It was 1998. The radio was a weird, messy soup of Spice Girls, nu-metal, and the dying gasps of Britpop. Then came that piano riff. You know the one—four chords, a little bit of jangle, and a bucketload of optimism that felt almost defiant. When the New Radicals dropped the Get What You Give song, they weren't just releasing a single; they were planting a flag in the middle of a cynical decade.
Gregg Alexander, the tall guy in the bucket hat who was the New Radicals, basically caught lightning in a bottle. He wrote it, produced it, and sang it with this raspy, desperate energy that made you feel like the world was ending, but maybe it was okay because the music was loud enough. It’s a track that has outlived almost every other one-hit wonder of the era. Why? Because it’s not just a song. It’s a manifesto.
The Chaos Behind the Scenes
Most people think the New Radicals were a band. They weren't. It was basically Gregg Alexander’s solo project with a rotating door of session musicians. He was obsessed. He spent nearly a year tweaking the track in various studios, trying to find a sound that felt like The Rolling Stones mixed with Todd Rundgren.
The recording process wasn't some polished, corporate affair. It was chaotic. Alexander was known for being a bit of a perfectionist, often scrap-booking different takes together to get that specific "live" feeling. He wanted it to sound like a protest, even if people were mostly dancing to it in shopping malls.
Honestly, the song almost didn't happen the way we hear it now. There were versions that were slower, versions that were more electronic. But that final mix? That’s the one that stuck. It has this weird, pulsing heartbeat. It’s got a bit of a "You Can't Always Get What You Want" vibe, but updated for a generation that was starting to realize the internet was about to change everything.
That Infamous Celebrity Diss Track Ending
If you mention the Get What You Give song to anyone who lived through the late 90s, they probably won't talk about the hook first. They’ll talk about the end. You remember. The part where Gregg starts naming names.
"Fashion shoots with Courtney Love, 40 ounces come to shove..."
Then he goes for the jugular: Marilyn Manson, Hanson, and Beck. He tells them he’ll "kick their asses in." It was a massive deal at the time. In an era before Twitter beefs, this was a nuclear strike. Marilyn Manson famously said he wasn't mad about being threatened; he was just insulted to be put in the same sentence as Courtney Love.
But here’s the thing: Alexander wasn’t actually mad at Hanson. He later admitted it was a social experiment. He wanted to see if the media would ignore the political message of the song—the stuff about health insurance and corporate greed—to focus on the celebrity gossip.
He was right.
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Everyone ignored the line "Health insurance rip-off lying," and instead, they spent months asking him why he hated Mmmbop. It proved his point perfectly. The world is obsessed with the trivial while the big stuff burns.
The Politics Hidden in the Pop
Look closer at the lyrics. It’s easy to get lost in the "Don't give up / You've got the music in you" part because it's so catchy. It’s the kind of chorus that makes you want to drive too fast with the windows down. But the verses are dark.
He’s talking about "flat on your face" and "the world is gonna pull through." He mentions the "FDA" and "big bankers." This was 1998! People weren't really singing about the FDA in Top 40 hits back then.
Alexander was tapping into a very specific kind of American anxiety. He saw the corporate takeover of culture happening in real-time. The song acts as a shield against that. It tells the listener that even if the "boss" is a jerk and the "money" is tight, you still own your soul. As long as you don't let them take your "music"—your spark, your individuality—you're winning.
It’s surprisingly deep for something that was played on Radio Disney.
Why He Quit at the Top
This is the part that usually blows people's minds. The Get What You Give song was a global smash. It hit the Top 40 in the US and the Top 5 in the UK. The New Radicals were set to be huge. They were booked for major tours. They were the "it" band.
And then Gregg Alexander just... stopped.
He disbanded the group before the second single, "Someday We'll Know," even had a chance to breathe. He hated the promotion. He hated the hats. He hated the interviews. He realized he liked writing songs but loathed being a "pop star."
He walked away from millions of dollars. Just like that.
