We Didn't Start the Fire (Fall Out Boy song)

"We Didn't Start the Fire" is a 2023 single by American rock band Fall Out Boy. It is a cover of Billy Joel's 1989 song "We Didn't Start the Fire", updating the song's references from the years since the original was released. 

Lyrics
The lyrics to "We Didn't Start the Fire", like Billy Joel's original version released in 1989, is made up of major events in world history through a certain time period. This version covers the events from 1989 to 2023. Fall Out Boy's version includes references to Woodstock '99, the 1992 Los Angeles riots, the Oklahoma City bombing, the September 11 attacks, Brexit; the Boston Marathon bombing, Bush v. Gore, the assassination of Shinzo Abe; the death of Michael Jackson, Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, Michael Keaton's Batman, the Arab Spring, the Fukushima nuclear accident and MySpace. 

In the chorus, the original lyric "we tried to fight it" is replaced with "we're trying to fight it", and in the bridge, "will it still burn on and on…" is replaced with "it will still go on and on...".

Unlike the original version, this version did not keep their references in order by year, such as referencing Rodney King and deepfakes together.

The COVID-19 pandemic was not mentioned in the song mainly because no references to the pandemic could be rhymed with Bush v. Gore.

Reaction
"We Didn't Start the Fire" had a negative reaction from critics and fans. A critic from Polygon called it as "tasteless" because of the song's rhyming of "George Floyd" with "Metroid". 

Reviewers also criticized the song not mentioning some important events or people such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as Hillary and Bill Clinton. The staff of Slate brought up the movie Titanic and O. J. Simpson as missing  references.

References

Category:2023 songs
Category:Fall Out Boy songs