blink-182, Adam’s Song | Controversial Songs

In the eighth edition of Controversial Songs (2025), we explore the controversy behind the “Adam’s Song” by blink-182. 

Bring on the controversy! Controversial Songs is a column that provides background information and insight into songs that raised eyebrows, stirred the pot, or were banned. The more censorship censor$hit, the better! The records that grace Controversial Songs are old and new alike, with all genres of music welcome.   In the eighth edition of Controversial Songs (2025), we explore the controversy behind the “Adam’s Song” by blink-182.

“I never thought I’d die alone / I laughed the loudest, who’d have known? / I trace the cord back to the wall / No wonder it was never plugged in at all.” Heavy stuff.  An understatement! It is surprising who the heaviness comes from: blink-182. Tom DeLong, Mark Hoppus, and Travis Barker aren’t renowned for being serious, particularly early on in their career. That said, on “Adam’s Song”, the often unserious trio tackled teenage suicidal thoughts. “Adam’s Song” is the seventh track from their 1999 album, Enema of the State. According to American Songwriter, Hoppus stated “the initial inspiration for ‘Adam’s Song’ came to him when he was feeling lonely while on tour.’ It evolved to become even more meaningful with an anti-suicide message. 

The controversial song comes from the perspective of Adam as he reflects on his sad, lonely life as he plans his demise. “The choice was mine I didn’t think enough / I’m too depressed to go on / You’ll be sorry when I’m gone.” Hard to listen to considering every life is precious – a gift. In the chorus, varied each time, Adam is at his breaking point given the lot of his life. 

“I never conquered, rarely came 

Sixteen just held such better days 

Days when I still felt alive 

We couldn’t wait to get outside 

The world was wide, too late to try 

The tour was over, we’d survived 

I couldn’t wait till I got home 

To pass the time in my room alone.”  

Depressing. The good news is that by the end of the song, the suicidal teen acknowledges, “Tomorrow holds such better days,” and “I can’t wait ‘til I get home / To pass the time in my room alone.” So, beyond dabbling in depression and suicide, what else made “Adam’s Song” controversial? A Columbine  High School teenager, Greg Barnes, who played “Adam’s Song” on repeat, coping with the murder of his best friend, committed suicide in 2000.  This, naturally, caused it to be criticized, despite its anti-suicide message. Unlike some songs dubbed controversial, “Adam’s Song” was never banned, though the band stopped playing it live, but not due to the teen’s tragic suicide.  Controversial, perhaps, but there have been far more controversial songs.

Appears in 🔻:

• Songs Centered Around or Referencing Suicide, Vol. 1 (2018) 
• 13 More Songs Where The Keyword is SONG (2023)

blink-182 // Enema of the State // Geffen // 1999

blink-182, Adam’s Song: Controversial Songs No. 8 (2025) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Geffen; Andrea Mosti from Pexels; AcatXlo, OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay; christian buehner on Unsplash]