King of the World
| "King of the World" | |||||
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| Single by Weezer | |||||
| Album | Weezer (The White Album) | ||||
| Released | January 15, 2016 | ||||
| Recorded | 2015 | ||||
| Length | 3:24 | ||||
| Label | Crush Music/Atlantic Records | ||||
| Writer(s) | Rivers Cuomo/Jarrad Kritzstein | ||||
| Producer | Jake Sinclair | ||||
| Status | Officially released | ||||
| Live debut | January 19, 2016 | ||||
| Stream |  Spotify |
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 Apple Music |
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| Weezer singles chronology | |||||
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| Weezer (The White Album) track listing | |||||
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| Alternate cover | |||||
 Cover of the international digital single |
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"King of the World" is the sixth track from The White Album and the third that was officially released prior to the album's release. It was later promoted as the next single.
Overview
During Periscope rehearsals of the song, Rivers would sometimes sing "USA dropped an atom bomb" instead of "Uncle Sam dropped an atom bomb." He said that he was making this mistake since "USA" was the original lyric that remained in the song until the mixing stage, when it was changed to "Uncle Sam". The lyrics have been annotated by Rivers on Genius.[1].
The song, played live and acoustic, was released on the Spotify Sessions.
During the bridge, the bassline from Only in Dreams can be heard in the background. (2:18)
Lyrics
The lyrics were annotated on the site Genius.com by Rivers and his wife, Kyoko Ito Cuomo. The song is about her and her fears and anxieties. In the annotations, she expands on the stories at the beginning of the second verse - they are both true, and her parents gave permission to use the lines in the song. She talks about her phobias and says that she has been suffering for many years, but is now getting professional help. She closes the annotations by saying "Thank you & I love you, Rivers."
Music video
The music video was directed by Scantron and premiered on January 15, 2016.
Personnel
- Rivers Cuomo – lead guitar, lead vocals
- Patrick Wilson – percussion
- Brian Bell – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Scott Shriner - bass guitar, backing vocals
Lyrics
You walk by the magazines
Sitting on the rack at the CVS
One more sad movie star divorce
Three hundred died in an airplane wreck
And you think of all the people suffering
And you bury that pain
But you can tell me everything
And we'll ride on that wave
If I was King of the World
You'd be my girl
You wouldn't have to shed one single tear
Unless you wanted to
'Cause yeah, I know what it's like
If I was King of the World
Yeah, girl
We can ride a Greyhound all the way to the Galapagos
And stay for the rest of our lives
Dad hit you on the hand
Just for holding your chopsticks wrong
Then your mom locked you in a shed
And Uncle Sam dropped an atom bomb
But you're not alone
You can let it go
And just weep on my breast
And cover me with your tenderness
And that pain will pass
If I was King of the World
You'd be my girl
You wouldn't have to shed one single tear
Unless you wanted to
'Cause yeah, I know what it's like
If I was King of the World
Yeah, girl
We can ride a Greyhound all the way to the Galapagos
And stay for the rest of our lives
We are the small fish
And we swim together
No prozac or valium
We'll face tsunamis together
If I was King of the World
You'd be my girl
You wouldn't have to shed one single tear
Unless you wanted to
'Cause yeah, I know what it's like
If I was King of the World
Yeah, girl
We can ride a Greyhound all the way to the Galapagos
And stay for the rest of our lives
