"Do or Die" is a song by American rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, featured on their fourth studio album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams (2013). Written and produced by lead vocalist Jared Leto, "Do or Die" explores the feeling of standing up and living one's dreams using also ironic undertones. The song is styled in electronic rock and imbued with elements of arena rock. It was serviced to mainstream radio in July 2013 in Europe, and was released as a promotional single in the United States in March 2014. A version of the song remixed by Dutch music producer Afrojack was digitally released in March 2014 and later included on the deluxe edition of Afrojack's debut studio album Forget the World (2014).
"Do or Die" received positive reviews from music critics, who hailed its musical diversity and its euphoric but minimalistic nature. It charted in some nations due to digital sales from the parent album. The accompanying music video, directed by Leto, features live footage of Thirty Seconds to Mars onstage as well as stories from their fans, personally interviewed by Leto. The video garnered general acclaim from critics, who lauded its atmosphere and simplicity. The song was included in the setlist of the band's Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams Tour and the subsequent Carnivores Tour.
Recording and composition
"Do or Die" was written and produced by Jared Leto. It was engineered by Jamie Reed Schefman and mixed by Serban Ghenea. John Hanes engineered it for mixing at Mixstar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The song was recorded at The International Centre for the Advancement of the Arts and Sciences of Sound in Los Angeles, California and mastered by Howie Weinberg and Dan Gerbarg at Howie Weinberg Mastering. Thirty Seconds to Mars unveiled six songs from their fourth studio album Love, Lust, Faith and Dreams, including "Do or Die", during a preview event held at the Electric Lady Studios in New York City on March 14, 2013.
"Do or Die" is an electronic rock song with influences and elements from arena rock. It opens with a female voiceover introducing the song's title in the Chinese language, after which there is an electronic introduction. This is followed by the sound of guitars, drum beats and synthesizers. After the first verse, the pre-chorus follows, with Leto voicing the line, "I will never forget the moment". The full-throated chorus then follows, which features heavy use of synthesizers and drums. The song includes a contribution from the band's fans, credited as the Knights of the White Shadow, who provide additional vocals recorded at the band's studio.
In an interview with PureVolume, Leto explained that the song is "about standing up and living out your dreams", but also features an ironic connotation. Markos Papadatos, in his review for Digital Journal, called it an "upbeat" song which "deals with one taking their own stance on their beliefs, and living life to the fullest". In a preview of the record, Jeff Benjamin from Fuse described the song by saying that the band goes "the synthy dance route on the track's intro before fire-alarm guitars and pummeling drums roar in and smash the Korg keyboards to bits".
Release
"Do or Die" was released as a promotional single in Europe in July 2013 through Virgin Records. The song debuted at number 98 on the Ultratip chart of Belgium's Flemish region on August 24. The following week, it jumped to number 73 and peaked at number 40 on September 21. On August 30, 2013, it debuted at number 75 on the Ö3 Austria Top 40. In the Czech Republic, the song entered the national airplay chart at number 91 on the week ending October 20, 2013. In Slovakia, it debuted at number 67 on September 22, 2013 and eventually peaked at number 29 on January 26, 2014. Polydor Records released "Do or Die" in the United Kingdom on September 9, 2013. It entered the UK Rock Chart at number 38. After four weeks, the song peaked at number seven on the issue dated September 28, 2013. "Do or Die" was used by Major League Baseball as the theme song for the 2013 Major League Baseball Postseason.