"Loser" is a song by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band 3 Doors Down. It was released on June 26, 2000, as the second single from their debut album, ''

The Better Life ''The Better Life'' is the debut studio album by American rock band 3 Doors Down, released on February 8, 2000. It has become 7× Platinum since release. This is the only album on which lead singer Brad Arnold played drums. "Kryptonite", " Lo ...

'' (2000). The song spent 21 weeks at the number-one position on the US ''Billboard''

Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...

, an all-time record for the chart. It additionally peaked at number four on the Canadian ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Rock Report and rose to number five in Portugal in April 2003.

Content

According to lead lyricist

Brad Arnold Bradley Kirk Arnold (born September 27, 1978) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and drummer (and only remaining original member) of the rock band 3 Doors Down. Early life Arnold grew up in Escatawpa, Mississippi. He wro ...

, the song is written from the perspective of a childhood friend of his who became addicted to

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

. The lyrics contain multiple allusions to

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

Release and reception

Commercial performance

Released to American

mainstream rock Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada. Format background Mainstream rock stations represent the middle ground between classic rock and active rock ...

and

active rock Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...

radio on June 26, 2000, "Loser" debuted on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

at number 76 on the chart dated October 21, 2000. It spent 20 weeks on this chart, peaking at number 55 on December 2 of the same year. On the ''Billboard''

chart, the song spent 21 weeks at number one (from September 9, 2000, to January 27, 2001), becoming the chart's longest-running number one hit, and it is among the songs that spent the most weeks on the listing, remaining on the chart for 53 weeks. In addition, it reached number two on the ''Billboard''

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart and number 36 on the

Adult Top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...

. The

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

awarded the record a gold disc on February 26, 2020, for sales and streams of over 500,000. In Canada, it peaked at number four on the ''

'' Top 30 Rock Report in September 2000. Beginning in early 2001, "Loser" began to chart in other countries outside North America. In Germany, it debuted at number 99 on January 8, rose to its peak of number 78 the following week, then spent three more weeks on the

Media Control Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...

chart before falling off. It spent three weeks on the Dutch

Single Top 100 The Dutch Single Top 100 or Single Top 100 is a Dutch chart, based on official physical single sales, legal downloads and since July 2013 streaming and composed by Dutch Charts. It is one of the three official charts, the other two being the Du ...

in February, peaking at number 67 during its second week in. In neighboring Belgium, the track appeared on

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

' Ultratip Bubbling Under listing, peaking at number nine on March 10. Later the same month, it debuted at number 42 on the

New Zealand Singles Chart The Official New Zealand Music Chart ( mi, Te Papa Tātai Waiata Matua o Aotearoa) is the weekly New Zealand top 40 singles and albums charts, issued weekly by Recorded Music NZ (formerly Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). The Music ...

and rose to number 37, its peak, on April 1. On the

Australian Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

, the song topped off at number 68 on May 7. "Loser" experienced withstanding popularity in Portugal, not reaching the top 10 until April 2003, when it climbed to number five on the AFP ranking.

Brad Arnold's response

When 3 Doors Down lead singer

discovered that "Loser" had topped the ''Billboard'' Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for 21 weeks, he was initially indifferent, explaining that they were still focusing on the success of their previous single, "

Kryptonite Kryptonite is a fictional material that appears primarily in Superman stories published by DC Comics. In its best-known form, it is a green, crystalline material originating from Superman's home world of Krypton that emits a unique, poisonous r ...

". He said that although "Loser" was virtually ignored, it was the band's deal-maker along with "

Duck and Run "Duck and Run" is a song by American rock band 3 Doors Down. It was released on January 9, 2001, as the third single from their debut album ''The Better Life''. The song became the band's third consecutive number one on the ''Billboard'' Mainstr ...

" and " Be Like That"; however, Arnold has stated that if "Loser" did not become a hit, neither would have the succeeding two singles.

Music video

The music video, directed by

Liz Friedlander Liz Friedlander is an American music video, television director and television producer. Originally from New York City, Friedlander moved to Pennsylvania to attend the Drama Conservatory school at Carnegie Mellon University. She then moved to Lo ...

, features the band performing the song in a dimly lit high school. According to Arnold, the video shoot took place in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Live performances

"Loser" was first performed live on January 15, 1997, in

Pascagoula, Mississippi Pascagoula ( ) is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is part of the Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula Combined Statistical Area. The population was 22 ...

. As of April 1, 2019, it has been performed 466 times, making it the second most performed song by 3 Doors Down.

Track listings

European CD single # "Loser" (Top40 radio edit) – 3:50 # "Loser" (live version) – 5:38 European and Australian maxi-CD single # "Loser" (album version) – 4:21 # "Loser" (acoustic, Radio Fritz, Berlin) – 3:59 # "Loser" (live version) – 5:38 # "

" (acoustic version) – 3:49 Australian maxi-CD single 2 # "Loser" (album version) # "Kryptonite" (acoustic version) # "Wasted Me" # "By My Side" (live) # "So I Need You" (live) # "Kryptonite" (video) # "Loser" (video)

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the European CD single liner notes. Studio * Recorded at

Ardent Studios Ardent Studios is an American recording studio located in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. History Ardent Studios was founded by John Fry and were initially a studio in his family's garage, where he recorded his first 45s for the Arden ...

(

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

) Personnel *

– writing * Matt Roberts – writing * Todd Harrell – writing * Paul Ebersold – production, recording * Matt Martone – recording *

Toby Wright Toby Wright is an American record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with artists such as Alice in Chains, Metallica, Sevendust and Korn. Credits Producer * 3rd Strike - '' Lost Angel'' *8stops7 - ''In Moderation'' *Alice in Chains - ...

– mixing

Charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2000 singles 2000 songs 3 Doors Down songs Music videos directed by Liz Friedlander Republic Records singles Songs written by Brad Arnold Songs written by Matt Roberts (musician) Songs written by Todd Harrell Songs about suicide Songs about cocaine Songs about heartache