Billie Joe Armstrong Originally Wrote This Green Day Song for a Pop-Rock Band

Green Day has had a lot of hit songs, so it's not shocking to learn they've been asked to write songs for other artists. Of course, sometimes, writing songs for other artists doesn't exactly go as planned.

A prime example is the song "Still Breathing" from Green Day's 2016 album Revolution Radio. Believe it or not, Billie Joe Armstrong initially started writing that song for the pop-rock band 5 Seconds of Summer.

The Green Day frontman shared this information in a new piece for People about the band's biggest hits. Armstrong recalled, "All of a sudden, I was writing the lyrics, and I was like, 'Oh my God, there’s no f---ing way I’m giving these guys this song.' There’s all those [lyrics] where it’s the last moment of someone’s life — it’s so intense."

There's a good chance fans will hear Green Day perform "Still Breathing" during their stadium tour this summer. However, that song will be significantly further down the setlist.

Bassist Mike Dirnt told Rolling Stone recently that Green Day will be performing Dookie and American Idiot in their entirety at every tour stop. He said, "We’ve never done anything like this before. And there’s a really good chance we’ll never do it again."

This decision comes as 2024 marks milestone anniversaries for both LPs. Dookie turns 30 on February 1, while American Idiot turns 20 on September 21.

Dirnt says that playing both albums live will take about 90 minutes of their set time. The rest of their set will be between 35-45 minutes. Fans will likely hear other major hits and other favorites during that time.

Green Day announced this tour back in Nov. 2023. The tour kicks off on July 29 in Washington, D.C. at Nationals Park and wraps on September 28 in San Diego at Petco Park. Joining the band on the tour as supporting acts are Smashing Pumpkins, Rancid and The Linda Lindas.

Complete ticket and tour details are available at GreenDay.com. The full list of dates is below.

7/29 - Washington, D.C. @ Nationals Park
8/1 - Toronto, Ontario @ Rogers Centre
8/3 - Montreal, Quebec @ Osheaga Music and Arts Festival %
8/5 - New York, N.Y. @ Citi Field
8/7 - Boston, MA @ Fenway Park
8/9 - Philadelphia, PA @ Citizens Bank Park
8/10 - Hershey, PA @ Hersheypark Stadium
8/13 - Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field
8/15 - St. Louis, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre *
8/17 - Minneapolis, MN @ Target Field
8/20 - Kansas City, KS @ Azura Amphitheatre *
8/22 - Cincinnati, OH @ Great American Ballpark
8/24 - Milwaukee, WI @ American Family Field
8/26 - Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion *
8/28 - Atlanta, GA @ Truist Park
8/30 - Nashville, TN @ Geodis Park
9/1 - Pittsburgh, PA @ PNC Park
9/4 - Detroit, MI @ Comerica Park
9/7 - Denver, CO @ Coors Field
9/10 - Austin, TX @ Germania Insurance Amphitheater *
9/11 - Arlington, TX @ Globe Life Field
9/14 - Los Angeles, CA @ SoFi Stadium
9/18 - Phoenix, AZ @ Chase Field
9/20 - San Francisco, CA @ Oracle Park
9/23 - Seattle, WA @ T-Mobile Park
9/25 - Portland, OR @ Providence Park
9/28 - San Diego, CA @ Petco Park

* with support from Rancid and the Linda Lindas only
% Festival date

Back in the early ‘90s, when Lollapalooza and MTV’s “120 Minutes” were the barometers of cool, you would have been excused for laughing if someone told you that Green Day would be one of a handful of bands of that era to stay relevant for two decades and would also get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

But the band who got famous from singing about being bored and stoned exceeded all expectations through soul, ambition and sheer songwriting chops. We ranked their 40 best songs from their days on indie label Lookout! Records through the new tracks from Father Of All… including radio hits, deeper cuts and even a few things from their side-projects. What’d we miss?