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Cover of Shake Off the Dust...Arise by Matisyahu
Cover: Shake Off the Dust...Arise

Song · Matisyahu

“King Without a Crown” by Matisyahu

From the album Shake Off the Dust...Arise (2004)

“King Without a Crown” by Matisyahu appears on 43 radio countdowns from 20 stations between 2005 and 2026. It was first released in 2004 on the album Shake Off the Dust...Arise. Its best result is #1 on the WEQX Top 102.7 of 2005. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #47 alternative song of 2005, #1,217 alternative song of all time and #183 of the '00s.

43countdowns
20stations
#1best position
1#1 finishes
3top 10 finishes
2005–2026years charted

Watch

Matisyahu - King Without A Crown

Video from YouTube (MatisyahuVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

Matisyahu wrote "King Without a Crown" with Josh Werner, and it's reggae with a rock crowd's pulse, a rolling, skanking groove that he rides with the fervor of a man on a mission. It appears on Shake Off the Dust...Arise, released on JDub Records, and in 2005 it was picked as the lead single for his second studio album, Youth.

The version radio fell for, though, was a live one, taken from Live at Stubb's and recorded in Austin, Texas, with the crowd's heat pushing the whole thing up a gear. In 2006 it climbed to number 28 on Billboard's Hot 100 and number seven on the Alternative Airplay chart, and it remains the biggest hit of his career.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2005 10 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 2005 107
2005 5 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 2005 91
2005 46 Live 105 San Francisco, CA Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 2005 106
2005 101 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 2005 101
2005 28 WFNX Boston, MA WFNX Top 100 Songs of 2005 100
2005 21 107.7 The End Seattle, WA The End Top 107 Songs of 2005 107
2005 31 CD101 Columbus, OH CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2005 101
2005 118 Y100 Philadelphia, PA Y100 Top 150 Songs of 2005 150
2005 84 The Buzz Burlington, VT / Plattsburgh, NY / Montreal, QC The Buzz Top 99 Songs of 2005 99
2005 1 102.7 WEQX Southern Vermont and the Capital District of New York (Albany) WEQX Top 102.7 of 2005 103
2005 94 ModernRock.com Online ModernRock.com Top 400 Songs of 2005 400
2006 20 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 2006 107
2006 49 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana 91X Top 91 Songs of 2006 91
2006 32 Live 105 San Francisco, CA Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 2006 106
2006 58 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 2006 101
2006 11 WFNX Boston, MA WFNX Top 100 Songs of 2006 100
2006 17 The Buzz Burlington, VT / Plattsburgh, NY / Montreal, QC The Buzz Top 99 Songs of 2006 97
2006 49 88.3 The Sting Cleveland, OH 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2006 88
2006 73 Triple J Australia (national) Triple J Hottest 100 of 2006 100
2006 25 Radio & Records United States (national airplay chart) Radio & Records Top 100 Songs of 2006 100

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2006 54 107.7 The End The End Top 107 Songs of the Millennium (December 2006) 107
2006 80 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2006 444 Live 105 Live 105 500 Co-Op Countdown (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2007 280 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2007 851 WTMD WTMD Top 897 Songs of All Time 897
2008 154 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 2008) 500
2008 339 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 89 WFNX WFNX Top 101 Songs of the Decade (December 2009) 101
2009 409 WYEP WYEP 913 Songs That Matter from the Last Decade 913
2009 326 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2010 175 94.1 The Zone 94.1 The Zone 210 Most Played Songs of the Decade 210
2010 309 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2010 352 WXPN WXPN 885 Ultimate Road Trip Songs (2010) 885
2011 287 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2013 260 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2013 691 WXPN WXPN 885 Greatest Songs of the New Millennium (2013) 885
2014 245 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2018 798 WTMD WTMD Listeners' Top 897 Songs, 2003-2018 896
2022 428 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 2000s 907
2022 443 101X 101X 500 (2022) 498
2024 75 107.7 The End The End Sweet Summer Vibes Countdown (2024) 100
2025 532 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century 909
2026 498 101X 101X 500 (2026) 500

Also listed as: King Without A Crown; King without a Crown.

Charting alongside it in 2005

Best songs of 2005 →
  1. 1Best of YouFoo Fighters
  2. 2Feel Good Inc.Gorillaz
  3. 3Beverly HillsWeezer
  4. 4The Hand That FeedsNine Inch Nails
  5. 5HolidayGreen Day
  6. 6Speed of SoundColdplay

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