chemical Romance". American Songwriter. Archived from the original on April 27, 2025. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  15. ^ Mandle, Chris; Doran, John (November 19, 2010). "Album Review: My Chemical Romance – Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys (Warner)". NME. Archived from the original on January 10, 2025. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  16. ^ Shipley, Al; Johnston, Maura (May 18, 2020). "The Best Graduation Songs of the Past 25 Years". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on July 8, 2025. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  17. ^ Richardson, Jake (February 3, 2017). "Why MCR's 'Danger Days' is more relevant now than ever". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on June 8, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  18. ^ Childers, Chad (March 24, 2013). "10 Best My Chemical Romance Songs". Loudwire. Archived from the original on March 18, 2025. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  19. ^ Hear MCR's "Sing'" Right Now and See the Trailer! Archived November 7, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. My Chemical Romance. Retrieved on November 5, 2010.
  20. ^ My Chemical Romance, 'Danger Days...' – First Listen, February 16, 2011
  21. ^ My Chemical Romance return with Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys. We heard it, watched it, reviewed it, October 29, 2010
  22. ^ Twitter / gerardway: @maximumaldwin and people. Twitter.com (September 24, 2010). Retrieved on February 5, 2011.
  23. ^ The Sing-Off S3 Ep.2 Opener: Sing. YouTube. October 7, 2011. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  24. ^ "Sing — Song by My Chemical Romance — Apple Music". Archived from the original on June 6, 2025. Retrieved June 6, 2025.
  25. ^ "My Chemical Romance – Sing". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  26. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  27. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Canada Hot AC)". Billboard. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
  28. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Canada Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved January 27, 2022.
  29. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot 100 – Week of February 2, 2011". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved May 10, 2025.
  30. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History: Mexico Ingles Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  31. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  32. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  33. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  34. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  35. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  36. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  37. ^ "My Chemical Romance Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  38. ^ "Adult Pop Songs – Year-End 2011". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  39. ^ "Hot Rock Songs – Year-End 2011". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  40. ^ "British single certifications – My Chemical Romance – Sing". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
  41. ^ "American single certifications – My Chemical Romance – Sing". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 24, 2018.
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