Green Day is an American punk rock band formed in 1987. The band consists of lead singer and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, drummer Tré Cool, and guitarist and backing vocalist Jason White. Green Day is one of the best-selling bands of all time, with over 75 million albums sold worldwide. They are best known for the release of the song "American Idiot" on September 20, 2004, which can be found on their album "American Idiot". American Idiot quickly became popular around the world and created a lot of controversy as people think it is anti-American due to its title and harsh sarcastic comments throughout the song. However, if you pay attention to the lyrics, you may find that in many ways the song is highly patriotic. Green Day began in the town of Rodeo, California, just 15 miles north of Berkeley. There, ten-year-old Billie Joe Armstrong and Michael Pritchardin met in their school cafeteria. None of them had a good home life. When Billie Joel Armstrong was ten years old, her father died, fragmenting her family. Armstrong found comfort in his new friend and in music. He used music to escape from his daily life. Dirnt was born into a family that abused drugs, and because of this, he was quickly adopted by a Native American mother and father who divorced when he was seven. When his mother moved north when Dirnt was 15, Dirnt moved in with another band member, Billie Joe Armstrong. The difficult life these boys faced growing up made them very aware of serious political issues and what's going on in the world, and it shows in their music. The most famous member of Green Day is Billie Joe Armstrong, mainly because he composes all of Green Day's songs...... middle of paper ...... daily life. Green Day really makes us think about our daily lives and makes us dig deep to see if we ourselves are letting the media tell us what kind of person we should be. We are all guilty of losing ourselves or trying to change ourselves to fit in better socially at certain points in our lives, whether at school, at work, or in our personal lives. We are constantly seeking acceptance from our peers to feel loved, and it's sad to go so far as to change who they really are just to seek that acceptance without even realizing it. I feel like some people found this song offensive because it's very simple, harsh and honest. There is no beating around the bush with the message expressed in this song. Billie Joe Armstrong tells us we are a brainwashed generation and we are becoming complete idiots because of it..