Song of the Moment XCVI: Foo Fighters’ “The Pretender”

Last.fm tracks every song, artist, and album I listen to on my music apps since I joined the website in January 2010. And, to the non-surprise of everyone who knows me personally, my most listened-to song is my favorite of all time: Foo Fighters’ “The Pretender”.

The music video of Foo Fighters’ “The Pretender”.

How many times have I listened to the song from the day I joined Last.fm to yesterday, September 9? 23,999 times. I’m not kidding.

Upon reaching such a milestone, I knew I had to make the next listen (the 24,000th time) a special one. I wanted to give a buffer day (which was yesterday) to excite myself further, so I used my alternate alarm clock tune, which is Foo Fighters’ “Run”. (I could explain why “Run” is my alternate alarm clock tune now, but that’s not what this post is about.)

And this morning, just as I planned, I woke up and listened to “The Pretender” for exactly the 24,000th time. Today, the energy I gained from the anthem feels more electrifying than before, thanks to the monumental statistic.

24,000 f’n times? Yeah, I’m that deranged.

Foo Fighters’ “The Pretender” is the first track and first single from the band’s sixth studio album (and the first Foos album I listened to in full), Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. I have featured the song on The Diary a couple of times, but I will never stop gushing about the song’s energizing, defiant lyrics and the mix of gloomy strings and fist-raising hard rock. “The Pretender” is my alarm clock tune, a battle anthem I can depend on, and today, it is definitely my Song of the Moment.

Speaking of “The Pretender”, let me share a video of my all-time favorite live versions of it—the version performed by Foo Fighters and the My Grammy Moment Orchestra (conducted by the multi-talented John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin!) at the 2008 Grammy Awards.

Foo Fighters performing “The Pretender” with the My Grammy Moment Orchestra and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones at the 2008 Grammy Awards.

Here’s to listening to it (while continuing to live and fight) 24,000 more times and beyond. And let me quote the chorus once again:

What if I say I’m not like the others?
What if I say I’m not just another one of your plays?
You’re the pretender
What if I say I will never surrender?

See you in the next post!

Ω

Header image: Claudia Peters of Pixabay. Edited in Adobe Photoshop 2025.

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The Deranged Writer

Yes, he wears a mask sometimes. And according to most people, he looks like Bruno Mars when he is unmasked. Absolutely deranged, below-average writer.