Die Another Day

Album: American Life (2002)
Charted: 3 8
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This is the theme song to the James Bond movie of the same title. Madonna's high profile and heavy promotion for the movie made the song a hit, but it was criticized as noisy and repetitive. Elton John called it the worst James Bond theme song ever. Madonna allegedly skipped the Golden Globe Awards, where she was supposed to sit next to Elton, because she wanted to avoid seeing him after the remark. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Mike - Santa Barbara, CA
  • This earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song (U2's "The Hands That Built America" from Gangs of New York won), and also a Golden Raspberry nomination for Worst Song (Britney Spears' "I'm Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman" from Crossroads "won").
  • Madonna had a small role in the film Die Another Day, playing a fencing instructor named Verity. Sample dialogue: "I see you handle your weapon well."
  • This song was written by Madonna and Mirwais Ahmadzai, a progressive electronica musician who first worked with the entertainer on her 2000 album, Music.
  • The world premiere of Die Another Day was held at Royal Albert Hall in London, where Madonna got to meet Queen Elizabeth II.
  • Madonna explained the song's meaning to Genre Magazine: "The song I wrote for the Bond film is about destroying your ego, and it's juxtaposing the metaphor of, you know, the fight against good and bad, and it's set inside the whole universe of Bond. James Bond is in prison and he gets out of prison. Like all Bond films, somebody’s chasing him or he's chasing somebody and it's always a fight against good and evil. I wanted to take it to another level. It's kind of a metaphor of… I'm fighting myself."

Comments: 2

  • Leo from Westminster 1, MdDie Another Day-Bond theme becomes Madonna's story! The best song from American Life, my least fave Ciccone Artwork!
  • Theresa from Murfreesboro, TnI like this song, I love Madonna's laugh towards the end of the track.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Tommy James

Tommy JamesSongwriter Interviews

"Mony Mony," "Crimson and Clover," "Draggin' The Line"... the hits kept coming for Tommy James, and in a plot line fit for a movie, his record company was controlled by the mafia.

Steely Dan

Steely DanFact or Fiction

Did they really trade their guitarist to The Doobie Brothers? Are they named after something naughty? And what's up with the band name?

David Gray

David GraySongwriter Interviews

David Gray explains the significance of the word "Babylon," and talks about how songs are a form of active imagination, with lyrics that reveal what's inside us.

JJ Burnel of The Stranglers

JJ Burnel of The StranglersSongwriter Interviews

JJ talks about The Stranglers' signature sound - keyboard and bass - which isn't your typical strain of punk rock.

Tim McIlrath of Rise Against

Tim McIlrath of Rise AgainstSongwriter Interviews

Rise Against frontman Tim McIlrath explains the meanings behind some of their biggest songs and names the sci-fi books that have influenced him.

George Clinton

George ClintonSongwriter Interviews

When you free your mind, your ass may follow, but you have to make sure someone else doesn't program it while it's wide open.