X-Kid

"X-Kid" is a song by American rock band Green Day. It is the fifth track on their eleventh studio album, ¡Tré! (2012), and was released as the second single from the album on February 12, 2013, and is the sixth and final single from the ¡Uno!, ¡Dos! & ¡Tré! trilogy.

"X-Kid"
Single by Green Day
from the album ¡Tré!
Released	February 12, 2013 (2013-02-12)
Recorded	February 14–June 26, 2012 at Jingletown Studios in Oakland, California
Genre	Pop punk[1] power pop[2]
Length	3:42
Label	Reprise Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s)	Billie Joe Armstrong Mike Dirnt Tré Cool
Producer(s)	Rob Cavallo Green Day
Green Day singles chronology
"The Forgotten" (2012) "X-Kid" (2013) "Xmas Time of the Year" (2015)
Music video
"X-Kid" on YouTube "X-Kid (Video Contest Finalist)" on YouTube

Background and release

"X-Kid" was released as a single on February 12, 2013. On December 19, 2012, a video was released to Green Day's official YouTube channel showing "X-Kid" playing on a cassette tape.^[3]

Theme and composition

According to The A.V. Club, "X-Kid" has "a rousing intro degenerates into a hybrid of two songs from the band’s 1991 album Kerplunk, “Who Wrote Holden Caulfield?” and “One Of My Lies.”"^[4]

Song meaning

“X-Kid” from ¡Tré! deals with the suicide of a close friend of the band's. “I don’t really want to get into it,” Armstrong says. “It’s too heavy.”^[5]

This song was written in response to the 2009 suicide of a close friend that Armstrong grew up with in Rodeo, CA. However, the song is as much about the entire "Generation X" (those born from roughly 1965–1980)^[6] as it is about this one specific tragedy. Billie Joe has repeatedly identified himself as an "Ex-Kid" in recent interviews. The narrator is able to relate to his late friend, in that they were both "Ex/X-kids." But, he was able to push through the struggles that came with growing older, while his friend was not. His friend, unfortunately, found an escape in suicide, thus the line "Here goes nothing, the shouting's over." The narrator sees facets of himself in his late friend. He feels as if, sadly, there wasn't much that could have been done to help his friend, though he wishes someone could have found a way to help him before it was too late.^[7]

Credits and Personnel

• Songwriting: Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, Tré Cool
• Production: Rob Cavallo, Green Day

Critical reception

Ray Rahman of Entertainment Weekly named "X-Kid" as the best song on ¡Tre!, above "Brutal Love" and "Missing You".^[8]

Chart positions

Chart (2013)	Peak position
Canada Rock (Billboard)[9]	38
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[10]	48
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[11]	36

References

1. "Green Day "X-Kid" (video) | Exclaim!". exclaim.ca.
2. Robinson, Joe (21 December 2012). "Green Day, 'X-Kid' – New Video". Diffuser.fm.
3. YouTube (2012-12-19). "Green Day - "X-Kid" - Album: ¡TRE!". YouTube. Retrieved 2013-02-03.
4. Tré Review (11 December 2012). "Tré Review". the A.V. Club. Retrieved 6 March 2013.
5. "Interview: Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong on '¡Uno!,' '¡Dos!' and '¡Tre!' - Page 2". Guitar World. 2012-11-12. Retrieved 2013-02-13.
6. Katz, Stephen (2017). "Generation X: A Critical Sociological Perspective". Generations: Journal of the American Society on Aging. 41 (3): 12–19. ISSN 0738-7806. JSTOR 26556295.
7. "X-Kid by Green Day - Lyrics, song meaning and info". Greendayauthority.com. 2012-12-11. Archived from the original on 2013-01-30. Retrieved 2013-02-13.
8. Ray Rahman (2013-01-09). "Tre! - review - Green Day Review". EW.com. Archived from the original on 2013-04-16. Retrieved 2013-02-03.
9. "Green Day Chart History (Canada Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
10. "Green Day Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
11. "Green Day Chart History (Rock Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved October 12, 2016.