Queen: We Are The Champions Meaning
Song Released: 1977
We Are The Champions Lyrics
Time after time -
I’ve done my sentence
But committed no crime -
And bad mistakes
I’ve made a few
I’ve had my share of sand kicked in my face -
But I’ve come through
We are the champions - my friends
And we’ll keep...
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1TOP RATED
#1 top rated interpretation:We Are The Champions is an anthem. It exudes victory and triumph and acknowledges the struggle that comes with achieving glory. Queen were always underrated, counted out, or outright looked down upon by the media and the press (especially during the 1970's) and to have taken the world by storm with the success of Sheer Heart Attack (1974) and A Night At The Opera (1975) must have meant the world to the members of Queen, ESPECIALLY Freddie.
I always felt like Freddie had a bit of a chip on his shoulder during the early years, as it seems for most of his career the odds were stacked against the success of Mercury and Queen as a whole. The band formed very, very early in the 1970's and despite getting into the studio by the end of 1972 and working their butts off they had to wait until mid-73 to get Queen I onto the shelves. Queen II was finished almost immediately after and the band was handed yet ANOTHER DELAY. Queen's approach to this was to literally take several of the songs from the delayed album and add them to their shows.
On Sheer Heart Attack and Opera, songs like Flick Of The Wrist and Death On Two legs give you a sense of the attitude Mercury had towards Queen's management and maybe the industry as a whole to that point. In hindsight, it's ridiculous seeing a band producing music that dynamic with an insanely talented and vibrant live presence being pushed aside as much as Queen was. By the time of We Are The Champions' release in late 1977, Queen had done everything possible to silence their critics. They had attained a near perpetual spot atop the charts from 1975 to 1978, and were back on top in 1980 with the singles from The Game.
We Are The Champions was written by Mercury in '75. I suppose it was likely written after A Night At The Opera was recorded and perhaps was deemed too arrogant (which is how he would later describe the song) for inclusion on A Day At The Races in 1976. This time period would have been when Queen really did overcome all the odds and became a permenant staple in rock (and really, all) music. Queen was ready to disband if A Night At The Opera flopped, and instead it was rightly recognized as one of the greatest albums of all time. Champions would be a rightful bit of indulgence in all the hard work those guys put in from 72 to 75 paying off.
The song had to wait two years before it got its own spot soaring near the top of the charts, but I'm sure everyone who heard it at the time knew exactly how appropriate it was.
As for the people saying it's about AIDS or coming out, I'd have to firstly point to the timing to shoot those down. In 1975, Mercury was still going quite strong with Mary Austin (his relationship with her ended when he came out as bisexual to her sometime in 1977, I believe). From what I can remember, Freddie had proposed to Mary as late as 1976. I am quite sure he did not contract the HIV virus until the start of the next decade, when he was at the top of his invincible streak of doing whatever it was he wanted.
The song can and should be used for any struggle which somebody fights to the bitter end and beyond for. I think that's what it's about. Freddie, John, Brian and Roger fought HARD for YEARS before being rewarded properly (even still, it would be like 20 more years before Queen was given its proper recognition by the press). The success of their albums and singles and the growth of their fanbase around 1975, to me seem to be the most direct source for the triumphant backbone of this song.
The rest would be a bit of anthemic flair (News Of The World contained a few notable Queen anthems) and the classic Freddie touch he put in all their songs. -
2TOP RATED
#2 top rated interpretation:While the person above may be right, in that it is about Queen's fight to the top, I feel that it is more of a victory anthem. NOT a SPORTS anthem, but a VICTORY anthem. It's celebrating a victory of any kind, and that victory was obtained by those involved sticking together and fighting it out until they couldn't fight anymore.
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3TOP RATED
#3 top rated interpretation:C'est une chanson sur le difficile chemin vers le succès. Et aussi une réflexion sur le fait que lorsqu'on atteint un but, c'est parfois pour se rendre compte que c'était une illusion après tout, qu'il nous reste encore un rand vide à combler. Le bonheur est un voyage, pas une destination.
