Song · Green Day
“The American Dream Is Killing Me” by Green Day
From the album Saviors (2024)
“The American Dream Is Killing Me” by Green Day appears on 15 radio countdowns from 13 stations between 2023 and 2025. It was first released in 2024 on the album Saviors. Its best result is #2 on the X96 Music Quorum 2023 Top 50 Songs. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #6 alternative song of 2023 and #17 of the '20s.
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"The American Dream Is Killing Me" opens Saviors, Green Day's 2024 album and their fourteenth, and it began life during the sessions for the record before as a protest song aimed at Donald Trump's first term. Producer Rob Cavallo pushed them to cut it, and Billie Joe Armstrong reworked the words toward the broader anxiety of being American. It's a bright, bouncing rabble-rouser, with Mike Dirnt's bass locked to Tré Cool's drums.
After weeks of zombie-themed teasers, the band debuted it at a secret Las Vegas show in October 2023 and made it the album's first single; in the Brendan Walter and Ryan Baxley video they play to a crowd of the undead. Critics liked the hooks more than the fuzzy politics. It went to number one on rock radio charts in both the US and Canada and drew a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Performance.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
Hard Rock & Metal
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 59 | The Current | 893 Essential Songs of The Current: 2005 to Now | 893 |
Also listed as: The American Dream is Killing Me.
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