"Bring Me to Life" is the debut single by American rock band

Evanescence Evanescence is an American Rock music, rock band founded in 1994 by singer and keyboardist Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody in Little Rock, Arkansas. After releasing independent extended play, EPs and a Origin (Evanescence demo album), demo ...

from their debut studio album, ''

Fallen Fallen may refer to: People * Carl Fredrik Fallén (1764–1830), Swedish botanist and entomologist * Gabriel Toledo (born 1991), known as FalleN, Brazilian ''Counter-Strike'' player Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Fallen'' (1998 fi ...

'' (2003). It was released by Wind-up as the album's lead single on January 13, 2003, following its inclusion in

the soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured ...

of the film '' Daredevil''. The song was written by

Amy Lee Amy Lynn Lee (born December 13, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She is the co-founder, lead vocalist, lead songwriter, and keyboardist of the rock band Evanescence. A classically trained pianist, Lee began writing music at ...

at age 19 about having been desensitized in an abusive relationship and realizing things she had been missing in life. Guitarist

Ben Moody Benjamin Moody (born January 22, 1981) is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is known as co-founder of rock band Evanescence, which he departed in 2003 after the release of their debut album '' Fallen'' (2003). After leav ...

and

David Hodges David Hodges (born December 5, 1978) is an American songwriter and record producer from Little Rock, Arkansas. He was a studio contributor to the rock band Evanescence from 2000 to 2002, and has co-written and co-produced for pop, pop rock a ...

share songwriting credits on the song, which features guest vocals from Paul McCoy of the band

12 Stones 12 Stones is an American hard rock band, formed in 2000 in Mandeville, Louisiana, consisting of Paul McCoy, Richard Labranche, Sean Dunaway, David Troia and Jon Rodriguez. History The band members met in Mandeville, Louisiana, a small city no ...

. Produced by

Dave Fortman Dave Fortman (born July 11, 1967) is an American record producer and musician. He is the guitarist for rock band Ugly Kid Joe, and has done production work for bands such as Godsmack, Superjoint Ritual, Snot (band), Snot, Watership Down (band), ...

, "Bring Me to Life" is primarily a

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop music, hip hop, funk, industrial music, industrial, and grunge. Nu ...

and

rap rock Rap rock is a music genre that developed from the early to mid-1980s, when hip hop DJs incorporated rock records into their routines and rappers began incorporating original and sampled rock instrumentation into hip hop music. Rap rock is co ...

song. The male vocals were forced by the label against Lee's wishes to market the song in the musical landscape of the time. The song received a generally positive reception, with critics praising Lee's vocals and melody. One of Evanescence's most commercially successful songs, "Bring Me to Life" charted at number one in Australia, Chile, Colombia, Italy, Scotland, and the United Kingdom while receiving multi-platinum certifications in Australia, Italy, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It won the

Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance The Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance was an award presented to recording artists at the Grammy Awards from 1990 to 2011. The academy recognized hard rock music artists for the first time at the 31st Grammy Awards in 1989. The category ...

and was also nominated for

Best Rock Song The Grammy Award for Best Rock Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rock music genre. Honors in several ...

. Directed by

Philipp Stölzl Philipp Stölzl (born 1967 in Munich) is a German director. He began to direct music videos in the mid-1990s and directed his first feature film in 2002. Life and career Philipp Stölzl was trained as a set and costume designer at the Münchner ...

, the music video shows Lee singing and climbing on a skyscraper while having nightmares in her room. The song was re-worked and re-recorded on Evanescence's

orchestral An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, a ...

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

fourth studio album, ''

Synthesis Synthesis or synthesize may refer to: Science Chemistry and biochemistry *Chemical synthesis, the execution of chemical reactions to form a more complex molecule from chemical precursors **Organic synthesis, the chemical synthesis of organi ...

'' (2017).