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Here's what I know...i was in Jr High School playing soccer/goalie (since age 9) I would often be picked for the All Star team, we'd play 3 games, different cities & this one particular game, 3rd of 3 games played most of the game us 3 them 2, being nervous as heck, nauseous stomach, what ended up being the last kick of the day was them taking a shot on goal (me) I caught the ball, ref blows whistle 3x meaning game over. Our assistant coach brought this humongous boom box with cassette of Queen's and after the 3rd blow of whistle we run & dog pile & the song began.. "We are the champions". 1st time i heard it & I never have nor ever will forget this most memorable time in my life.
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This song is about Freemasons. Freemason Brian May openly & clearly admits this in may interviews. FM's write the education programs that indoctrinate false twistory. They make the movies, music, Roman Catholic Church (the richest corporation on the planet), Military, Politicians, Sciences are by Freemasons, Astronomy, Poets (Lewis Caroll), writers (Shakespeare, Wells, Hemingway, Wilde, Kipling etc.), Explorers Admiral Robert Byrd, Hiram Bingham (Indiana Jones) etc. It's Wake up time folks from the Rip Van Winkle slumber.
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The song it's about how big the victory over the bird standing every morning at 6.50 a.m. on the balcony of mr mercury's house has been. He as he woke up used to eat a very largely protein-based breakfast and he would never succeed in doing a proper breakfast with no interruption from the bird, that used to squik and grack at freddie, who suddenly happen to change his emotional range and his mood because of the weirdo bird, thus ending his breakfast by tossing it to the wall with lots of peaces of glass sinking over the ground, causing fast bleeding for the ugly feet of Freddie, which was one of those "i admit to be ugly". One day Freddie woke up and softly headed to the kitchen with one of his shoes at hand, he then covered himself behind the table and he suddenly ran to the window fast as he could where he could finally moved the bird away by yelling "go to Brian May! I'm no bird fan!". The bird got offended and he thought "this guy is gay for not liking me". He was right, and the animal had his satisfaction when his intellectual statement about Freddie was taken on by the monarchy as one of the biggest catch-phrase of the year, being included in the most beautiful comment done-on-stars ever existed. Once the bird flew away, far off from Mercury position, and left his piece of building just before Freddie's home, the singer of Queen wrote a song about his victory and that's how the famous WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS came over, out in the world. You get the why right? He won over the bird, he won the battle, he could retain his piece of building as HIS property and that's how he felt about the whole story; he felt a victorious man, he felt he had won, he had the victory, and he wanted to write down a song nailing down the moment as it was. Here is how we got WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS. At the beginning of the writing process, Freddie had initially wrote I'M THE CHAMPION (AND THE BIRD IS A LOOSER), but, due to artistical conflict with May, he changed the title and some portion of the already written text, adding a slightly variation to it. Neither the sound of the bird, originally conceived for the song as the starting sound effect, made it to the album, and Roger Taylor highly regretted the exclusion of the sound, which he had considered a genius bit. Freddie told the print that the song was about his fight against the stalker bird that used to give a look at him when he used to go to the bathroom; he later admitted that the look of the bird creeped the hell out of him and that he didn't want a flying creature looking at him as such.
That's the true story; later in the 90's, when Queen were a world-wide famous band, the surviving member could not tell the true story behind the concept of the song because they would have probably felt ashamed, thus inventing that (it) was about sport anthem, global victory on any level, and so on; they covered the real meaning, disrespecting the source behind it, but that's how the world goes.
The truth ever lose, and the lies ever win. What a beautiful world!!! -
im just wondering if anyone else noticed that the song is censored and doesnt say we are the champions of the world.
