What It's Like - Wikipedia

1998 single by Everlast

"What It's Like"
Single by Everlast
from the album Whitey Ford Sings the Blues
B-side	"7 Years"
Released	July 1998 (1998-07)[1]
Genre	Blues rock[2] folk blues[3] alternative rock[4] alternative hip hop[5]
Length	5:03 (album version) 4:37 (video version) 3:50 (radio edit)
Label	Tommy Boy
Songwriter	Everlast
Producer	Everlast
Everlast singles chronology
"The Rhythm" (1990) "What It's Like" (1998) "Painkillers" (1998)
Audio sample
"What It's Like" file help
Music video
What It's Like on YouTube

"What It's Like" is a song by American musician Everlast. It was released in July 1998 as the lead single from his second studio album, Whitey Ford Sings the Blues (1998). The song is typical of the style Everlast embraced after leaving hip hop trio House of Pain, which combines rock, hip-hop and blues while incorporating characterization and empathy towards impoverished protagonists.

The song peaked at number one on the US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for one week and on the Modern Rock Tracks chart for nine weeks. It also reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the singer's only solo top-40 hit on the US chart.[6] Outside the United States, the song reached number four in Iceland, number six in Canada, and the top 40 in Australia, Austria, Germany, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

In September 2023, for the 35th anniversary of the Modern Rock Tracks chart (which by then had been renamed to Alternative Airplay),[7] Billboard published a list of the top 100 most successful songs in the chart's history; "What It's Like" was ranked at number 52.[8]

Song structure

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The verses describe three situations of people facing hardship:

• A homeless man outside a liquor store, who begs for change from passers-by but receives only scornful replies.
• A woman whose boyfriend abandons her after she becomes pregnant by him. Deciding to have an abortion, she draws condemnation from protesters outside the clinic.
• The grieving wife and children of a drug dealer who has been shot and killed.

Each verse ends with the narrator's urging that the listeners put themselves in the characters' situation in order to better understand their troubles. During the bridge, he comments on the difficulties he has witnessed in others' lives and experienced in his own, saying, "I've seen the good side of bad and the down side of up and everything in between."

Music video

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The music video was directed by Frank Sacramento in Los Angeles. Everlast is shown singing underwater while the three characters depicted in his song drown. Later they are crowded around a window (possibly dead) behind which an idyllic family is enjoying dinner, oblivious to the less fortunate outside.

Track listings

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UK CD and cassette single[9][10] "What It's Like" (radio edit) – 3:49 "What It's Like" (original album version) – 5:03 UK 7-inch single[11] A. "What It's Like" (original album version) – 5:03 B. "7 Years" – 4:04

European and Australian CD single[12][13] "What It's Like" (radio edit) – 3:49 "What It's Like" (original album version) – 5:03 "7 Years" – 4:04

Charts

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Weekly charts [edit] Chart (1998–1999) Peakposition Australia (ARIA)[14] 26 Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[15] 17 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[16] 6 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[17] 33 Canada Rock/Alternative (RPM)[18] 14 Germany (GfK)[19] 17 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[20] 4 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[21] 58 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[22] 31 Scotland Singles (OCC)[23] 33 Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[24] 20 UK Singles (OCC)[25] 34 UK Indie (OCC)[26] 7 US Billboard Hot 100[27] 13 US Adult Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[28] 13 US Adult Pop Airplay (Billboard)[29] 9 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[30] 1 US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[31] 1 US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[32] 4

Year-end charts [edit] Chart (1998) Position Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[33] 26 US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[34] 89 Chart (1999) Position Canada Top Singles (RPM)[35] 29 Germany (Media Control)[36] 81 US Billboard Hot 100[37] 28 US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[38] 24 US Mainstream Rock Tracks (Billboard)[39] 4 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[40] 15 US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[39] 2

Release history

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Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	July 1998	Modern rock radio	Tommy Boy	[1]
	November 2, 1998	Active rock radio		[41]
	January 12, 1999	Contemporary hit radio		[42]
United Kingdom	February 15, 1999	7-inch vinyl CD cassette		[43]

Legacy

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In April 2015, "What It's Like" was heard playing on the car radio in the dashcam recording during the killing of Walter Scott by Charleston, South Carolina police officer Michael Slager. Everlast said that he was shocked by hearing the song connected to the tragedy and called it "fucked up" and "ironic" considering its lyrical themes of empathy.[44]

