Chop Suey!

"Chop Suey!" is a song by American heavy metal band System of a Down. It was released on August 13, 2001, as the first single from their second album, Toxicity (2001). The single earned the band its first Grammy nomination in 2002 for Best Metal Performance. "Chop Suey!" is often considered the band's signature song.[8]

For other uses, including other songs titled "Chop Suey", see Chop suey (disambiguation).
"Chop Suey!"
Standard retail artwork
Single by System of a Down
from the album Toxicity
B-side"Johnny"
ReleasedAugust 13, 2001 (2001-08-13)[1]
RecordedMarch 2001
StudioCello (Hollywood)
Genre
Length3:30
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
System of a Down singles chronology
"Spiders"
(1999)		 "Chop Suey!"
(2001)		 "Toxicity"
(2002)
Music video
"Chop Suey!" on YouTube

Overview

In an interview, Daron Malakian explained, "The song is about how we are regarded differently depending on how we pass. Everyone deserves to die. Like, if I were now to die from drug abuse, they might say I deserved it because I abused dangerous drugs. Hence the line, 'I cry when angels deserve to die.'"[9] The lyrics for the midsection ("Father into your hands I commend my spirit" ...) were randomly picked out by Serj Tankian from Rick Rubin's book collection after Tankian was struggling for ideas.[10] Although it was not revealed what book the lines were taken from, they are quoted from the sayings of Jesus on the cross (Luke 23:46 and Mark 15:34).[11][12]

Song title

The song was originally titled either "Suicide" (according to Odadjian) or "Self-Righteous Suicide" (according to Rubin), but the name was changed in response to real or anticipated pushback from Columbia Records.[13][14] According to Odadjian, the song title is a wordplay: "Suey" is "suicide", "chopped" in half.[14] Most pressings of the album include an intro to the track where lead singer Serj Tankian can faintly be heard saying "we're rolling 'Suicide'" while drummer John Dolmayan is counting the band in.

Music video

The music video was the band's first collaboration with the acclaimed director Marcos Siega, and is set in the parking lot of the Oak Tree Inn motel in Los Angeles, hometown of the band. The members are performing the song on stage, surrounded by approximately 1,500 fans. Editing devices are used to create the effect of the band members "walking through" one another and teleporting on and off the stage, an effect similar to one used in the Red Hot Chili Peppers video "Around the World". One scene briefly shows Tankian eating chop suey with some fans, the only reference to the title dish in either the song or the video. The video makes use of the SnorriCam technique, in which an actor will have a camera attached to them with a harness, making it appear as though the background is moving and the actor is stationary. In the middle of the video the Flag of Armenia can be seen. The video has been viewed over one billion times on YouTube, making it the first metal music video to do so (shortly followed by "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica).

As of 2023, the video currently has over 1.3 billion views on YouTube, making it one of the most viewed rock videos on the platform, ranked at tenth place.

Reception

Loudwire included the song in its list of "The Best Hard Rock Songs of the 21st Century", where it was ranked at number one.[15] Loudwire and Kerrang! both named it as System of a Down's best song.[16][17] In March 2023, Rolling Stone ranked "Chop Suey!" at number 37 on their "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time" list.[18]

Controversy

"Chop Suey!" was the first single off of Toxicity, an album that was riding at number one on the Billboard 200 chart during the week of the September 11 attacks. A controversy surrounding the popular single, especially the line '"I don't think you trust in my self-righteous suicide"', at the time led to Clear Channel Radio placing the song on a list of post-9/11 inappropriate titles. Although it was never actually banned completely from the air, radio stations were advised against playing any of the songs on the list.[19]

Track listing
CD single
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Chop Suey!"
  • Serj Tankian
  • Daron Malakian
Daron Malakian3:30
2."Johnny"Serj TankianSerj Tankian2:08
3."Sugar" (Live)Serj Tankian
  • Shavo Odadjian
  • Daron Malakian
2:23
4."War?" (Live)Serj TankianDaron Malakian2:47
UK CD1 • Australian single
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Chop Suey!"
  • Serj Tankian
  • Daron Malakian
Daron Malakian3:30
2."Johnny"Serj TankianSerj Tankian2:08
3."Know" (Live)Serj Tankian
  • Shavo Odadjian
  • Daron Malakian
  • Serj Tankian
3:04
UK CD2
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Chop Suey!"
  • Serj Tankian
  • Daron Malakian
Daron Malakian3:31
2."Sugar" (Live)Serj Tankian
  • Shavo Odadjian
  • Daron Malakian
2:27
3."War?" (Live)Serj TankianDaron Malakian2:47
4."Chop Suey!" (Video)
  • Serj Tankian
  • Daron Malakian
Daron Malakian3:27
7" single
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Chop Suey!"
  • Serj Tankian
  • Daron Malakian
Daron Malakian3:30
2."Johnny"Serj TankianSerj Tankian2:08

Commercial performance

"Chop Suey!" was a moderate success on the charts around the world. In Australia, after hitting No. 3 on the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2001, with virtually no airplay on commercial radio, it debuted and peaked at No. 14 in February 2002. It is System of a Down's highest-charting single in Australia. In the United States, the song peaked at No. 76, making it the band's lowest peaking song on the Hot 100 due to the fact it was taken off the radio for its political lyrics. On the Modern Rock Tracks, "Chop Suey!" peaked at No. 7, becoming the band's first top ten single.[20] In the UK Singles Chart, it debuted and peaked at No. 17.

