Death by Rock and Roll (song)

"Death by Rock and Roll" is a song recorded by American rock band The Pretty Reckless, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album of the same name.^[2] "Death by Rock and Roll" was released to digital retailers on May 15, 2020, and to active rock radio on June 9, 2020, as the album's lead single.^[3][4] It is the band's first single for Fearless Records.

"Death by Rock and Roll"
Single by The Pretty Reckless
from the album Death by Rock and Roll
Released	May 15, 2020 (2020-05-15)
Genre	Hard rock post-grunge[1]
Length	3:54
Label	Fearless
Songwriter(s)	Taylor Momsen Ben Phillips
Producer(s)	Jonathan Wyman
The Pretty Reckless singles chronology
"Back to the River" (2017) "Death by Rock and Roll" (2020) "And So It Went" (2021)

Background

"Death by Rock and Roll" was written by band members Taylor Momsen and Ben Phillips. The song serves as a tribute to late producer Kato Khandwala, who worked on the group's first three albums. The song was produced by Jonathan Wyman, making it their first song to be produced by a different producer.^[3]

Commercial performance

In July 2020, "Death by Rock and Roll" became The Pretty Reckless's fifth number-one single on the Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, setting a new record for female-fronted rock groups.^[2][5] The song remained atop the chart for three consecutive weeks. The song also topped Billboard's Canada Rock, marking their first number one on the chart.

Music video

The Pretty Reckless released an animated lyric video for Death by Rock and Roll on June 18, 2020, featuring art direction from Lucas David and animation by Astra Zero.^[6][7]

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "Death by Rock and Roll" Chart (2020) Peak position Canada Rock (Billboard)[8] 1 US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[9] 19 US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[10] 6

Year-end charts Year-end chart performance for "Death by Rock and Roll" Chart (2020) Position US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[11] 36

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Version	Label	Ref.
Various	May 15, 2020	Digital download streaming	Original	Fearless	[3]
United States	June 9, 2020	Active rock		Fearless Concord	[4]
Various	August 21, 2020	Digital download streaming	Acoustic	Fearless	[12]