Asking for It (Shinedown song) explained

Asking for It
Type:single
Artist:Shinedown
Album:Threat to Survival
Recorded:2015
Genre:Hard rock
Label:Atlantic
Prev Title:State of My Head
Prev Year:2016
Next Title:How Did You Love
Next Year:2016

"Asking for It" is a song by American rock band Shinedown. It was their third single off of their fifth album Threat to Survival. It peaked at number two on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart in 2016.

Background

The song was released as the third single from the band's fifth album Threat to Survival in April 2016. The song made its live national television debut in the same month, with the band performing the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live.[1] Frontman Brent Smith noted that the song was the very first written and conceived during the Threat to Survival writing sessions.[2] The fact that it was chosen for the album was a rarity; the band often writes 40–60 songs over the course of an album's writing sessions, and typically discards the earlier material.[2] The song's music video, expanded beyond the length of the song and dubbed a "short film" by the band, pokes fun of the band and the music industry in general.[3] The band desired to try to do something different and new that would stand out on YouTube, rather than just make a performance-based video, something the band felt was unoriginal and overdone.[4]

Themes and composition

Smith outlined the meaning of the song's lyrics:Drummer Barry Kerch expanded on the concept, stating that it was influenced on the fact that the band members themselves have to watch what they say in interviews and concerts, or it has come back to haunt them, without citing any specific examples.[4] Alternatively, the song's music video's themes are centered around actual opinions that people had voiced about band itself, complaining that they weren't "real metal," weren't "real rock", or that they had "sold out" and were better back when they were "fat and lazy drug addicts", in references to Smith's struggle with drug abuse and obesity in the late 2000s.[5] [3] [4] Musically, Smith described the song as having a "punk rock style", and named Cheap Trick and Billy Joel as influences.[2]

Reception

AllMusic singled out the song and "Cut the Cord" as album highlights, describing them as "two of its hardest-hitting (and classic-sounding) cuts... both of which are as hook-laden as they are bruising".[6] Loudwire similarly praised the song, calling it a "hook-laden track crafted with atmospherics" that "has the vintage Shinedown sound while still moving the band forward."[7]

Personnel

Band

Charts

Year-end charts

Chart (2016)Position
US Hot Rock Songs (Billboard)[8] 71
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[9] 37

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Shinedown's Brent Smith Talks New Song 'Asking For it', Grand Rapids Show, Axl Rose Fronting AC/DC + More with WGRD [Video]]. Janna. 97.9 WGRD.
  2. Web site: SHINEDOWN Releases 'Short Film' For 'Asking For It' Song. Blabbermouth. June 2, 2016. BLABBERMOUTH.NET.
  3. Web site: Shinedown Skewer Selves, Industry in 'Asking for It' Video. Chad. Childers. Loudwire.
  4. Web site: Shinedown made fun of themselves and everyone else in Asking For It video. Stef Lach 2016-06-12T18:26:00 163Z Classic. Rock. Classic Rock Magazine.
  5. Web site: Brent Smith of Shinedown cleans up and slims down. James. Fell. January 12, 2013. LA Times.
  6. Web site: Threat to Survival - Shinedown - Songs, Reviews, Credits. AllMusic.
  7. Web site: Shinedown, 'Threat To Survival' - Album Review. Chad. Bowar. Loudwire.
  8. Web site: Hot Rock Songs – Year-End 2016. Billboard. May 23, 2020.
  9. Rock Airplay Songs – Year-End 2016. Billboard. January 21, 2022.