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He spent the next two decades writing hits for other people. He wrote "Game of Love" for Santana and Michelle Branch. He won a Grammy. He got an Oscar nomination for "Lost Stars" from the movie Begin Again. He proved he wasn't a fluke; he just didn't want the spotlight. There’s something incredibly respectable about a guy who writes a song about not selling out and then actually refuses to sell out.
The 2021 Inauguration Miracle
For over 20 years, the New Radicals were a ghost. Then 2021 happened. During the Biden-Harris inauguration festivities, the band reunited for the first time since 1899. Why? Because the Get What You Give song was a favorite of Beau Biden.
The family used it as their "fight song" during his illness.
Seeing a middle-aged Gregg Alexander put on the bucket hat one more time was surreal. He looked older, sure. We all did. But the song hadn't aged a day. It still felt like a rallying cry. It reminded everyone that some music isn't tied to a specific year; it’s tied to a specific feeling of hope.
The Technical Brilliance You Might Miss
Musically, the song is a bit of a marvel. It’s in the key of G major, but it uses these great, suspended chords that give it a sense of "longing" rather than just straight-up happiness.
- The tempo is roughly 114 BPM, which is that perfect "walking with a purpose" speed.
- The bassline is surprisingly busy, almost Motown-inspired.
- The "Aha, aha, aha" vocal ad-libs weren't planned; they were just Gregg feeling the track during a take.
Most pop songs today are quantized to death. They're perfect. This song is the opposite. It’s slightly messy. The drums feel like they’re pushing the beat. That’s why it feels human. It sounds like people in a room actually playing instruments and sweating.
Misconceptions About the Lyrics
People always misquote the bridge. They think he's just shouting random words.
Actually, he's laying out a very specific list of things that suck the life out of you. "Fashion shoots," "40 ounces," "computer screens." He was predicting the burnout of the digital age before we even had smartphones. He knew that we would get distracted by the "shiny" things and forget to actually live.
And the phrase "Get what you give"—it’s not just a cliché about karma. In the context of the song, it’s a warning. If you give your energy to the corporate machine, that’s all you’ll get back. If you give your energy to the "music" (life, passion, love), then you get a soul.
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How to Actually Apply the "New Radicals" Philosophy
You don't have to be a 90s rock star to take something away from this. The song is basically a blueprint for modern sanity.
First, stop worrying about the "celebrities" in your life. Whether it’s actual famous people or just the "influencers" in your social circle, Alexander’s point was that their drama doesn't matter. Kick their asses—metaphorically—by ignoring them.
Second, find your "music." What’s the thing you do that isn't for money? What’s the thing that makes you feel like you’re "giving" something real to the world? Do more of that.
Third, don't be afraid to walk away. If you’re at the "top" of something but you’re miserable, leaving isn't failing. Alexander walking away was his biggest power move. It’s what kept the Get What You Give song pure. It never got diluted by five mediocre follow-up albums and a reality TV show.
What to Do Next
If you haven't heard the song in a while, go find the music video. Watch it. Look at the kids taking over the mall. It’s a bit dated, sure, but the energy is infectious.
Then, check out some of Gregg Alexander’s other work. Listen to "Lost Stars" by Adam Levine or the soundtrack to Begin Again. You can hear the same DNA—that same mix of melancholy and "we’re gonna make it" optimism.
Finally, think about your own "bucket hat" moment. What’s the one thing you believe in so much that you’d be willing to shout it at the world, even if people only cared about the gossip?
The New Radicals might have been a short-lived project, but they left us with one of the most resilient pieces of pop culture ever made. It’s a reminder that the world might be "high fashion" and "big bankers," but you’ve still got the music in you. Don't let them take it.
Check out the full album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too. It's a weird, experimental, beautiful trip that proves Gregg Alexander was way ahead of his time. Don't just settle for the single. The whole record is a masterpiece of late-90s disillusionment and hope.
Go listen to it loudly. Preferably while doing something that makes your boss slightly uncomfortable. That's what Gregg would want.