New Radicals, in many ways, predicted the future of indie pop. The group even possessed the collective ability to make itself wildly successful. Still, in the end, it is “You Get What You Give,” one of the greatest alternative rock songs of the ’90s, that is what the band will be most famous for.
New Radicals never released a follow-up album, and never cleared the air with the celebrity musicians they’d slagged through song. How did it all happen? And what do the lyrics for “You Get What You Give” actually mean? Here’s the story of the song.
New Radicals’ Journey to Making “You Get What You Give”
No, I did not get it. I can admit it now. The music of New Radicals didn’t exactly go over my head. It wasn’t some kind of art-pop that I was hearing, but a bubblegum band. Confident now to admit that I was wrong, I’d like to make this article a tribute to one of the best albums of the 1990s.
Most other listeners were just as confused. You can’t quite blame us. New Radicals were always set up to be a genre-defying band, back in an era where sticking to our style was paramount for a group having a career in the first place.
New Radicals were the love child of the multi-talented Gregg Alexander. The band is, essentially, a vehicle for him and Danielle Brisebois. By 1997, the young singer had the attention of a few important people working for big record labels. He had, however, recorded two soul-pop solo records that hadn’t achieved commercial success.
The daringly titled “Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too,” The New Radicals’ debut album, was designed for chart triumph. It was a very well-crafted blend of soul, art-rock, and arena rock. I think that many bands were trying to glue musical styles together, but, in my view, few did it as convincingly as Gregg Alexander.
And it could have gone nowhere if it wasn’t for its lead single.
Meaning of the Lyrics of “You Get What You Give”
“You Get What You Give” isn’t just The New Radicals’ most famous song. It is, by what I gather, Alexander’s mantra and war cry.
On the one hand, “You Get What You Give” is a song directed at the evil music business. This racket had stolen the talent and hopes of many great artists. And, it had nearly done the same to Gregg Alexander, who’d already seen two solo albums buried by record labels.
Alexander had come to Los Angeles from a small town, chasing the dream of musical fame. He had had deals with A&M and Epic. Both had dropped him from their rosters.
Who did the record labels prefer instead? “You Get What You Give” was, perhaps, most famous for issuing a list of fake pop-rock stars. Alexander threatens to “kick your ass!”
The rock stars mentioned in the lyrics are Marilyn Manson, Beck, Courtney Love, and Hanson. History has judged them appropriately, I think.
But Alexander says that the line was meant to show how society had brainwashed people into caring about pop culture rather than real issues. The first part of the line, after all, is: “Health insurance, rip-off lying/FDA, big bankers buying/Fake computer crashes dining/Cloning while they’re multiplying.”
On another level, “You Get What You Give” is a song about young idealists and the world that they’ll have to step into. I think that this is, especially, the reason why the song continues to be so beloved. It’s remained an anthem against convention and conformity. In this respect, especially, Alexander succeeded.
The Music Video for “You Get What You Give”
It was one of the most in-demand music videos of the late 1990s. But it was all shot on a budget in the Staten Island Mall in New York City.
The promo, directed by Evan Bernard, showed a group of teenagers taking their revenge on the normies, the brainwashed crowds doing their shopping. In many ways, I think, that the concept was a revamp of Nirvana‘s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
The music video made the always hat-wearing Gregg Alexander into a brand new star. What did he think of it? “I’m ready to be carted around like a piece of meat. You have to cut a deal with the machine and be thrown to the wolves,” he told reporters.
Legacy Of The New Radicals, Gregg Alexander and “You Get What You Give”
New Radicals achieved their mission. The group made one great album and produced one truly terrific ’90s alt-rock song. That work is still being discovered by new fans yearly.
But Gregg Alexander quickly tired of the group. The excellent follow-up single “Someday We’ll Know” achieved moderate success. Was he going to chase another hit? No!
“I’d lost interest in fronting a one-hit wonder to the point that I was wearing a hat while performing so that people wouldn’t see my lack of enthusiasm,” read the farewell letter of New Radicals. I find it hard not to admire that.
Admiration was also what he received from peers. Hanson did not feel offended by the lyrics of Alexander’s biggest hit and wanted to work with him. Marilyn Manson praised the song, but took offence at being named alongside Courtney Love. U2’s The Edge claimed that “You Get What You Give” is the song he is most jealous of.
And, yes, Alexander did fine. He co-wrote songs like Michelle Branch and Santana’s “The Game of Love” or Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s “Murder on the Dancefloor.”
He even reunited, along with Danielle Brisebois, The New Radicals a couple of times in recent years. The band played at the presidential inauguration in 2021, on the account of the fact that Beau Biden loved “You Get What You Give.” And in 2024, the group released two digital singles.
Is a follow-up for “Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too” finally in the works? I hope so. The album is a lost gem. Even without the hit single, songs like “Mother We Just Can’t Get Enough” or “I Don’t Wanna Die Anymore” are perfect alt-pop tracks. “Crying Like a Church on Monday” shows great songwriting skills. And the bizarre storytelling of “I Hope I Didn’t Just Give Away the Ending” is one of my favourite songs from that era.
“You Get What You Give” may be one of the greatest alternative songs of the 1990s, but The New Radicals is far from a one-hit wonder.