Composition and recording

Lee wrote "Bring Me to Life" at age 19, after a then-acquaintance (who later became her husband) asked her if she was happy; Lee was in an abusive relationship and in turmoil, and was shocked the person saw through her facade as she felt she "was completely outwardly acting normal". "I felt like he could just see straight into my soul. That inspired the whole song", she explained. The song is about "open-mindedness" and "waking up to all the things you've been missing for so long". After the moment that inspired her to write it, she "realized that for months I'd been numb, just going through the motions of life." In 2022, Lee noted that she was finding her voice lyrically while making the album, realizing "how the more honest I was, the more powerful I felt"; the song was "in a broader way about breaking free from something I knew I had the power to if I was brave enough", and represented "true desires, unspoken frustrations and fears, standing up to the bullshit around me

hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...

I was just on the cusp of being able to defeat". It expressed a "cry for help", while "

Going Under "Going Under" is a song by American rock band Evanescence from their debut studio album, ''Fallen'' (2003). It was released by Wind-up Records as the album's second single on August 18, 2003. Lee wrote the song about coming out of a difficult r ...

", which she wrote after "Bring Me to Life", was the next stage of her "coming to the realization that I was going to stand up for myself and make a change." Moody and David Hodges share writing credits on the track. With pressure from the label to refine its production, Evanescence ultimately made around 10 demos of the song, which included changing the synths for the opening piano part, and the addition of real strings by David Campbell, an "expense" Lee "fought hard for over a less expensive synthetic alternative". Most of the song was recorded for the ''Daredevil'' soundtrack at

Ocean Studios Ocean Productions, Inc., is a Canadian media production and voice acting company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that is part of the Ocean Group of businesses. Ocean Group is involved in intellectual property acquisition and development, ...

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank had a Census-estimated population of 102,755 as of 2023. The city was ...

. It was mixed by

Jay Baumgardner Jay Baumgardner is an American record producer, engineer and mixer. He has worked on albums by The Regulators, Seether, Superheist, Ugly Kid Joe, Bush, Helmet, Sevendust, Papa Roach, Endwell, Coal Chamber, Drowning Pool, Godsmack, Three ...

in his studio,

NRG Recording Studios NRG Recording Studios is a recording facility located in North Hollywood, California, that was created by producer and mixer Jay Baumgardner in 1992. History Before starting NRG Recording Studio, Jay Baumgardner, operated from a home based st ...

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...

, on an SSL 9000 J. A 22-piece string section was recorded by Mark Curry in Seattle, and mixed at the Newman Scoring Stage and Bolero Studios in Los Angeles. "Bring Me to Life" is stylistically a

and

song. In order to market it, the label forced them to add the male rapping vocal, which Lee did not want, or the song and album would not be released. The male vocal was a compromise after the label originally demanded they include a rap on eight of the songs on the album. During an interview, Lee stated: "It was presented to me as, 'You're a girl singing in a rock band, there's nothing else like that out there, nobody's going to listen to you. You need a guy to come in and sing back-up for it to be successful.'" Lee wrote Paul McCoy's part. On the chorus, Lee sings the lines "'Call my name and save me from the dark' over "surging guitars", and McCoy raps the lines "Wake me up/ I can't wake up/ Save me!". The song is set in

common time A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates the ...

and performed in a moderate

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

of 95 beats per minute. It is written in the key of E minor, and Lee's vocal range for the song runs from the low note of A₃ to the high note of D₅. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''s Kirk Miller said that the song is stylistically a "case of mistaken identity", dooming the band to

Linkin Park Linkin Park is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn, bass ...

comparisons "thanks to tsdigital beats, clean metal-guitar riffs, scattered piano lines and all-too-familiar mix of rapping and singing." Blair R. Fischer of

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

called it a "ubiquitous rap-rock confection". Richard Harrington from ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' described its sound as "crunching metallic".

