What does Kill Rock 'n Roll mean?

System of a Down: Kill Rock 'n Roll Meaning

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Album cover for Kill Rock 'n Roll album cover

Song Released: 2006


Kill Rock 'n Roll Lyrics

So I felt like the biggest asshole.
felt like the biggest asshole!
when I killed your rock and roll.
Mow down the sexy people!

Every time I look in your eyes,
every day I'm watching you die.
All the faults I see in you,about how...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    ross_rosco
    click a star to vote
    Nov 28th 2005 !⃝

    In an interveiw, Daron once said that he ran over a rabbit once and named it "Rock 'n Roll". He saw an identical looking rabbit staring at him later that day.

    This song is probably a tribute to the rabbit he ran over
    "I felt like the biggest asshole when I killed your rock 'n roll" is referring to how guilty Daron felt when he ran over the rabbit (I think the "your" is because he is speaking to the second rabbit, but I'm not entirely sure)

    "Eat all the grass that you want" is obviously referring to Daron telling the second rabbit that he is free and he's not going to run him over too, although I first thought it was another stereotypical S.O.A.D. drug reference before finding this interveiw.

    "Accidents happen in the dark" ...it might have happened at night time?

    "All the thoughts I see in you
    about how I..." Could be telling of how Daron saw the second rabbit and it reminded him about the rabbit he killed.

    "Every time I look in your eyes" : (every time he sees a rabbit he remembers)
    "Every day I'm watching you die" : (he will never forget the day he killed Rock 'n roll)

    I'm yet to figure out what "mow down the sexy people" means, but it could have been a pretty rabbit!? (open for suggestions)

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Oct 22nd 2006 !⃝

    Ankit: somehow I am not too sure whatthe first (5 star) guy said for this song. I mean for sure it seems to make a whole lot of sense and the rabbit story really fits in. But the song then just doesn't follow the trend in all the other system's songs.

    - they never tell us what their song means. Either they say some garbage or they say it means nothing: that's for us to figure the meaning! So why would he come out and tell us a true story for this one?

    - also it doesn't seem that this rabbit story has anything significant about it. What message are they trying to get through to us? "watch out for rabbits when your driving at night?" haha! That just doesn't match up to the other songs.

    And also you may recall in one of their concerts the guy starts off the song by saying:

    "when I was a little boy I used to talk to god, and I told him 'you motherfucker'. And he told me 'you motherfucker' and then he told me to kill rock and roll and fuck all the sexy people"

    now why would he tell us that 'god' told him to kill rock and roll? God told him to kill rabbits?? Please this don't make any sense.

    I'm trying to see beyond the obvious here.

    To me this seems that probably 'rock and roll" represents some sort of thing that is bad in this world, and that everyone likes. (probably lies and hypocrisy?) and he killed ait and that's why he felt like an asshole because every1 hated him and didn't like that. He trid to bring some truth to the situation. And that's why he says 'god' told him to kill it.

    And also about the sexy people (where does this come in with rabbits). I think sexy people are somewhat idolized in this world. And we do the same wrong things that they do (drugs? Violence in movies? Bad advertising? Lies?)

    i don't know what you people think..But maybe I'm wrong. This is just a suggestion.

    Thanks for reading and I hope you can rate this comment so that I have an idea what you folks think. Way to go system!!

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 11th 2006 !⃝

    Kill rock 'n roll seems to have two paralleling themes in my opinion, orginally when I heard the song I interpreted it to be talking about how soad has steel rolled the defintion of a traditional rock 'n roll band with their nu-metal style

    but, it seems that it is also about a rabbit, the rabbit theme to the song works and I like it but I also think that soad wants us to compare the rabbits to those 'damn hippy' rock and rollers,

    eat all the grass, refers to the rabbits and also all the rock and roll bands that are addicted to weed

    accidents happen in the dark, refers to daron's accident with the rabbit and also the promiscuous sex of rock and roll bands

  4. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Nov 5th 2017 !⃝

    Nebacanazer ate grass like a cow for seven years. And came to a new understanding about life and god and his self. His son belshazar who said, " let us eat and drank for tommorow we shall die" was killed that verynight, as writing on the wall foretold. It reminds me of that .

