Aside from being an ode to indifference, this song could also be considered an expression of frustration associated with growing up. The narrator shows his desire to never grow up but stay young and immature forever, protecting himself from the pressures of the adult world. He kills his misery in constant intoxication, which causes the rain of apathy to get him closer and closer to drowning - but he doesn't mind because he would rather drown in apathy than face real life.
Another view is one of an addict. A true "burnout" who is hitting rock bottom but too apathetic and/or high to care.
Burnout
Green Day Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm burning up and out and growing bored
In my smoked out boring room
My hair is shagging in my eyes
Dragging my feet to hit the street tonight
To drive along these shit town lights
I'm not growing upI'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
Apathy has rained on me
Now I'm feeling like a soggy dream
So close to drowning but I don't mind
I'll live inside this mental cave
Throw my emotions in the grave
Hell, who needs them anyway
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
Dead
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
Dead
The lyrics to Green Day's song "Burnout" are reflective of the feelings of rebelliousness and apathy associated with teenage angst. The opening line "I declare I don't care no more" sets the tone for the rest of the song as the singer describes feeling bored and burnt out in his "smoked out boring room." He longs to escape from his mundane existence and drive through town, even if it's just to look at the "shit town lights."
The singer's refusal to grow up is a central idea of the song. He sees growing up as synonymous with "walking amongst the dead," suggesting that adult life is robotic and unfulfilling. The line "Apathy has rained on me" reinforces the singer's complacency and lack of motivation.
The final lines of the song, "I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out/And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead," illustrate the singer's resignation to this way of life. He doesn't necessarily want to die but he feels like he is already dead inside, consumed by apathy and boredom.
Overall, "Burnout" is a song about disillusionment and rebellion. The singer rejects society's expectations of him and chooses to live in his own mental cave. The song is a reflection of the mood of the times, encapsulating the disaffected youth of the 1990s.
Line by Line Meaning
I declare I don't care no more
I'm announcing that I no longer care about anything.
I'm burning up and out and growing bored
I feel like I'm on the verge of exploding from being burnt out and I'm becoming more and more bored with my life.
In my smoked out boring room
I'm trapped in my uninteresting and smoke-filled room.
My hair is shagging in my eyes
My hair is so long that it's obstructing my vision.
Dragging my feet to hit the street tonight
I'm reluctantly going outside tonight.
To drive along these shit town lights
I'm going to drive around the dim and depressing lights of my town.
Apathy has rained on me
I've been heavily affected by apathy or a lack of interest or enthusiasm.
Now I'm feeling like a soggy dream
I feel like I'm in a dream, but a very dull and uninteresting one.
So close to drowning but I don't mind
I'm so close to suffocating or drowning in my own feelings, but I'm okay with it.
I'll live inside this mental cave
I'm choosing to stay inside my mind and avoid the outside world.
Throw my emotions in the grave
I'm getting rid of my emotions and burying them.
Hell, who needs them anyway
I don't think emotions are necessary or important.
And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead
I've fallen in with a crowd of people who are just going through the motions of life and not really living.
I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out
I'm not maturing or progressing, just gradually losing energy until I'm burnt out.
Dead
This repeated word emphasizes the feelings of emptiness and lifelessness.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Billie Joe Armstrong, Tre Cool, Mike Dirnt
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@EpicdiamondVT
Green Day Lyrics
"Burnout"
I declare I don't care no more
I'm burning up and out and growing bored
In my smoked out boring room
My hair is shagging in my eyes
Dragging my feet to hit the street tonight
Drive along these shit town lights
I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead
Oh, apathy has rained on me
And now I'm feeling like a soggy dream
So close to drowning, but I don't mind
I'll live inside this mental cave
Throw my emotions in the grave
And hell, who needs them anyway?
I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead
I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead, dead
I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead
I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line to walk amongst the dead, dead
@tomaslopez2241
I declare I don't care no more
I'm burning up and out and growing bored
In my smoked out boring room
My hair is shagging in my eyes
Dragging my feet to hit the street tonight
To drive along these shit town lights
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
Apathy has rained on me
Now I'm feeling like a soggy dream
So close to drowning but I don't mind
I'll live inside this mental cave
Throw my emotions in the grave
Hell, who needs them anyway
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
Dead
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
I'm not growing up
I'm just burning out
And I stepped in line
To walk amongst the dead
Dead
@GreenDay
20 years and it all went by in a flash ⚡The American Idiot 20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition is out now 💣💥 Go give it a listen or grab a copy https://greenday.lnk.to/americanidiot20thdeluxe
@INTROVERT2709
Вы крутые! ❤
@Greendayforever
Letsgooooo green dayy❤❤❤
@bodhisattva71
I get chills every time I know this song is beginning.
@FaustoLovesYouTube
Same
@PatJansen-xg5xs
I was 12 when i got this album not long after it came out. There is such a unique feel to it that nothing else ever compared to. Those who get it get it.
@Mason_and_Ethan
@@AdrianQuickus no, bad way to promote
@borock5981
Why? This song is low-key garbage and I love green day. I even love this song but it's not very good from any kind of technical or introspective point of view
@Goatchild90
One of the best openers to an album ever
@Insomniac9457
My favorite song from the album