Papercut (Linkin Park song)
"Papercut" | ||||
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Single by Linkin Park | ||||
from the album Hybrid Theory | ||||
B-side |
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Released | September 25, 2001 (2001-09-25) | |||
Recorded | 1999–2000 | |||
Studio | NRG (Los Angeles) | |||
Genre |
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Length | 3:05 | |||
Label | Warner Bros. | |||
Songwriter(s) | Linkin Park | |||
Producer(s) | Don Gilmore | |||
Linkin Park singles chronology | ||||
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Audio sample | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Papercut" on YouTube | ||||
"Papercut" is a song by American rock band Linkin Park. It was released as the third single from their debut album Hybrid Theory (2000) and appears as the opening track on the record. It combines multiple genres in a way that Chester Bennington said captured the essence of the band. He also said it was one of his favorite Linkin Park tracks. The song reached number 14 on the UK Singles Chart, and was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Composition and lyrics
Rolling Stone described the track as opening the album with a hip-hop beat that gives way to "4-bit-infused alt-rock heaviness".[5] Mike Shinoda says the song combines three genres within its first 20 seconds: a beat inspired by Timbaland, nu-metal style guitars, and drum and bass.[6]
Chester Bennington said of the song:[7]
In the beginning, my whole goal was to bring as much melody as I could to the music [...] The band was really, really good at doing the hip-hop thing, and really good at writing rock music, but there hadn’t been a lot of melody [before] I joined. [...] When we got to that song, the chorus was so dope and the words behind it were so cool, that I didn’t need to do much melodically until we flipped it up at the end. That was a lot of fun; I felt like that song really captured what the vibe of the band’s about.
He stated multiple times that "Papercut" was one of his favorite Linkin Park songs.[8]
Release
"Papercut" is the opening track on the band's debut album Hybrid Theory. It was released on 18 June 2001 as the second single from the record.[5][9] The band's previous single, "Crawling", included a live performance of the track as a B-side.
The song has also been released in various forms as remixes. Linkin Park's remix album Reanimation (2002) features a version of "Papercut" remixed by Cheapshot and entitled "Ppr:Kut".[10] The band's EP collaborating with Jay-Z, Collision Course (2004) features a mash up the track with Jay-Z's "Big Pimpin'".[11]
Music video
The music video for the song was co-directed by Nathan "Karma" Cox.[12] It shows the band performing in the lounge of an upscale house. Kerrang! describes the room next door as appearing "darker, twisted, shadowy". In this room a chrysalis is generated and hundreds of dragonflies emerge, referencing the cover art of Hybrid Theory. The room then begins to shape-shift around the band with faces coming through the wall.[13] The song's lyrics appear scrawled along the walls in the darker room. Brad Delson and Dave Farrell both appear playing acoustic instruments.[14]
Mike Shinoda reflected in 2021, "The only thing about that song that didn’t age well, in retrospect, is the video". He explains that it was made at a difficult time for the band when they were frequently getting into disagreements, so he chose not to give his views on Chester Bennington's outfit. He also comments, "The special effects are goofy [...] It’s not a terrible video, I think we’ve made worse, but when I watch it now, I look like a fucking idiot and I don’t know what’s going on".[13]
As of October 2020, the video had over 170 million views on YouTube.[13]
Chart performance
The song reached number 14 on the UK Singles Chart in 2001 and was in the chart for 6 weeks.[15][16] It also reached number 32 on the Modern Rock Tracks Chart in 2002.[17] The song was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in 2017, for digital sales of 500,000 units.[18]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Linkin Park
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Papercut" | 3:05 |
2. | "Points of Authority" (Live) | 3:25 |
3. | "Papercut" (Live) | 3:12 |
4. | "Papercut" (Video) | 3:13 |
Personnel
- Mike Shinoda – rapping, vocals
- Chester Bennington – lead vocals
- Brad Delson – guitars
- Joe Hahn – turntables, sampler
- Rob Bourdon – drums
- Ian Hornbeck – bass
Charts
Weekly charts
Chart (2001–2002) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[19] | 87 |
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[20] | 43 |
Germany (Official German Charts)[21] | 49 |
Ireland (IRMA)[22] | 27 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[23] | 39 |
Scotland (OCC)[24] | 10 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[25] | 80 |
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[26] | 1 |
UK Singles (OCC)[27] | 14 |
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[28] | 32 |
Chart (2017) | Peak position |
---|---|
Czech Republic (Singles Digitál Top 100)[29] | 100 |
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[30] | 18 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Italy (FIMI)[31] | Gold | 50,000‡ |
United Kingdom (BPI)[32] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[33] | Gold | 500,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Release history
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | June 18, 2001 | CD | Warner Bros. | [9] |
United States | January 2002 | Alternative radio | [34] |
References
- ^ "26 Nu Metal Workout Songs". Bodybuilding.com. May 28, 2015. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
- ^ Morton, Luke (7 October 2020). "The secret history of Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory: In their own words". Kerrang!. Retrieved 6 September 2021.