Ann Powers Ann K. Powers (born February 4, 1964) is an American writer and popular music critic. She is a music critic for NPR and a contributor at the ''Los Angeles Times'', where she was previously chief pop critic. She has also written for other publicat ...

from the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' said that "with its lyrical drama and crunchy guitars,

he song He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

branded the band as overdone nu-metal." "Bring Me to Life" has also been classified as

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

, and ''Blender'' writer Nick Catucci described it as a "crossover goth-metal smash". Nick Catucci of ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'' wrote that "piano tinkles, Lee's breathless keen, dramatic pauses, guitars like clouds of locusts, ndMcCoy's passing-12-kidney-stones guest vocals" characterize the song, which "sounds like church-burning, brain-eating European dark metal." Vik Bansal of ''

MusicOMH ''MusicOMH'' (stylized as ''musicOMH'') is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B. History ''MusicOMH'' was founded an ...

'' said the track contains "Lee's temptress vocals, pseudo-electronic beats à la Linkin Park, understated but menacing metallic riffs in the background, and a ripping, radio-friendly rock chorus."

described it as "an unrelenting paean that begins as hauntingly delicate before piling on crumpled guitar lines and a rap" while "Lee's vocals soar above the whole sludgy mixture".

Release

"Bring Me to Life" first appeared in a scene of the film '' Daredevil'' and was included on the film's soundtrack, released in February 2003. The song was released as ''Fallen''s first single on April 7, 2003. Wind-up Entertainment president Ed Vetri revealed that when the label first introduced the song to radio, radio programmers rejected it, saying, "A chick and a piano? Are you kidding? On rock radio?" Some program directors would hear the female voice and piano at the start of the song and turn it off without listening to the rest of the song. A female voice on rock radio was a rarity, and the song was considered for airplay only after there was a male vocal on it. After the song was released on the ''Daredevil'' soundtrack, listeners began requesting air play for it, compelling radio stations to reconsider Evanescence. Lee said that with the success of the single they "went from playing clubs to arenas in a matter of months" and "people in other countries were listening to it". On its international success, she stated: The single includes "Farther Away" as a

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

. The first pressing of the Australian single contained the track "Missing" as a B-side, but this was omitted from later pressings and later released as a bonus track on the band's first live album, ''

Anywhere but Home ''Anywhere but Home'' is the first live album and concert DVD release by American rock band Evanescence. It was released on November 23, 2004, by Wind-up Records. It includes a recording of a concert at Le Zénith in Paris, an hour of behind the ...

''. An acoustic version was recorded and released on the "Bring Me to Life" DVD. In 2003, the song served as the official theme song for

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

's 2003 No Way Out event.

Reception and accolades

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's Johnny Loftus called the song "misleading" due to the vocal duet but "flawless".

Kelefa Sanneh Kelefa T. Sanneh (born 1976) is an American journalist and music critic. From 2000 to 2008, he wrote for ''The New York Times'', covering the rock and roll, hip-hop, and pop music scenes. Since 2008 he has been a staff writer for ''The New Yorker ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' said that "Bring Me to Life" "floats like a butterfly, stings like a bee and then hits like a brick." Writing for the ''

'',

wrote that it is a "mix of voluptuous singing and metallic guitar (the latter enhanced by McCoy's rap-rock declamations)". Joe D'Angelo of MTV said the song is an "unrelenting paean that begins as hauntingly delicate before piling on crumpled guitar lines and a rap" and Lee's "vocals soar above the whole sludgy mixture to keep it from sinking into tired mediocrity." Adrien Bengrad from ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'' called it a "quality single" although hearing it more led him to find it "nothing more than a bombastic distraction from the usual dreck" despite "the refreshing dose of melody". Christopher Gray of ''

The Austin Chronicle ''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogra ...

'' deemed it "one of the more curious offerings to be had on the airwaves right now and lingers in the memory like the remnants of a particularly vivid nightmare". Bryan Reeseman of '' Mix'' described "Bring Me to Life" as "grandiose and moody". Nick Catucci of ''

'' deemed it a "fabulous breakthrough single" that sounds like "church-burning, brain-eating European dark metal." Writing for ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...

