"Champion" is a song by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...

, released on June 22, 2017 in the US and on June 23 worldwide through

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

and DCD2. It was released as the second

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from their seventh

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

, ''

Mania Mania, also known as manic syndrome, is a Psychiatry, psychiatric Abnormality (behavior), behavioral syndrome defined as a state of Abnormality (behavior), abnormally elevated arousal, affect (psychology), affect, and energy level. During a mani ...

''.

Background

While Fall Out Boy's previous single, " Young and Menace", was considered to be a major departure from their usual sound, "Champion" brought back some familiar elements from their more recent albums while still experimenting with new ideas. It was co-written with pop singer-songwriter Sia.

Composition

Musically, "Champion" has been described as a

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

pop-punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

and

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

song. Wentz made a post on his personal

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regarding the meaning of the song: "This one really reminds me of this moment in " the never-ending story" . . . first they're like "wait you're just a kid lol we need a ealwarrior" then they're like "ok . . . i guess you'll do" and then "no one can help you and if you don't do this our entire world dies, so no pressure" . . . No one believes but at the same time we all need to believe in you." Another of his notes was posted to Fall Out Boy's Twitter: "In my head champions aren't born, they are forged . . ." In the chorus, Stump repeats the phrase "If I can live through this, I can do anything," which further connects the themes of empowerment and inspiration to the song.

Promotion

TV performances

The band first performed the song live on ''

Late Night with Seth Meyers ''Late Night with Seth Meyers'' is an American late-night news and political satire variety talk show hosted by Seth Meyers on NBC. The show premiered on February 24, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. Airing w ...

'' on July 26, 2017, to promote the album.

Remix

At midnight on December 15, 2017, a remix featuring South Korean rapper RM of

BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010. The band consists of Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook, who co-write or co-produce much of their material. Originally a hip hop group, they ...

was released worldwide across all major music streaming sites. ''

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 ...

'' praised the collaboration, saying "...the remix offers up a grittier, hip-hop vibe thanks to a mellow tonal shift and RM’s evocative raps about the hardships of life. Like the original, the remix contains an inspirational, empowering message -- something Fall Out Boy and BTS both often incorporate into their music." ''FUSE'' described the new sound as "going from rocking anthem to something of an electronic-pop burner", while ''

Bustle A bustle is a padded undergarment or wire frame used to add fullness, or support the drapery, at the back of women's dresses in the mid-to-late 19th century. Bustles are worn under the skirt in the back, just below the waist, to keep the skir ...

'' said the revamped track "keeps Fall Out Boy's pop rock melodies intact, but weaves in some hip-hop flair with a guest verse from RM". The remix debuted at number 18 on ''Billboards

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart for the issue dated January 6, 2018. It also landed on the Rock Digital Song Sales chart, peaking at number two for the week of January 3, 2018, and beating the band's previous peak position of number four with the original version.

Appearances in other media

The song is featured in the soundtrack of

WWE 2K19 ''WWE 2K19'' is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke's and published by 2K. It was released worldwide on October 9, 2018, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. It is the twentieth game in the ''WWE'' series, th ...

. It was selected by

Alexa Bliss Alexis Cabrera ( Kaufman; born August 9, 1991) is an American professional wrestler. She is signed to WWE, where she performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Alexa Bliss. In 2013, Bliss signed a contract with WWE and was assigne ...

to appear in the game's soundtrack.

Music video

The visualizer for "Champion" debuted on Fall Out Boy's official

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and

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channels. It featured

Wentz Wentz is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Barney Wentz, American football player * Carson Wentz, American football player * Earl Wentz, American composer and pianist * Eiji Wentz, Japanese singer for the band WaT * Elisabet W ...

and rapper

Post Malone Austin Richard Post (born July 4, 1995), known professionally as Post Malone, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. His music blends various genres including hip-hop, Pop music, pop, Contemporary R&B, R&B, Tra ...

skateboarding in a warehouse, along with the llamas that were seen in the music video for "Young and Menace". The band released it as an interim video, with plans to put the music video out at a later date. The official music video was released on July 28, 2017 also through Vevo and YouTube. The video observed people chasing their dreams and experiencing the world through VR headsets. American actor and rapper

Jaden Smith Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998) is an American rapper and actor. The son of Jada Pinkett-Smith and Will Smith, he has received various accolades, including a Teen Choice Award, an MTV Movie Award, a BET Award and a Young A ...

ended the video by destroying the headset with a baseball bat. A note written by Wentz was posted to Fall Out Boy's official

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account along with a link to the video: "I can't think of a drug worse than fake reality . . . . Smash the fake reality. Don't just sit around and kill time." The concept of " fake reality" is represented by the VR headsets, while the last sentence alludes to the song's lyrics. Actor

Josh Brener Josh Brener (born October 1, 1984) is an American actor. He played the roles of Kyle on the IFC series ''Maron'', Nelson "Big Head" Bighetti on the HBO series ''Silicon Valley'', and Alan Zweibel in the film '' Saturday Night''. In animation, ...

, '' The Bachelor'' star Ashley Iaconetti, and actor

Timothy Granaderos Timothy Granaderos (born September 9, 1986) is an American actor and model. He is known for his portrayals of Ash Franklin in the thriller web series '' Tagged'' (2016–18), Taylor Price in the TV series ''In the Vault'' (2017), and Montgomery ...

also made appearances. The video was nominated for Best Rock Video in the 2018 Video Music Awards.

Track listing

Personnel

Adapted from the

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or cassette j-cards. Origin Liner notes are descended from the prog ...

of ''

''. Fall Out Boy *

Patrick Stump Patrick Martin Stumph (born April 27, 1984), known professionally as Patrick Vaughn Stump, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Rock music, rock band Fall Out Boy ...

– lead vocals, guitar, keyboard, programming, songwriting, production *

Pete Wentz Peter Lewis Kingston Wentz III (born June 5, 1979) is an American musician who is the bassist and lyricist for the rock band Fall Out Boy. Before the band's formation in 2001, Wentz was a fixture of the Chicago hardcore scene and was the lead si ...

– bass guitar, backing vocals, songwriting, production *

Joe Trohman Joseph Mark Trohman (born September 1, 1984) is an American musician. He is best known as the lead guitarist and backing vocalist of the American rock band Fall Out Boy,Joe Bosso.The Fall Guy. ''Guitar World''. January 2009. 47–50. as well as t ...

– lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboard, songwriting, production *

Andy Hurley Andrew John Hurley (born May 31, 1980) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Fall Out Boy. Prior to Fall Out Boy, Hurley played in several hardcore punk bands. He joined Fall Out Boy as the full-time drummer in 2003 and ...

– drums, percussion, songwriting, production Production *

Jesse Shatkin Jesse Samuel Shatkin (born 1979) is an American songwriter, producer and engineer. He has worked with Sia, Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Lopez, Fitz and the Tantrums, One Direction, and Miley Cyrus, among others. Shatkin was nominated in 2014 for G ...

– programming, keyboards *

Mark "Spike" Stent Mark "Spike" Stent (born 3 August 1965) is an English record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with many international artists including Madonna, Marshmello, U2, Beyoncé, Björk, Depeche Mode, Echo & the Bunnymen, Grimes, Ed Sheeran, ...

– mixing * Suzy Shinn – assistant recording * Jay Ruston – assistant recording * Sam Dent – engineering * Sia Furler – songwriting

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2017 songs 2017 singles Fall Out Boy songs Island Records singles Songs written by Patrick Stump Songs written by Pete Wentz Songs written by Joe Trohman Songs written by Andy Hurley Songs written by Sia (musician)