- ^ "10 Essential Rap-metal songs as chosen by Neshiima". loudersound.com. July 31, 2019. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
- ^ "Linkin Park: 12 Essential Songs". Rolling Stone. July 20, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
- ^ a b Stone, Rolling (2012-07-04). "Readers' Poll: The Best Linkin Park Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ "The secret history of Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory: In their own words". Kerrang!. 2020-10-07. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ Doyle, Christopher R. Weingarten, Hank Shteamer, Brittany Spanos, Suzy Exposito, Maura Johnston, Patrick; Weingarten, Christopher R.; Shteamer, Hank; Spanos, Brittany; Exposito, Suzy; Johnston, Maura; Doyle, Patrick (2017-07-20). "Linkin Park: 12 Essential Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Hyman, Dan (4 July 2012). "Readers' Poll: The Best Linkin Park Songs - 3. "Papercut"". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media.
- ^ a b "New Releases This Week: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. June 16, 2001. p. 31. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
- ^ "Album Search for "reanimation"". AllMusic. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ Lynskey, Dorian (2004-11-26). "Jay-Z/Linkin Park, Collision Course". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ "Papercut (Official Video) on LinkinPark.com". Archived from the original on 2012-04-20. from www.linkinpark.com
- ^ a b c ""I'm Sorry, I Don't Know What We Were Doing": Mike Shinoda Reflects…". Kerrang!. 2020-10-05. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ Papercut [Official HD Music Video] - Linkin Park. Retrieved 2024-05-06 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ Official Charts Company for "Papercut" by Linkin Park
- ^ Roberts, David (20 May 2005). Guinness Book of British Hit Singles and Albums (18th ed.). Guinness World Records Limited. p. 299. ISBN 1-904994-00-8.
- ^ Linkin Park. "Linkin Park - Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America.
- ^ "ISSUE603.PDF" (PDF). Pandora: Australia's Web Archive. Archived from the original on 2002-02-20. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Hung, Steffen. "Linkin Park - Papercut". austriancharts.at. Retrieved 2017-07-24.
- ^ GmbH, musicline.de / PhonoNet. "Die ganze Musik im Internet: Charts, Neuerscheinungen, Tickets, Genres, Genresuche, Genrelexikon, Künstler-Suche, Musik-Suche, Track-Suche, Ticket-Suche - musicline.de". musicline.de (in German). Archived from the original on 2012-10-16. Retrieved 2017-07-24.
- ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography Linkin Park". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Linkin Park - Papercut". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2017-07-24.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- ^ Hung, Steffen. "Linkin Park - Papercut - swisscharts.com". swisscharts.com. Retrieved 2017-07-24.
- ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. June 24, 2001. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
- ^ "Linkin Park: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
- ^ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 30. týden 2017 in the date selector. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
- ^ "Linkin Park Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
- ^ "Italian single certifications – Linkin Park – Papercut" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ "British single certifications – Linkin Park – Papercut". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
- ^ "American single certifications – Linkin Park – Papercut". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
- ^ "Elton, Adams, Usher And More" (PDF). Radio & Records. January 25, 2002. p. 18. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
Hybrid Theory ... is set to move even more copies as Linkin Park bring "Papercut" to the masses. Hear it now in Alternative.
External links
- "Papercut" lyrics at linkinpark.com
- v
- t
- e
- "Papercut"
- "One Step Closer"
- "Points of Authority"
- "Crawling"
- "Runaway"
- "In the End"
- "She Couldn't" (20th Anniversary Edition)
- "Somewhere I Belong"
- "Lying from You"
- "Faint"
- "Breaking the Habit"
- "From the Inside"
- "Numb"
- "Lost" (20th Anniversary Edition)
- "Fighting Myself" (20th Anniversary Edition)
- "Burning in the Skies"
- "Waiting for the End"
- "Blackout"
- "Wretches and Kings"
- "Iridescent"
- "The Catalyst"
- "Lost in the Echo"
- "In My Remains"
- "Burn It Down"
- "Lies Greed Misery"
- "I'll Be Gone"
- "Castle of Glass"
- "Powerless"
- "Keys to the Kingdom"
- "All for Nothing"
- "Guilty All the Same"
- "Wastelands"
- "Until It's Gone"
- "Rebellion"
- "Final Masquerade"
- "Good Goodbye"
- "Talking to Myself"
- "Battle Symphony"
- "Invisible"
- "Heavy"
- "One More Light"
- "Friendly Fire"
- "New Divide"
- "Not Alone"
- "Rolling in the Deep"
- "White Noise"
- "Darker Than the Light That Never Bleeds"
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