'', Mike Rampton found the "manly rap" forced by their label to be "not good". John Hood of the ''

Miami New Times The ''Miami New Times'' is a newspaper published in Miami, Florida, United States, and distributed every Thursday. It primarily serves the Miami metropolitan area, and is headquartered in Miami's Wynwood Art District. Overview It was acquired ...

'' said it is a "huge, heavy, and mightily histrionic" track that pits Lee's "soaring voice both with and against the rap-infused gruff of McCoy". In his review of Evanescence's second album, Don Kaye of

Blabbermouth.net ''Blabbermouth.net'' is a website dedicated to metal and rock news, as well as album and music DVD reviews. It is run by the website's founder Borivoj Krgin. The first version of the website was launched in March 2001. In October 2001, the rec ...

criticized the song for containing "annoying faux-rapping" as a "key component". For

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

, Suzy Exposito wrote that McCoy "came in to insulate chauvinistic rock listeners from Lee's operatic subjectivity". Melissa Maerz of ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...

'' said that Lee thematically tackles death on the song with "grandeur". ''

'' called it "haunting, moody and cinematic". "Bring Me to Life" won the

at the

46th Grammy Awards The 46th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 8, 2004, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California honoring the best in music for the recording of the year beginning from October 1, 2002, through September 30, 2003. It recognized acc ...

, where it was also nominated in the category

. At the

2003 MTV Video Music Awards The 2003 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on August 28, 2003, honoring the best music videos from June 1, 2002, to June 9, 2003. The show was hosted by Chris Rock at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The ceremony is best remembered for ...

the band was nominated in the category for

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1960 (except in 1967) "for a new artist who releases, during the Eligibility Year, the first recording which establishes the public identity of that ar ...

for "Bring Me to Life". The song received a nomination at the

2003 MTV Europe Music Awards The 2003 MTV Europe Music Awards were held in Western Harbour in Edinburgh, Scotland. The awards ceremony was held in a 6,000-capacity big top arena constructed specifically for the main event. On the night, Justin Timberlake notably received a ...

for Best Song. At the 14th annual ''Billboard'' Music Awards, it won the award for Soundtrack Single of the Year. "Bring Me to Life" ranked number 69 on

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

's 100 Greatest Songs of the 2000s. In 2018,

named it one of the 200 greatest songs by 21st century women. In 2023, ''

'' ranked the song at number 43 on their "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time" list.

Chart performance

"Bring Me to Life" peaked within the top 10 of more than 15 countries, and within the top 20 of several other countries, making it the band's most successful single to date. It was certified

triple-platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

in 2019 for selling more than three million copies in the United States. It topped the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

and

Pop 100 The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009. It ranked songs based on airplay on Mainstream Top 40 radio stations, singles ...

charts and peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It also peaked at number four on the

Adult Top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Syste ...

chart. The song initially peaked within the

Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. This music is typically performed by Christians, Christian individuals. The extent to whi ...

charts as well, because its lyrics were interpreted as a call for new life in Jesus Christ by several listeners. "Bring Me to Life" charted at number 73 on ''Billboard''s Best of the 2000s Rock Songs Chart, the only song by a female-led band on that chart. The song topped the charts of Australia, Belgium, Italy and the United Kingdom. It peaked within the top 5 of Austria, Canada, France, Ireland, Germany, New Zealand, Norway, Netherlands, and Sweden. On the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

, "Bring Me to Life" peaked at number one where it stayed for six weeks. "Bring Me to Life" charted within the top 20 of every other country of its release. In the United Kingdom, the song spent four weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart, which in turn helped ''Fallen'' peak at the top of the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

. The song also topped the

Eurochart Hot 100 The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by ''Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately f ...

ranking. On June 4, 2011, the song returned to the top of the

UK Rock & Metal Singles Chart The UK Rock & Metal Singles Chart and UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart are record charts compiled in the United Kingdom by the Official Charts Company (OCC) to determine the 40 most popular singles and albums in the rock and heavy metal genres. The ...