References

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1. ^ a b Borzillo, Carrie (August 29, 1998). "Everlast Tones Down Hip-Hop on Tommy Boy's 'Whitey Ford'" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 110, no. 35. p. 26. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
2. ^ Tehee, Joshua (September 16, 2015). "Everlast brings hip-hop country rock to Fulton 55". The Fresno Bee. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
3. ^ Wartofsky, Alona (October 25, 2000). "Everlast &". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
4. ^ Wartofsky, Alona (February 14, 1999). "A B-Boy Changes His Tune, And Life". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
5. ^ Simutis, David (February 11, 1999). "Heart-Attack Man". Broward-Palm Beach New Times. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 213.
7. ^ Rutherford, Kevin (September 7, 2023). "Alternative Airplay Chart's 35th Anniversary: Foo Fighters Remain No. 1 Act, 'Monsters' New Top Song". Billboard. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
8. ^ "Greatest of All Time Alternative Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
9. ^ What It's Like (UK CD single liner notes). Everlast. Tommy Boy Records. 1999. TBCD 470.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
10. ^ What It's Like (UK cassette single sleeve). Everlast. Tommy Boy Records. 1999. TBC 470.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. ^ What It's Like (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Everlast. Tommy Boy Records. 1999. TBV 7470.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. ^ What It's Like (European CD single liner notes). Everlast. Tommy Boy Records. 1999. TBCD 7470.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
13. ^ What It's Like (Australian CD single liner notes). Everlast. Mushroom Records, Tommy Boy Records. 1999. MUSH01862.2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
14. ^ "Everlast – What It's Like". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
15. ^ "Everlast – What It's Like" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
16. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 7350." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
17. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 8166." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
18. ^ "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 7450." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
19. ^ "Everlast – What It's Like" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
20. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (1.10–8.10. 1998)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). October 2, 1998. p. 10. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
21. ^ "Everlast – What It's Like" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
22. ^ "Everlast – What It's Like". Top 40 Singles.
23. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
24. ^ "Everlast – What It's Like". Swiss Singles Chart.
25. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
26. ^ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
27. ^ "Everlast Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
28. ^ "Everlast Chart History (Adult Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
29. ^ "Everlast Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
30. ^ "Everlast Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
31. ^ "Everlast Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
32. ^ "Everlast Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
33. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 100 – Vinsælustu Lögin '98". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). January 2, 1999. p. 34. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
34. ^ "Most Played Modern Rock Songs of 1998". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 6, no. 52. December 25, 1998. p. 36.
35. ^ "RPM 1999 Top 100 Hit Tracks". RPM. Retrieved November 8, 2018 – via Library and Archives Canada.
36. ^ "Top 100 Single–Jahrescharts 1999" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
37. ^ "Billboard Top 100 – 1999". Archived from the original on March 4, 2009. Retrieved August 31, 2010.
38. ^ "1999 The Year in Music: Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 52. December 25, 1999. p. YE-100. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
39. ^ a b "1999 The Year in Music" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 52. December 25, 1999. p. YE-90. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
40. ^ "Most Played Mainstream Top 40 Songs of 1999". Airplay Monitor. Vol. 7, no. 52. December 24, 1999. p. 54.
41. ^ "Adds for November 2 & 3". Gavin Report. No. 2229. October 22, 1998. p. 38.
42. ^ "New Releases". Radio & Records. No. 1281. January 8, 1999. p. 39.
43. ^ "New Releases – For Week Starting 15 February, 1999" (PDF). Music Week. February 13, 1999. p. 27. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
44. ^ Stutz, Colin (April 5, 2016). "Everlast Tells Trump to Stop Using 'Jump Around,' But He Won't Sue: That's a 'Scumbag Donald Trump Move'". Billboard. Retrieved 2025-05-25.

v t e Everlast
Discography
Studio albums	Forever Everlasting (1990) Whitey Ford Sings the Blues (1998) Eat at Whitey's (2000) White Trash Beautiful (2004) Love, War and the Ghost of Whitey Ford (2008) Songs of the Ungrateful Living (2011) Whitey Ford's House of Pain (2018)
EPs	Today (1999)
Compilation albums	Shamrocks & Shenanigans (2004) The Life Acoustic (2013)
Singles	"What It's Like" "Ends" "So Long" "Put Your Lights On" "Black Jesus"
Related articles	House of Pain La Coka Nostra

Authority control databases	MusicBrainz work MusicBrainz release group