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A proud song about Overcoming the hard work to make it to the top and celebrating with the Winners, in and with the band QUEEN. Heard the idea came after watching a football game that inspired Freddie Mercury[r.i.p] that conjured up this song according to him. Who's song elevated one's winning acomplishments towards the end that justified the means to obtain fame,love and glory. Or whatever made one feel like a winner, when hearing and listening to this song ''We are the Champions of the World'' that still could be Gayishly[acting spiritually happy] celebrated and enjoyed today after a win, but with little less narcisstic pride of fascism and having more of a modern day ''Brady Bunch'' Family Patriotism behind the celebration. All for celebrating with the Winners a lot more then the losers that should still stay positive after the game and in life to keep themselves all together.
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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A great anthem, but never was a fan of this song about having a winning feeling and rising to the top in a time when ''the lefties'' and the lefty elites were boasting in pride and arrogance over the ''assumed'' conservative losers that sometimes felt like a loser down the tracks or ''like a rolling stone'' who were losing their homes and dignity. Where finally in this day of age the tables were turned in their favor that Trumped over them quietly to say ''how does it feel'' when ''We are Champions Of The World'' that held on to our faith in God.
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I think it is about his sexual orientation. Most of his songs are not outwardly what they seem and most are inspired by his relationships with the men in his life. Killer Queen is about his first homosexual relationship with a man, for instance. I think that was probably the biggest inspiration for his music, his sexuality and his loves and his struggle to find true love, and I think this song is not different. I think that was his biggest struggle; finding love, dealing with being gay in a world where it's not ok to be gay.
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I think the song is about Freddy's sexual condition because he thought that his homosexuality was not a crime. With this song he encouraged the whole human race to show themselves as they are.
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I like to think the champion mean the old fighter who is ready to defend and fight for his ideal or cause. Instead of the usual interpretation of victory. To me is a inspiring song to not give up.
But it's maybe just me -
Freddie Mercury once called We Are The Champions "the most arrogant and egotistical song I've ever written" - whatever its utility as a football chant etc., it is first and foremost about his own quest for musical glory. If you ever watch a video of Queen performing We Are The Champions live, you will notice that Freddie Mercury always changes his singing style when he gets to "You've brought me fame and fortune and everything that goes with it, I thank you all!" - sometimes dropping into a speaking voice, other times boldly shouting it, directly to the audience, who then roar with approval as he makes a gesture of acknowledgement in their direction. Showing that unlike the artistic narratorial "I" of most songs (even those written in reflection of a singer's true feelings), he intended "I thank you all" as his own actual, real-world, self, addressing his fans directly. At Live Aid he spoke the words in a subdued tone, apparently deferring to the higher purpose of the show (and to the fact that it was not a Queen concert as such) - and still got the usual cheer, which he acknowledged with a small wave of his hand. Whatever else might be said about Freddie Mercury, he was completely untroubled by false modesty, once famously stating "I won't be a rock star; I will be a legend." When he sang "I consider it a challenge before the whole human race, and I ain't gonna lose," he was dead serious. And he backed it up.
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"I consider it a challenge before the whole
human race
And I ain't gonna lose."
What else could it be? Mercury was gay, this was what started it all off for gay rights. -
It's about perseverance in the face of adversity. When feeling defeated it's often easy to give up, but he encourages us to push on through. He doesn't compare a championship or defeat to a race where we must compete with others, but, rather defines what a champion really means...to rise above your bad mistakes by learning from them, pick yourself up when you fall, and when you feel as though you are completely alone to face troubles that seem much bigger than yourself, the strength to get through such things lies within. A triumphant and inspirational song that surpasses the ages, for sure!
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Actually there was a fight that went in between queen and a goth band in England In the early 1900's. The goth band said that they will always be famous and that rock will eventually die out. Well the fight was just a verbal public one but queen wrote this in retaliation to the insults thrown at them. The song says that they are the champions as in they will never die out and the words my friend was a direct comment to the goth band leader. When it says mud on your face you big disgrace it's talking about the fashion of the goth band
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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