What does Teenagers mean?

My Chemical Romance: Teenagers Meaning

Album cover for Teenagers album cover

Song Released: 2007


Teenagers Lyrics

They're gonna clean up your looks
With all the lies in the books
To make a citizen out of you

Because they sleep with a gun
And keep an eye on you, son
So they can watch all the things you do

Because the drugs never work
They're gonna...

  1. anonymous
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    Jul 2nd 2007 !⃝

    This song describes teenagers perfectly but it could be how Gerard is sick of his teenage fans.

  2. anonymous
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    Jul 1st 2007 !⃝

    I agree with the people who said that the song is about how its hard for teenagers to fit it ("the boys and girls in the cliques. The awful names that they stick")

  3. peteinmypants
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    Jun 11th 2007 !⃝

    I don't know why I read you peoples' interpretations because they just annoy the shit out of me. Seriously! Well it's obvious. Take a long hard look at society today and it will become painfully obvious. Listen to the chorus. Teenagers are becoming dangerous and violent people. That's why they scare the shit out of Gerard. "They could care less as long as someone'll bleed" there's your violence for you. "Darken you're clothes or strike a violent pose, maybe they'll leave you along but not me." They're saying to blend in with the teenagers and they hopefully won't hurt you. The "not me" means either Gerard is going to keep bothering you to raise awareness or the teenagers are going to go after him. It's plane and simple, written in black and white. Get a clue! Geeze!

  4. sex_pistol11
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    Jun 10th 2007 !⃝

    Ok I got it!
    the first part:

    "They’re gonna clean up your looks
    With all the lies and the books
    To make a citizen out of you
    Because they sleep with a gun
    And keep an eye on you,son
    So they can watch all the things you do
    Because the drugs never work
    They’re gonna give you a smirk
    ‘Cause they got methods of keeping you clean
    They’re gonna rip off your heads
    Your aspirations to shreds
    Another cog in the murder machine"

    is about the adults. They try and make you how THEY want you to be. not how YOU want to be.

    the 2nd part:

    "The boys and girls in a clique
    The awful names that they stick
    You’re never gonna fit in much, kid
    But if you’re troubled and hurt
    What you got under your shirt
    Will make them pay for the things that they did"

    that is about the teenagers in school. who are "popular" and think they are all that. not the mean ones only the ones who make fun of the not just goth kids but mainly ne one. "emo/goth" are the main ones tho.

    and I think the part where gerard says
    "So darken your clothes
    Or strike a violent pose
    Maybe they’ll leave you alone, but not me"
    think bout it...he wheres dark clothes. He won't leave you alone because he is there for you. He is STILL saving and helping ppl.

  5. anonymous
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    Jun 9th 2007 !⃝

    I think this song has a couple of different meanings.

    "They’re gonna clean up your looks
    With all the lies and the books
    To make a citizen out of you
    Because they sleep with a gun
    And keep an eye on you,son
    So they can watch all the things you do"

    that part makes me think that if the teenager acts how the parent doesn't want them too the parents are trying to make them be who they don't want to be.


    "The boys and girls in a clique
    The awful names that they stick
    You’re never gonna fit in much, kid
    But if you’re troubled and hurt
    What you got under your shirt
    Will make them pay for the things that they did"

    thats practically saying teenagers are kinda immature. The liked teens who are snobs to the disliked teens then the disliked teens have a gun under there shirt to kill the mean ppl.

    and the main course and the second part of the song is saying how uncontrolled teens are.

  6. anonymous
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    May 29th 2007 !⃝

    I think most of you are right, about him feeling old, and also about it being about gun violence. But come on guys, I will admit teenagers can be horrible, but they're not all like that. In fact, most of them really aren't.

  7. anonymous
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    May 22nd 2007 !⃝

    I don't know if this has already been mentioned because I was to lazy to read all the interpretations but gerard wrote this song after being on a bus or a tram and looked up to find him self completely surrounded by teenagers there was no one else on the bus except adolescents this freaked him out so much he wrote a song hence the "teenagers scare the livin shit out of me"

  8. anonymous
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    May 20th 2007 !⃝

    I think it is about teenagers who can't fit in so they think the only way to fit in to hurt the people who made fun of them and most of the time they bring a gun to school.so gerard wrote this song,in my opinion , because that is what he thinks about teenagers.

