Rock Star by Nickelback

Rock Star by Nickelback
I recently listened to the song “Rock Star” by the Canadian band Nickelback. The single comes off of their very successful album All the Right Reasons, released in 2005. The song speaks of the desires to have everything a rock star has; from “a bathroom I can play baseball in” to “a king-sized tub big enough for ten plus me,” he is willing to do anything and everything, including cutting his hair and changing his name to achieve the life of a rock star.
This song certainly seeks to further the ideas of the empire. The goal of human life is to be rich and famous. You need to have all there is to have, from fifteen cars and a load of drugs, to playboy bunnies and limitless credit cards. The life of the rock star is exalted to the point of being the best way to live one’s life. There is no such thing as sin; you should simply do whatever you want to please yourself. We don’t need to be redeemed from anything; we just need to be wealthy. This philosophy certainly goes hand in hand with that of the empire. This life is self-gratifying, but also seductive. It does not tell you the dangers of living such a life. Pleasing yourself comes first, and they could care less about pleasing others.
As I did a little research about this song, an interesting question came up. Is this song a satire? Is Chad Kroeger, the lead singer, criticizing the lusts and desires of his own profession? I certainly don’t think so. He was once on the show MTV Cribs flaunting his wealth; why then would he satirize himself when he sings of “a brand new house on an episode of Cribs”? And the band certainly has lived the life of the rich and famous, so why make fun of them? Even if it was a satire, I don’t think the majority of the American public would understand it. I certainly wouldn’t think of the song in that way. Most Americans would think of this song not as satire but as a kind of truth. Existentialism is all that matters; if you aren’t squeezing every drop out of life you are not truly living. These rock stars certainly are living the life; why shouldn’t you?
Overall, this is kind of a sad song. It is sad that young boys and girls will listen to this and think this self-gratifying philosophy is the path for them. All that this song does is advocate greed, materialism, and lust. This song glorifies the life of the rock star, but that is not where true happiness originates. Only through a relationship with Jesus Christ will we be truly happy. After our hearts and minds have been transformed, we can live a life of service unto others, caring for the needs of the poor and lifting up the downtrodden.