Shinedown - Sound of Madness - Lyrics Meaning

Sound of Madness was the third single off the Sound of Madness album. The song reached number one on the mainstream rock charts and was the band's third single from the record to do so. The entire song is a rant by lead vocalist Brent Smith about people complaining about their problems. Smith touches on in a not so subtle way how he is annoyed with people who have a victim mentality and blame life's issues on everyone else but themselves. Smith belts out with a melodic annoyance how he wishes people would stand up and fight for themselves instead of shrinking back down. He cries out that their problems may have something to do with the fact that they complain so much, which is evident in the line where he says their lives are a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The chorus reflects that the source of the rant is because the vocalist has been through much drama and pain. In fact he says he wrote the book on it and he is still standing because he fought for where he is at. He sarcastically tells the listener to stop complaining and take your medicine. The song was produced by Grammy award winner Rob Cavallo.