The Man (The Killers song)

Lore & Background

Drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. stated that the song's lyrics were "largely about how when we were younger we felt invincible. What it meant to be a 'man' in your 20's. Sort of your chest out, the breadwinner, nothing could stop you, invincible sort of thing. It's sort of tongue-and-cheeking that, how that is not really the point of being a man at all. It's actually more about compassion and empathy." According to Flowers, the song is a response to the more delicate songs of the album, including "Rut" and "Some Kind of Love": "Those songs came and it was like, 'These are more tender or contemplative than we've ever been, how did we get to this point?' Reflecting on that was where 'The Man' came from."

The artwork for the single features Flowers's youngest son Henry and was shot by Anton Corbijn. The music video, directed by Tim Mattia and released on June 28, 2017, was filmed in Las Vegas and features Flowers portraying five characters—a gambler, a lounge singer, a playboy, a motocross racer, and a karaoke singer—connected by their obsession with ego and fame. By the end, all the characters begin to fall apart as their success fades. The video includes a cameo by former Mayor of Las Vegas Oscar Goodman.

Reader's Guide

"The Man" received mostly positive reviews from music critics. Ryan Dombal from Pitchfork described it as an "over shiny, strutting funk descended from James Brown's '80s anthem 'Living in America'" and noted that the song's ideas of manliness are "nothing but boyish." Will Richards of DIY magazine praised Flowers' confidence, calling the song "huge, bombastic and fearless," while Robin Murray of Clash called it "daft, delirious and completely addictive."

Commercially, the song debuted on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart at number 26 and became the Killers' ninth song to reach the top 10 of that chart. It subsequently reached number one on Billboard's Adult Alternative Songs chart, their first song to do so in over 10 years since "Read My Mind." The song also reached number one on Mediabase's alternative airplay chart.

The song has been used in various media, including a trailer for the 2018 biopic Vice, the video games Forza Horizon 4, EA Sports UFC 3, and Pro Evolution Soccer 2019, as well as in episodes of Hard Knocks, DC's Stargirl, Chicago Med, and the Netflix series Quarterback. A cover by English jazz-pop singer Jamie Cullum was released as the lead single from the soundtrack to the 2018 heist film King of Thieves.