  5. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 1st 2017 !⃝

    Well i think the number 1 comment might be right.

    So maybe the sexy people are the rich guys and girls who drive big cars, too fast and reckless.
    Because of that a lot of animals die but noone cares about it.
    And because Daron cares about it and feels guilty about killing the rabbit rock'n'roll, he wants punishment not only for him because he realized that there are these "sexy people". They shall be mowed down for all the animals they have killed in cause of lacking awareness.
    And he chooses the words "mow down" to state that these people should be prosecuted without any mercy to help the rabbits (in this case). The result would be a lot of mowed grass for the other bunnies (if you take it literally) and less Humans who destroy their lives or living space.

    So in conclusion the song is about how humans destroy mother earth.

    hope its not too much nonsense
    just my opinion ;)

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 18th 2013 !⃝

    This song is exactly the difference between an artist and average Joe.
    When average Joe runs over a rabbit, he sees a dead rabbit and if he's a redneck, he'll be proud of himself...
    When a great songmaker or poet runs over a rabbit he realise how sad it is, that life can be so short and can be ended by an stupid accident and that grief you can have with anyone (even your rabbit pet eating all the grass)can stay at the end and never get redemption.

    I think people thinking that this song is about a rabbit or about life are all true. That's why it's a great song.

    If you had ever ran over a cat by accident, you would have felt like an asshole to have kill something so sexy, so if you lose your parents before you told them you love them.

    Sometimes, losing a pet has more impact that the preacher's speach :)

  7. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 15th 2012 !⃝

    Whoever thinks this song is a tribute to Daron's "Dead Rabbit" is seriously the most retarded person in existence.

    This song is CLEARLY about the corruption and pollution of the Rock 'n Roll scene.

    "Mow down the sexy people" is a reference to mainstream media. They are saying that the "sexy" people are the ones who go mainstream for money and fame.

    "Eat all the grass that you want" is a reference to the big music corporations reeling in sell-outs and telling them they will take care of every need and desire they have.

    "Accidents happen in the dark" is probably a reference to Illuminati. And how they can make 'accidents' happen to kill off artists who choose to be independent. I know it sounds out there but think about it. All of their songs have SOMETHING to do with government corruption and the Illuminati hand in hand with that.

    "Every time I look in your eyes, Every day I'm watching you die..." is SOAD saying they have to look these sell-outs in the face and know that they are corrupting the music scene. They are "watching them die" most likely because they would like to bash their faces in as a big "F#$k You" to them.

    I probably sound like a nut but SOAD have much MUCH more meaning in their songs than killing a rabbit named "Rock 'n Roll". So believing the rabbit story (even though Daron told it) is completely propsterous. Daron is a whack-o. I love him but dang...lay off the drugs man xD

  8. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Oct 6th 2011 !⃝

    post 2, this is how psycos appear...by believeing famous people re telling them something through their songs....can´t you believe it is a simple song inspired on true story?

  9. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 24th 2011 !⃝

    I think that a persons experiences will change how they interpret a piece of art. I view music as art. The only person who knows for sure is Daron. All others have is speculation.
    My interpretation is that pop-rock is killing true rock and roll.

  10. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 21st 2011 !⃝

    This song is about running over that rabbit and having to well, sing this to the other rabbit who he later saw. But in my point of view this is satirical. In this song Daron puts himself in the spot of someone driving and running over someone, maybe thats what the rabbit may also symbolize. And he says he felt like the biggest asshole to the other rabbit, who may be the one who loved that other rabbit. Kinda like in real life y'know people fuck up and try using an excuse and think everything is gonna be cool. System of a Down does a lode of satirical songs mocking everything, but thats just my perspective :)

  11. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 3rd 2011 !⃝

    This song has nothing to do with Rock n roll,it's about when Daron was driving, run away a rabbit felt sorry for it.so he wrote a song called "kill Rock 'n Roll".