, eight years after its original release, remaining at number one for two weeks, on June 11, 2011, to June 25, 2011. It fell to number two, remaining there for three weeks, and on July 17, 2011, "Bring Me to Life" returned to number one again and remained there for three weeks. The song remained within the top 10 into October 2011.The song peaked at number one on the UK Rock Chart for five non-consecutive weeks in 2011: * "Week Ending June 11": * "Week Ending June 18": * "Week Ending July 23": * "Week Ending July 30": * "Week Ending August 6": , the song has sold more than 745,000 copies in the United Kingdom.

Music video

The music video for "Bring Me to Life" was directed by

. Stölzl stated: According to Joe D'Angelo of MTV News, Lee's "teetering on a ledge" in the video shows a "distressed and emotionally wrought heroine."

from the ''Los Angeles Times'' wrote: "You might not immediately recognize Amy Lee's name, but you would know her if she plummeted past you from the top floor of a tenement building." Corey Moss of MTV felt that "as intense as a superhero movie, the sequence also gives a nice visual to the song's most memorable lyric, 'Save me.'" John Hood of ''Miami New Times'' wrote that the video's "gothopolis backdrop" would "make

Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...

green with envy". The music video peaked at number nine on MTV's ''

Total Request Live ''Total Request Live'' (commonly abbreviated as ''TRL'') is an American television program that premiered on MTV on September 14, 1998. The early version of ''TRL'' featured popular music videos played during its countdown and was also used as ...

'' in April 2003. It was nominated at the

for Best Rock Video, but lost to

's "

Somewhere I Belong "Somewhere I Belong" is a song by American rock band Linkin Park. It was released to US radio on February 24, 2003, as the lead single from their second studio album, ''Meteora'' (2003), and is the album's third track. It entered the top ten o ...

". On February 1, 2022, it surpassed 1 billion views on YouTube, becoming the first Evanescence music video to reach this milestone.

Live performances

A live performance from the ''Fallen'' tour filmed at

Le Zénith Le Zénith () is the name given to a series of indoor arenas in France. The first arena, the "Zénith Paris" is a rejuvenation of the Pavillon de Paris. In French culture, the word "zénith" has become synonymous with "theater". A zénith is a ...

in Paris is included on Evanescence's first live album and concert DVD ''

'' (2004). The live recording contains a piano and vocal solo before the song's intro. McCoy's studio vocals were performed by tour guitarist John LeCompt during the tour. In October 2011, the band performed the song at the

Rock in Rio Rock in Rio is a biennial Brazilian multi-day music festival held at City of Rock in Rio de Janeiro. It later branched into other locations such as Lisbon, Madrid and Las Vegas. Ten incarnations of the festival have been held in Rio de Janeir ...

festival. Lee performed the song with Japanese band

Wagakki Band was a Japanese band that combines rock and metal music with wagakki instruments and Shigin poetries. Their early songs were adapted from Vocaloid, with their music videos for the songs and attracting millions of views online before their fir ...

in February 2020, at

Osaka-jō Hall is a multi-purpose arena located in the Kyōbashi, Osaka, Kyōbashi area of Osaka, Japan. The hall opened in 1983 and can seat up to 16,000 people. Built on a site area of , part of its form uses stone walls, modeled after those of Osaka Castle ...

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

, Japan. Evanescence performed the song live with singer

Sonny Sandoval Paul Joshua "Sonny" Sandoval (born May 16, 1974) is an American musician, rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the co-founder and lead vocalist of nu metal band P.O.D. Biography Sandoval was born in San Diego, California, to a ...

in September 2022, and at

Rock am Ring The (German language, German for "Rock at the Ring") and ("Rock in the Park") festivals are two simultaneous rock music festivals held annually in Germany. While ''Rock am Ring'' takes place at the Nürburgring race track, ''Rock im Park'' tak ...

festival with guest singer

Jacoby Shaddix Jacoby Dakota Shaddix (born July 28, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and TV presenter. He is best known as a founding member and the continuous lead singer of the California-based rock band Papa Roach since the band's formation ...

in June 2023.

