Breaking the Habit (song)
"Breaking the Habit" | ||||
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Single by Linkin Park | ||||
from the album Meteora | ||||
B-side |
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Released | June 14, 2004 | |||
Recorded | 2002 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:16 | |||
Warner Bros. | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Mike Shinoda (Credited to Linkin Park)1 | |||
Producer(s) |
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Linkin Park singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Breaking the Habit" on YouTube |
"Breaking the Habit" is a song by American
Background
"Breaking the Habit" features a strong electronica-influenced opening, live strings, and guitar. It is an exception from their previous nu metal/rap rock performances as no distorted guitar riffs are included nor are there any rapping vocals from Mike Shinoda, a style they would further explore on their later albums.
A common misconception about the song is that it was written by lead singer Chester Bennington due to his struggles with substance abuse. Band member Mike Shinoda began composing the song before he met Bennington. In the album notes, it was said that the song was originally going to be an instrumental track lasting a little over three and a half minutes, but Shinoda was convinced by the band to change it. The instrumental was later released on the Underground 9.0 Fan Club as a demo track titled "Drawing".
Shinoda had a lyrical idea of an emotion he had been trying to express for 5 to 6 years before the production of Meteora. To him, the lyrics had sounded wrong until listening to the "Drawing" demo one night and they fell together.[7] He showed the lyrics he wrote to Bennington, who read them and teared up, relating to the words to a point where he had difficulty performing the song live for almost a year after the release of Meteora; the band would eventually perform it live for the first time at the 2003 Smokeout Festival.
An original 2002 demo of this song with different lyrics and Shinoda on lead vocals appears on
Music video
The
As the video begins, a deceased man is shown lying on a car's roof. The surrounding area has been taped off and is littered with investigating police officers as well as onlookers. The video cuts to another character, a girl who breaks a mirror, then writes "I'm nothing" onto a sheet of paper. She picks up a shard of glass, clenches it in her hand, and smears her blood on the note. Throughout the different scenes, a wisp of smoke meanders around the characters as their stories play out, and the human face of Chester Bennington singing the song flashes various times. Another character is a young woman throwing tomatoes at a man. At a point, the ubiquitous smoke drifts over the deceased man's body and enters his mouth, and the video begins to seemingly rewind itself, the woman throwing tomatoes at the man who is her husband or boyfriend, is shown coming home to see the man with another woman in bed suggesting they just had sex. The body of the deceased man begins to rise, falling in reverse, towards the roof of a tall building. It is revealed that the body is that of Chester, who had apparently fallen to his death. Upon landing on the roof, he joins with the rest of the band in performing the remainder of the song.
There is also a second music video, titled "Breaking the Habit (05.28.04 3:37 PM)", showing the band in their studio performing the song. The video was directed by Kimo Proudfoot and is available on the Breaking the Habit DVD.[12][13][14]
iTunes
The video for "Breaking the Habit" is available on iTunes, along with a live video version of the video. The live video was taken from the Road to Revolution: Live at Milton Keynes DVD concert.[15][16][17]
Reception
“Breaking the Habit” has been ranked among the best Linkin Park songs by Billboard (6th),[18] Stereogum (2nd),[19] and The Independent.[20]
Live performances
"Breaking the Habit" was not initially performed in the tour for Meteora, until it received a full performance on November 15, 2003, in
Track listing
All tracks are written by Linkin Park
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Breaking the Habit" | 3:16 |
2. | "Crawling" (Live) | 3:30 |
3. | "Breaking the Habit" (Video) | 3:16 |
Personnel
- Linkin Park
- Chester Bennington – lead vocals
- Rob Bourdon – drums
- Brad Delson – guitar
- Joe Hahn – turntables, samples
- Dave "Phoenix" Farrell – bass guitar
- Mike Shinoda – vocals, keyboards, strings arrangement, samples
Additional musicians
- Joel Derouin, Charlie Bisharat, Alyssa Park, Sara Parkins, Michelle Richards, Mark Robertson – violins
- Evan Wilson, Bob Becker – violas
- Larry Corbett, Dan Smith – cellos
- David Campbell – strings arrangement
Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
|
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Germany (BVMI)[48] | Platinum | 300,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[49] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[50] | Gold | 500,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
References
- Consequence of Sound. 5 July 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2019.
- ^ "Breaking The Habit – Linkin Park Sheet Music". Piano Sheet Music Online. 9 December 2012. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
- ^ "Linkin Park Breaking The Habit Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum - RIAA". RIAA. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ^ "NMPA Announces Top Gold & Platinum Songwriters for August 2017". nmpa.org. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- Harmonix Music Systems. Archived from the originalon February 22, 2014. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
- ^ "Breaking The Habit by Linkin Park Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
- ISBN 978-1-933330-10-5.
- ^ Steve Hochman: Anime finds its match in Linkin Park, Los Angeles Times, May 16, 2004
- ^ Jeffrey Rotter: MUSIC VIDEO; Faith, Hope And Anime, The New York Times, May 30, 2004
- ^ Jon Wiederhorn: Linkin Park Avoid Bodily Harm In New Video By Using Anime Stand-Ins, MTV.com, May 17, 2004
- ^ "Breaking the Habit (Official Video) on Youtube". YouTube. from Linkin Park's Youtube Channel
- ^ "Breaking the Habit (Official Video) on Youtube". YouTube. from the Warner Bros. Records
- ^ "Linkin Park - Breaking the Habit | Official Alternate Version Music Video". YouTube. 2012.
- ^ "Breaking the Habit (Live at Milton Keynes) on Youtube". YouTube. From the Warner Bros. Records Youtube Channel
- ^ "Breaking the Habit (Live at Milton Keynes) on Youtube". YouTube. From Linkin Park's Youtube Channel
- ^ "Breaking the Habit (5.28.04 3:37 PM) on Youtube". YouTube. From ShinikLP's Youtube Channel
- ^ "The 15 Greatest Linkin Park Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 2019-12-26.
- ^ "The 10 Best Linkin Park Songs". Stereogum. 2017-05-26. Retrieved 2019-12-26.
- ^ "8 of the best Linkin Park songs". The Independent. 2018-07-20. Retrieved 2019-12-26.
- ^ "Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
- ^ "Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "RR Canada Rock Top 30" (PDF). p. 56. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
- ^ "Top Lista Hrvatskog Radija". Croatian Radiotelevision. Archived from the original on September 29, 2004. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
- ^ "Oficiální Česká Hitparáda - Pro týden 4/2005" (in Czech). IFPI ČR. Archived from the original on February 4, 2005. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
- Les classement single. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Breaking the Habit". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Linkin Park" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit". Swiss Singles Chart.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
- ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 201730 into search. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
- ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201730 into search. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
- ^ "Brazilian Top 100 Year-End 2004". Crowley Broadcast Analysis. April 3, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
- ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved December 6, 2021.
- ^ "Brazilian Top 100 Year-End 2005". Crowley Broadcast Analysis. April 3, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
- ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Linkin Park; 'Breaking the Habit')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
- ^ "British single certifications – Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- ^ "American single certifications – Linkin Park – Breaking the Habit". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 25, 2020.