Know Your Enemy

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Billie Joe Armstrong told Q magazine, "It's a rallying song. It's about liberating yourself from a lot of bullshit that you see on TV." During their 21st Century Breakdown tour show in Minneapolis on July 11, 2009, Armstrong told the crowd that the song had been recorded on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The music video, directed by Motion Theory's Mathew Cullen (who helmed the video for Weezer's "Pork and Beans" in 2008), premiered on MTV and other stations across the globe on April 24, 2009. In the video, the band performs at night on a stage in a field surrounded by a barbed wire fence, with shots frequently seen through night vision closed-circuit cameras and from helicopters patrolling with searchlights. The final chorus shows fire burning behind the silhouettes of the band members. The video was shot in Downtown Los Angeles.

In Their Own Story

A snippet of "Know Your Enemy" was released onto Green Day's official website on April 6, 2009. *21st Century Breakdown* was later released on May 15, with "Know Your Enemy" as the third song on the standard track list. It was issued as a single on April 16, being the first single released from the album. Peter Gaston of *Spin* referred to it as sounding "like an out-take from the *Dookie* sessions". About.com's Bill Lamb said the song was "standard issue Green Day", "not a stroke of genius" and "not on par with their last album", but called it a "great appetizer" for one of the most eagerly awaited albums of 2009. *Pitchfork Media* described the track as having "pedantic stiffness" and "nothing more than a rote protest song preaching to the converted". *Rolling Stone* called the song one of the highlights of the album, praising the punk-oriented sound and calling it one of the "Clash-size bootboy chants" from the album. *Billboard* said that "The lead single from the band's new release, *21st Century Breakdown*, finds the group just as politically charged as last time", but also said that "While the subject matter is broad and may be missed by some, 'Enemy' has enough charm to amp up the airwaves until (*21st Century*) Breakdown is released."

Reader's Guide

In the United States, "Know Your Enemy" topped the Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart the week of June 20, 2009. It peaked at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 and 36 on the Adult Pop Airplay charts. On July 13, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the song gold. In Canada, it reached number 1 on the Canada Rock chart, and peaked at number 5 and 38 on both the Canadian Hot 100 and CHR/Top 40 charts respectively. In Europe, the song peaked at number 21 on the UK singles chart for three consecutive weeks. The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) certified "Know Your Enemy" silver on August 27, 2021. On individual national charts, it reached number 20 on the Australia singles chart, 1 on the Czech Republic Airplay chart, 14 in Germany, 17 in Italy, and 11 in both Austria and Ireland. Recorded Music NZ (RMNZ) certified the song gold on October 15, 2015. It peaked at number 10 in Sweden, number 16 in Switzerland, 17 in Norway, and 13 in New Zealand. It charted on the Scottish Singles chart at number 3, 62 and 6 on the Dutch Top 40 and the Dutch Top 100 charts respectively, and 34 in Denmark. The song was used as the theme song for WWE SmackDown since the show's debut on Syfy from 2010 to 2012. It is also played at New Orleans Saints and Green Bay Packers games when the away team comes out of the locker room. FC Halifax Town also use this as their walk out song when playing at home. The song appears on the *Awesome as Fuck* live album, in *Shaun White Skateboarding* and *NHL 10*, and became available as a downloadable song for *Rock Band* on July 7, 2009, along with "East Jesus Nowhere" and "21 Guns". It has been used in trailers for *The Spy Next Door* and *Free Birds*, as well as to promote Comcast and Wimbledon on ESPN.

Did You Know?

• "Know Your Enemy" was the first, and one of only three songs, to top the Rock Songs, Alternative Songs and Mainstream Rock Tracks Billboard charts at the same time.
• Billie Joe Armstrong told the crowd in Minneapolis on July 11, 2009, that the song was recorded on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
• The music video was directed by Mathew Cullen, who also directed Weezer's "Pork and Beans" video in 2008.
• The song was used as the theme for WWE SmackDown on Syfy from 2010 to 2012.
• It became available as a downloadable song for *Rock Band* on July 7, 2009, along with "East Jesus Nowhere" and "21 Guns".