Courtesy Of: Caroline: Burnout

I'm not growing up,

I'm just burning out

And I stepped in line

To walk amongst the dead

Did Green Day Sell Out?

Okay, so my favorite band is the one and only...

...and as a fan of both their older music and newer stuff, there are definitely noticeable differences in the songs.

Did Green Day sell out to appeal to a different audience?

Did they just do what record companies wanted?

Do fans prefer the older songs to the newer ones?

...a punk broadway musical?

What's going on?

Let's take it from the beginning...

I watched this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47S-NVekatA) of the top 10 biggest musical sellouts and to my surprise, Green Day was listed as #1. It's an understatement to say I was angry! My beloved band! I had to investigate!

Thanks to social media, I conducted a poll on Tumblr (asking only Green Day bloggers) and Google+ Communities that revolved solely around the band, as well as taking to Facebook pages and groups dedicated to Green Day.

From data collected from 178 people across the internet, the results are in:

I also went ahead and asked everyone their favorite album:

(It should be noted that not everyone answered)

So it would appear that in general, more people would say Green Day has not sold themselves out, and in fact enjoy the newer album of "American Idiot," above any other.

But then how could they be named #1 Sellout in that video?

Green Day has changed. They've evolved. They are different than they were when they began.

Well, yeah. Do you really want to hear these 43-44 year old men (who have kids) sing about masturbation, being bored, and complaining about their parents? I love songs on every album, from "Disappearing Boy (39/Smooth)," to "Dirty Rotten Bastards (Tre)," and it's obvious that as the band members grew up, so did their music.

Let's look at the album people think they sold out with: American Idiot

American Idiot is a concept album, and that is defined as "a rock album featuring a cycle of songs expressing a particular theme or idea." The album tells a story about growing up from a teenage- punk perspective. That feeling of being outcast because maybe you don't agree with society. The album stamps out the opinions Green Day has on politics and social norms.

In my personal opinion, this album is everything.

"Jesus of Suburbia" was every bit of teenage angst we know and love from Green Day.

"St. Jimmy" was the rebellious side everyone has.

"Give Me Novocaine" was playing whenever I couldn't take the stress.

"Wake Me Up When September Ends" played when I remembered losing someone I love.

"Whatsername" is for remembering that one person you could have had.

That's not even all the songs and yet each one is still relatable, intense, and brilliantly written.

Then, yknow...

I think this is really where everyone got lost.

I saw a college production of the show, and I've listened to the official recordings of the broadway cast. Again, it's different. But a good different.

For Green Day to take their punk sound to broadway levels is astounding!

Talk about a break through!

It's not what we'd expect from the band, but they took punk rock to orchestral music, ensembles, acting, they added a plot and character development to characters that sprang out of song titles.

I don't care if you like their older music more, this was INCREDIBLE.

Did they sell out with this? How could they?!
Rock musicals were already done with shows like RENT
Punk musicals were already done with shows like Spring Awakening

Green Day had something different to bring to the table, which was a musical that exploded from an already existing set of songs. This musical is new in the kind of music, the pulling of songs from different albums, the story following pre-made songs, characters being made up after the fact...
Green Day didn't sell out, they created a whole new kind of show.

And it's unfortunate that people can't get over the fact that the band went on broadway and see how amazing it is that THE PUNK ROCK BAND WENT ON BROADWAY.

Next up is 21 Century Breakdown.
People really seem to think this was the end of Green Day.

Okay.
Stop.

You really think this is so far from the Green Day we know and love?

Compare "Misery" from the album "Warning"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixnes1K1SB0

With "Viva La Gloria? Little Girl"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4_-JiDoL2M

And both songs have a similar style to "Peacemaker" and "Restless Heart Syndrome" on 21B.

"Murder City," "Mass Hysteria," and "Horseshoes and Hand Grenades" sound like anything the band had released already.

"Last of the American Girls" has the same theme as "She's a Rebel" and "Pulling Teeth"
_______________________________________

Green Day has changed.

I'm a drummer and have looked at the sheet music for Tre from different albums.

The fills are different, but his love of eighth notes on snare and bass are the same. Even his love for the floor tom has not changed!

The songs often still feature Mike's bass lines and the rhythm section prominently.

With Billie taking rhythm guitar, new sounds and layers of guitar come through.
________________________________________

Do I think the band sold themselves out?

Nope.
Change isn't bad.

In fact, I think it's way cool that we, as fans, got to follow Green Day as they evolved!
We went from the teenage boys to them finding a new sound and hitting new mediums.

If we've learned anything from them, it's to challenge authority and break out of whatever barriers society puts on us. That's exactly what they did. That's all that they did.
_________

Can't we just be glad that our favorite band is still together and making music?

As a 20 year old who fell into Green Day annoyingly too late,
I love them for their original work and admire them for the creative risks they've taken since.

I cannot wait to see what they have in store for us!