  9. anonymous
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    May 18th 2007 !⃝

    I'm not a teen. I guess I'm on the other side now. I think this song is expressing what has bee said since ancient Rome - the teens are out of control! Some things never change. Teens are in that scary place in life where they are not children but they are not quite adults - yet and they are trying so desperately to be independent and no one seems to take them seriously. So they act in a way to get the attention of the older generation. To control their own lives. The old folks are scared because youth is power. Teens think this power is violence of any sort but in truth the power of youth is the possibility to change and own tomorrow. Even the teens are afraid of one anther. Society wants to change and control. I think the song is sung from the perspective of an adult who remembers and is telling the teen that you have to go through this tough period of rejecting adults but don't worry, you may scare the shit out of me but I WILL NOT GIVE UP ON YOU! You are me. You are my future.

  10. anonymous
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    May 7th 2007 !⃝

    has anyone thought about it that MCR are on the side of the teenagers? they write about all the stereotypes
    " They said all teenagers scare
    The living shit out of me
    They could care less
    As long as someone’ll bleed"

    the people who say it all are hypocrites - adults who just look for someone to blame when they do wores things

    "They’re gonna clean up your looks
    With all the lies and the books
    To make a citizen out of you
    Because they sleep with a gun
    And keep an eye on you,son
    So they can watch all the things you do

    Because the drugs never work
    They’re gonna give you a smirk
    ‘Cause they got methods of keeping you clean
    They’re gonna rip off your heads
    Your aspirations to shreds
    Another cog in the murder machine "

    and how mcr are stuck in the middle, they understand what the teenagers are going through, and want to help want the teenagers to fight back against the cliches, but they're adult themselves and have to have a little responibility

    "They could care less
    As long as someone’ll bleed
    So darken your clothes
    Or strike a violent pose
    Maybe they’ll leave you alone, but not me "

  11. blackparade
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    Apr 29th 2007 !⃝

    Gerard said in Kerrang! that it's about these Teenagers in the parade who had killed themselves and made a big mistake.

  12. anonymous
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    Apr 15th 2007 !⃝

    if you've listened to I'm Not Okay you'd notice that Gerard did not exactly "fit in" in high school. MCR shows that some teenagers are selfish and don't CARE about other people, because to teens its all about hair, make up and popularity. Since they didn't have that people used to pick on them. Yeah, they probably DO make him nervous, they probably remind them of their teen hood.

    "and if you're troubled and hurt, what you've got under your shirt will make them pay for the things that they did"

    I think that that means its not very hard to fight them back, some people just don't have the confidence and they need it, especially in H.S.
    that's what I think it means

  13. anonymous
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    Apr 12th 2007 !⃝

    okay, think about it.....we all remember the video for "I'm not okay". In that video was a bunch of kids who didn't fit in and how horrible teenagers are to each other just because they're different. I think the song teenagers plays off of that mainly. Basically the song is about pushing other teenagers (mostly referencing the the emo kids and the goths) to the point of them either hurting themselves or other teenagers. And I think the other posts about gerards interview are also correct, but no so much that they are scared of teenagers themselves, but the fact that all teenagers have "FUCK OFF" written across their foreheads and they don't care about anything or anyone. Just themselves. And any human being that comes a cross another human being that has no problem ripping you apart WOULD BE SCARED! So along with that, I think the first to lines of lyrics in this song play a part on how adults don't understand a teenagers point of view all the time, because teenagers are usually pissed for the sake of being pissed. And the drugs never work I think possibly can be referring to street drugs and prescribed. The reason for this is the whole "Methods of keeping you clean" line. So this song is easy to label as a "teenage sympathy" song.

  14. anonymous
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    Apr 6th 2007 !⃝

    I looked at the song as it is said. When they said "teenagers scare the livin' shit out of me" I think their talking about the typical teenager. Think about it, most of us go to school with teens that are either total ass holes or bitches. I also thought when they were talking about the gun it was symbolic. Idn. I didn't see the interview or anything that's just how I took the song in

  15. anonymous
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    Apr 2nd 2007 !⃝

    I think this song it's about how the adults try to make teenagers understand the world by making them do things that they don't care... making them dress up like they don't want, making them the "good boys" when adults don't know what's going through their heads, then they (adults are pushing them to be of some way, but the adults are so cold that get the teenagers to the point of rebelion, I mean, "darken your clothes or strike a violent pose" that's what they do and then te older people starts rejecting them, making them feel like shit (Cause in the teenagers head every little thing can make you feel like shit) and at the point they have to be aggressive to make society understand that they're not so worng as they think... and through this all... Gerard it's saying that, the people can tell them a lot of thing, be scared of you, or you can be a looser for everyone else but he and the band still with you, 'cause they understand this thing... They know how it feels and "Maybe they leave you alone but not me" that's what I think... This song at the start can make you feel like "oh good gerard hates teenagers.. what a stupid boy, all the fans are teenagers" but if you put a little bit of attention on the son.. It's like "Oh gerard it's saving lives again! he's with teenagers! he understands!!" that's my point of view...




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