Leader of Men

"Leader of Men"
Single by Nickelback
from the album The State
Released	March 4, 2000
Format	CD
Recorded	January–February 1998; Burnaby, British Columbia
Genre	Post-grunge[1]
Length	3:30
Label	Roadrunner
Writer(s)	Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake
Nickelback singles chronology
"Fly" (1996) "Leader of Men" (2000) "Old Enough"
= Music video "Leader of Men" (original version) on YouTube Music video "Leader of Men" (re-released version) on YouTube

"Leader of Men" is a song recorded by Canadian rock band Nickelback. It was released in March 2000 as lead single from the 2000 album, The State. It served to be Nickelback breakthrough hit single. The music video was the band playing in the recording room while outside a riot was taking place. The band's first successful single, the song reached the US rock charts, peaking at number eight on Mainstream Rock Tracks and number 21 on Modern Rock Tracks. It remained in the top ten of the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for 10 weeks straight.

Chart Success

The single proved to be Nickelback's first hit single, bringing Nickelback commercial success for the first time. The single reached the top ten of the Mainstream Rock Tracks peaking at number 8, and stayed in the top ten for 10 weeks. "Leader of Men" helped the band gain mainstream popularity and brought them to a new audience. The song was one of the most successful rock singles of the year 2000.

Music video

There are two Leader Of Men music videos. The first video features the band playing in the basement of a house while it is being trashed. A pile of telephones, televisions and more is created on the front lawn before it is burned. The end of the video features the fire department showing up to the scene.The second music video for "Leader Of Men" featured Nickelback playing in the recording studio while outside a riot was taking place. In the music video there are two army side and the band see playing in there. At one part Chad Kroeger breaks his guitar by smashing it in a mirror. The video ends with Chad Kroeger breaking his guitar and nobody outside.

Track listings

1. "Leader of Men"
2. "Leader of Men" (Acoustic)
3. "Just Four" (Curb Version)

Chart performance

Chart (2000)	Peak position
Canadian RPM Rock/Alternative Chart	11
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks[2]	8
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[2]	21

Year-end charts

Chart (2000)	Position
US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	27

References

1. B. Scott, Derek (2009). The Ashgate research companion to popular musicology. Ashgate Publishing. p. 352. ISBN 978-0-7546-6476-5.
2. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p410589/charts-awards/billboard-singles