2017 ''Synthesis'' arrangement

In 2017, an orchestral and

version of the song was recorded for the band's fourth studio album ''

''. It was made available for digital download and streaming on August 18, 2017; it was also made available for instant download for concertgoers of the band's

Synthesis Tour Synthesis Live was a concert tour by American rock band Evanescence, in support of their fourth studio album, the orchestral and electronica-based ''Synthesis'' (2017). This was the first tour where the band performed with an orchestra on stage. ...

. The ''Synthesis'' version of "Bring Me to Life" replaces the drums and guitar from the ''Fallen'' version with string arrangements accompanied by crashing

cymbal A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs sou ...

s, "tension-building" timpani drums and various electronic elements throughout. It also removes McCoy's vocal feature. Several critics described its new arrangement as "dramatic", with ''Billboard''s Sadie Bell deeming it "just as rich" as the original and ''Rolling Stone''s Brittany Spanos calling it a "cinematic take". Lee described the song as "new" to her again as she incorporated musical elements and vocals which she had "heard in erhead" since its release.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from ''Fallen'' liner notes. *

– vocals, keyboards *

– guitar *

– keyboards *

Josh Freese Joshua Ryan Freese (born December 25, 1972) is an American drummer. A member of punk rock band the Vandals since 1989, Freese has also been a member of new wave band Devo since 1996. He was previously a member of hard rock band Guns N' Roses ...

– drums * Francesco DiCosmo – bass guitar * David Campbell – string arrangements * Paul McCoy – guest vocals *

– producing *

– mixing *Jeremy Parker – engineering

Track listings

* European CD single # "Bring Me to Life" – 3:56 # "Bring Me to Life" (Bliss Mix) – 3:59 * European CD maxi-single # "Bring Me to Life" – 3:56 # "Bring Me to Life" (Bliss Mix) – 3:59 # "Farther Away" – 3:58 # "Bring Me to Life" (music video) – 4:14 * Australian CD maxi-single # "Bring Me to Life" – 3:56 # "Bring Me to Life" (Bliss Mix) – 3:59 # "Farther Away" – 3:58 # "Missing" – 4:15 * French CD single # "Bring Me to Life" – 3:56 # "Bring Me to Life" (Bliss Mix) – 3:59 * Subsequent pressings single # "Bring Me to Life" – 3:56 # "Bring Me to Life" (Bliss Mix) – 3:59 # "Farther Away" – 3:58 # "Bring Me to Life" (music video) – 4:14 * International DVD # "Bring Me to Life" (video) # "Bring Me to Life" # "Bring Me to Life" (live acoustic version) # " My Immortal" (Live acoustic version) # Interview footage * UK cassette single # "Bring Me to Life" – 3:56 # "Farther Away" – 3:58 # "Bring Me to Life" (Bliss Mix) – 3:59

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

Cover versions

Welsh singer

Katherine Jenkins Katherine Jenkins (born 29 June 1980) is a Welsh singer. She is a mezzo-soprano and performs operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre, and hymns.Believe Believe may refer to: *Belief, a psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true, with or without proof for such proposition *Faith, a belief in something which has not been proven Arts, entertainment, and me ...

''. It was released as the album's second single in October 2009.

In popular culture

The song plays a key role in the 3rd and 6th episodes of the second season of the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

comedy series '' The Rehearsal''.

References

{{Authority control 2000 songs 2003 debut singles Evanescence songs Songs written by Amy Lee Songs written by Ben Moody Songs written by David Hodges Number-one singles in Australia European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Number-one singles in Italy Number-one singles in Scotland UK singles chart number-one singles Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance Rap rock songs Halloween songs Wind-up Records singles Epic Records singles BMG Rights Management singles Daredevil (film series)