"Let It Rock" is the debut single by American musician Kevin Rudolf. It was produced by Rudolf for his debut album, In the City, and features a verse from American rapper Lil Wayne. In the U.S. and Canada, the song reached #5 on the BillboardHot 100, number #6 on the Pop 100 and #2 on the Canadian Hot 100. The first week, the song debuted at number 45 on the Australian Singles Chart and eventually reached number 3. In the United Kingdom, the song climbed to number 40 on physical release but due to an increase in airplay, due to BBC Radio 1 adding it to their A-list, the song climbed thirty places to number 10 in the song's second week on the chart; then it rose to number 5 the following week. "Let It Rock" was number 28 on Rolling Stones list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008. The single was also the official theme song for WWE's2009 Royal Rumble. It is also featured in the video gameMadden NFL 11 and Guitar Hero Live. According to in-game files, the song was also originally meant to appear on Grand Theft Auto Vradio station, but it was not included in the final release of the game. "Let It Rock" was featured in tourism ads for Atlantic City, New Jersey in 2013. "Let It Rock" was certified triple platinum by the RIAA on May 5, 2009. As of July 2011, the song has sold 4,000,000 digital downloads, making it Lil Wayne's third 4-million-seller.
Meaning
Rudolf explained what "Let It Rock" is about, saying: "'Let It Rock' was written from a place of anger and dissatisfaction with the world. It's a song about hypocrisy. It contains biblical references - and yet people still think it's a party song. Whatever works." Rudolf said about "Let It Rock": "It's a song about the hypocrisy in the world, and I'm saying that when I come through, I'm bringing the truth," Rudolf explained. Rudolf then said: "I use the Parable of the Prodigal Son, because I want to expose all the fakes out there — in the music industry, in the world, anywhere. A lot of people think it's a party record, but it's not."
The music video for "Let It Rock" features Kevin Rudolf and Lil Wayne performing in front of both a crowd and a dark background, sometimes lit with various effects such as strobe and laser lights. The NBA on TNT features a version of the music video to promote the 2009 NBA All-Star Game, featuring the players competing in the event.
Samples
The song's chorus is sampled in the Iyaz song "Damn They Hot", which features Rudolf himself. The song is also sampled and incorporated into Natasha Bedingfield's song "All I Need" from her album Strip Me, which also features Rudolf.