  12. Isaac Lopez
    click a star to vote
    Apr 23rd 2011 !⃝

    It's a System song so it could be double meaning. I agree with the rabbit theory, but I think what this song is talking about is that Daron was high "eat all the grass that you want" and he had a vision from god. God Told him to kill Rock and Roll. The "sexy people" refer to what rock and roll has become. Just a bunch of sexy people who don't really play rock and roll at all. They are just people who use it to seem sexier ex:John Mayer :D. So he is on an epic mission from God to dethrone this So called "Rock and Roll" WITH HIS RIGHTEOUS METAL SKILLS even though he partially cares for the genre still, hence the "and i felt like the biggest asshole"

  13. eightysixed
    click a star to vote
    Apr 22nd 2011 !⃝

    The rabbit story is a bullshit story Daron made up - other people here say they never share song meanings, and most bands don't. It's a lot like when Eddie Vedder said Pearl Jam came from his Aunt Pearl who made jam - turns out that was bullshit. They're just having fun with questions that they're not going to answer.

    It seems to me they're talking to the music industry and pop music. The music they write and perform is very different from what most people like. It's different from what's on the radio. They don't write about love, but about issues that most concern them, and should concern all of us. They're also not glamorous, beautiful people. They're hairy, scary looking mofos. Bottom line, by going against the grain successfully they are killing the popular view of what this fun, bubblegum version of "rock n' roll" should be. Too many people see music as a party and a social experience, whereas System, many of their fans, and many less mainstream artists see music as art, expression, and something that should have substance.

  14. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 10th 2011 !⃝

    This fits with everything mentioned above and the lyrics of the song:
    The rabbit story may/may have not been true. But either way Daron was trying to get a message through. The rabbit is some one who's life he has destroyed. "Killed your rock n' roll" May mean changing there way of life, and they had to cope with what the singer is guilty of. It could be pregnancy, anything really. What Serj said "when I was a young boy I used to talk to god, and I said ' you motherf***er' and he said ' you motherf***er are gonna kill rock and roll and **** all the sexy people' so I did" the sexy people could be people who are vulnerable to whatever thing the person if guilty of. (Like an attractive young female). I am not sure if the god part is meaning how the church could manipulate how you think or something, in getting you to do the things you regret. "Eat all the grass that you want" Could mean to smoke pot, and kill the child, or to just keep on living the way they used to.

  15. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Aug 25th 2010 !⃝

    I suspect that this is a case of many people mistaking what triggered a song with what the song is actually speaking to.

    It's easy (and wrong) to say "oh I get it, he feels bad". It's better to say "when I hear this story and I listen to the song it inspired, it makes me think about these things..."

    Some of these things might be:
    -The fragility of life
    -Guilt
    -Blindly doing what we're told
    -Living in the dark

    The list goes on. Darron never writes lyrics "about" things, but is often inspired by things. I 100% buy that he was inspired by the rabbit events (I've been there, running animals over SUCKS) but as others have pointed out, this is not what the song is about.

  16. WELLWISHER
    click a star to vote
    Aug 11th 2010 !⃝

    THe term (kill rock and roll)refers to the killing of the rabbit.daron is guilty of killing a living being and when he says"all the thoughts i see in you about how i" means the second rabbit has malicious thoughts for him regarding his unfortunate deed. So daron tries to console him by saying that it was just an accident. The words "accidents happen in the dark" reveal this and he tells the second rabbit that it can have all the grass that it wants and he wont harm it.
    This song has a special reference to the fact that accidents are a part of life. Accidents and mishaps can occur anytime and it tortures the culprit throughout his life.

  17. erokk
    click a star to vote
    May 7th 2010 !⃝

    i cant believe all of the true system of a down fans out there believe me when i say that the bull**** rabbit story has very little to do with this song. The magic of system of a down is that they never tell you what their music is really about they leave it up to the listener to take it how they want it. The fact that you all ate up this story about a song for a rabbit shows that you have no imagination. They do that as a trap for all the mainstream listeners to fall into so that all the true fans can more easily recognize them. You want the true meaning of this song you'll have to find out for yourself either from serj or any other member of the band directly or look a little deeper than some song written for a dead rabbit

  18. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Apr 2nd 2010 !⃝

    The rabbit interpretation seems a little too easy. Daron has always said that his songs mean nothing except what the listeners can interpret. Why would Daron go out and tell everyone the meaning of his song? I'm not saying what the song means. I'm just trying to say that people need to dig a little deeper

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