Kickstart My Heart

For the song of the same name by Alannah Myles, see Alannah Myles (album).

"Kickstart My Heart" is a song by American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, originally released on their 1989 album, Dr. Feelgood. Released as the album's second single in 1989, "Kickstart My Heart" reached number 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States in early 1990.^[5]

"Kickstart My Heart"
Single by Mötley Crüe
from the album Dr. Feelgood
B-side	"She Goes Down"
Released	November 20, 1989
Genre	Glam metal[1][2][3][4]
Length	4:48
Label	Elektra
Songwriter(s)	Nikki Sixx
Producer(s)	Bob Rock
Mötley Crüe singles chronology
"Dr. Feelgood" (1989) "Kickstart My Heart" (1989) "Without You" (1990)
Music videos
"Kickstart My Heart" on YouTube

In a 2015 interview, Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx related the origins of "Kickstart My Heart", which he wrote while the band was already working on Dr. Feelgood. Sixx was playing acoustic guitar in his house while scribbling words on a piece of paper. When the group’s former manager read the words, he encouraged Sixx to share it with the rest of the band. Sixx was reluctant, but eventually did show the band and the track came together quickly.^[6] The phrase "kickstart my heart" supposedly refers to Sixx's overdose incident where a paramedic injected his heart with adrenaline; Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler disputes the accuracy of the story, saying he revived Sixx before the paramedics arrived.^[7]

The video clip was shot at the Whisky a Go Go on October 5, 1989, during Mötley Crüe's warm-up show before embarking on the Dr. Feelgood world tour. Sam Kinison is featured at the start of the video chauffeuring the band to the Whisky in a 1946 Buick ambulance.^{[citation needed]}

Personnel

Mötley Crüe

• Vince Neil – lead and backing vocals
• Mick Mars – guitars, talk box
• Nikki Sixx – bass
• Tommy Lee – drums, percussion, backing vocals

Additional musicians

• Mark LeFrance – backing vocals
• David Steele – backing vocals
• Emi Canyn – backing vocals
• Donna McDaniel – backing vocals

Charts

Chart (1989–1990)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)[8]	34
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[9]	51
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[10]	31
US Billboard Hot 100[11]	27
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[12]	18

Chart (2019)	Peak position
Canada Hot Canadian Digital Song Sales[13]	15
Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan)[14]	6
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[15]	17
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[16]	9

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[17]	Gold	30,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[18]	Gold	400,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Use in media

• An orchestral remix of the song by 2WEI has appeared in the Battlefield 2042 announcement trailer.
• An edited version of the song scores the climatic football match of the finale of the third season of documentary series Welcome to Wrexham.
• The song was used by controversial baseball relief pitcher John Rocker as his entrance song when entering games.
• The song is featured as in-game music for the North American release of the video game Gran Turismo 3: A-spec.
• The song is played in the trailers of The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run.
• The song is used in the intro to Busted Open Radio on SiriusXM since 2009.
• The song appears in the 2011 film Zookeeper.
• In 2025, Fox Sports adopted the song as the theme music for its coverage of the IndyCar Series. While originally intended as a placeholder by Fox's art director, it was positively received by colleagues and made permanent.^[19]