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[34] Gold 35,000^
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[35] Gold 45,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[36] Gold 250,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[37] Platinum 50,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[38] Platinum 600,000‡
United States (RIAA)[39] 5× Platinum 5,000,000‡
United States (RIAA)[40]
Mastertone 		Gold 500,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Lil Uzi Vert version

On June 30, 2023, American rapper and singer Lil Uzi Vert released a cover of "Chop Suey!", titled "CS", as a part of their third studio album, Pink Tape.

The song was met with mixed reviews from fans and critics. Guitar.com noticed that one Twitter user said "the Lil Uzi Vert cover of 'Chop Suey' is the most musically offensive cover I've ever heard".[41] Despite the negative feedback, System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian posted on Facebook: "Covers are always the biggest compliment to artists and songwriters." System of a Down's bassist Shavo Odadjian also reacted positively to the cover on Instagram.[42]

References
  1. Wiederhorn, Jonn (August 13, 2001). "System Of A Down's Schizophrenia Aggravated On Toxicity". MTV. Retrieved April 15, 2015. The first single from Toxicity is "Chop Suey", which starts with a guitar strum and a tribal beat and segues to a serrated stop-start punk verse before drifting into an ethereal chorus colored by a bouzouki, a Greek stringed instrument.
  2. Evans, James (April 17, 2013). "Crashing the Party". Archived from the original on December 6, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2015. Not so long ago, I was frequenting an exclusive South Leamington cocktail bar. Compelled by housemates proffering a certain glowing green beverage, I was giving a passionate rendition of System of a Down's alternative metal anthem, 'Chop Suey'.
  3. "Top 10 System of a Down Songs". WatchMojo. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  4. Chesler, Josh (May 18, 2015). "10 Nu-metal Songs That Actually Don't Suck". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
  5. Lil Uzi Vert Covers System of a Down, Features Bring Me the Horizon + Babymetal on New Album, June 30, 2023, retrieved August 11, 2023
  6. "100 Best Albums of the 2000s". Rolling Stone. July 18, 2011. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  7. Helton, Dominik Böhmer, Landon Turlock, David Rodriguez, Billie (September 11, 2021). "A SCENE IN RETROSPECT: System of a Down - "Toxicity"". Everything Is Noise. Retrieved July 31, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. Krol, Charlotte (November 28, 2020). "System Of A Down's 'Chop Suey!' reaches one billion views on YouTube". NME. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  9. Rampton, Mike (June 1, 2019). "A Deep Dive into System of a Down's Chop Suey! Video". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on June 21, 2020. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
  10. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "System of a Down: Reuniting the Band, "Protect the Land," and Armenia | Apple Music". YouTube.
  11. Luke 23:46
  12. Mark 15:34
  13. Kory Grow (February 11, 2016). "Rick Rubin: My Life in 21 Songs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  14. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "System of a Down's Shavo Odadjian - Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction?". YouTube.
  15. Kaufman, Spencer (July 1, 2012). "No. 1: System of a Down, 'Chop Suey!' – Top 21st Century Hard Rock Songs." LoudWire.com. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  16. Kaufman, Spencer (August 21, 2012). "10 Best System of a Down Songs". Loudwire. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  17. Law, Sam (November 6, 2020). "The 20 greatest System Of A Down songs – ranked". Kerrang. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  18. "The 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. March 13, 2023. Archived from the original on March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  19. It's the End of the World as Clear Channel Knows It Slate
  20. "Toxicity — System of a Down — Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved October 1, 2010.
  21. "System of a Down – Chop Suey!". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  22. "System of a Down – Chop Suey!" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  23. "System of a Down Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  24. "Chart Track: Week 44, 2001". Irish Singles Chart.
  25. "System of a Down – Chop Suey!" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  26. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  27. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  28. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  29. "System of a Down Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  30. "System of a Down Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  31. "System of a Down Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
  32. "Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2001". Jam!. Archived from the original on July 26, 2002. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  33. "Canada's Top 200 Singles of 2002 (Part 2)". Jam!. January 14, 2003. Archived from the original on September 6, 2004.
  34. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2002 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
  35. "Danish single certifications – System of a Down – Chop Suey!". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved April 15, 2020. Scroll through the page-list below until year 2020 to obtain certification.
  36. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (System of a Down; 'Chop Suey!')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  37. "Italian single certifications – System of a Down – Chop Suey!" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved August 21, 2018. Select "2018" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Chop Suey!" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  38. "British single certifications – System of a Down – Chop Suey!". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  39. "American single certifications – System of a Down – Chop Suey!". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  40. "American single certifications – System of a Down – Chop Suey!". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
  41. "Lil Uzi Vert divides the internet with Chop Suey cover". Guitar.com | All Things Guitar. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  42. "System Of A Down members respond to Lil Uzi Vert's Chop Suey! cover". Kerrang!. July 6, 2023. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
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