About Centuries

"Centuries" is a song by American rock band Fall Out Boy, released September 9, 2014 as the lead single from their sixth studio album, American Beauty/American Psycho (2015). It was co-written by Fall Out Boy, with two producers. A gladiator-themed music video was created. The single reached No. 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and was certified 4x Platinum by the RIAA. It reached first position on the UK Rock and Metal Chart. The song was also the band's fourth top ten hit and first in eight years, since "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race" in 2007. In 2015, "Centuries" was nominated for the Kerrang! Award for Best Single. Fall Out Boy has played the song numerous times on televised performances and was used as ESPN's official theme song for sports coverage.

"Centuries" was written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley, J.R. Rotem, Justin Tranter, Raja Kumari and Julian Lennartz in mid-2014 and was produced by Omega and Rotem. Stump originally came forward with the song while Fall Out Boy were on the Monumentour tour with fellow American band Paramore. In an interview with Kerrang!, Wentz described the idea of the song as a "David vs. Goliath story", stating "We wanted to write a song that empowered people who are a little weird." Tranter later confirmed the song was partially inspired by Marsha P. Johnson. "Centuries" contains part of the melody from the song "Tom's Diner" by Suzanne Vega. The segment is not a sample, but instead an interpolation as it was actually re-recorded by American singer Lolo for the track. Stump described the inclusion as "a tip of the hat" to "Tom's Diner", a song which the band wanted to "re-inject" into popular culture. Vega is credited as a co-writer for "Centuries." ¨Centuries¨ is written in the key of E minor.