All of This

"All of This" is a song by American rock band Blink-182 from the band's fifth studio album, Blink-182 (2003). The song is a collaboration with musician Robert Smith, frontman of the English rock band The Cure. Lyrically, the song is inspired by a story from producer Jerry Finn's adolescence, in which he was humiliated by a girl he had fallen in love with.

The song was frequently cited as a highlight on the album and received positive reviews. "All of This" was briefly considered to be the album's fifth single, but the idea was shelved when the band broke up in 2005.

Background

"All of This," as well as the song it segues from, "Easy Target," were based on a story from producer Jerry Finn's middle school years. Finn was in love with a female classmate, Holly, who invited him over, only for have her and her friend drench him with a hose; humiliated, he rode home on his bicycle.

The song was musically inspired by The Cure song "The Love Cats" (as was "I Miss You"), and the band decided to reach out to The Cure frontman Robert Smith by phone. The trio did not anticipate he would go for it, considering the band's reputation. Smith, for his part, was bemused as to how he would fit into Blink-182's sound: "I'd heard a couple of singles," he later told Blender, "but I couldn't really see how I could sing on anything or write any words. But the demos for the album that eventually came out were fantastic. I think they suffer in a way that we [The Cure] suffered in that people weren't allowing them to become something else. If another band put that new CD out as their first album, people would go crazy." As for their legitimacy, Smith gave the band advice: "Nobody knows what kind of songs you are going to write in the future and nobody knows the full potential of any band. I really like the music you sent me."

John Legend

John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He has won nine Grammy Awards, one Golden Globe, and one Academy Award. In 2007, Legend received the Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Prior to the release of Legend's debut album, his career gained momentum through a series of successful collaborations with multiple established artists. He sang in Magnetic Man's "Getting Nowhere," Kanye West's "All of the Lights", on Slum Village's "Selfish", and Dilated Peoples' "This Way". Other artists included Jay Z's "Encore", and he sang backing vocals on Alicia Keys' 2003 song "You Don't Know My Name", the Kanye West remix of Britney Spears' "Me Against the Music", and Fort Minor's "High Road". Legend played piano on Lauryn Hill's "Everything Is Everything". He has gained chart topping hits from his solo work as well, including the Billboard Hot 100 number-one single, "All of Me". He won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2015 for writing the song "Glory" from the film Selma.

Blink-182

Blink-182 (often stylized as blink-182) is an American rock band formed in Poway, a suburb of San Diego, California in 1992. The band currently consists of bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus, drummer Travis Barker, and guitarist and vocalist Matt Skiba. Blink-182 is considered a key group in the development of pop punk; their combination of pop melodies with fast-paced punk rock featured a more radio-friendly accessibility than prior bands. Founded by Hoppus, guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Scott Raynor, the band emerged from the Southern California punk scene of the early 1990s and first gained notoriety for high-energy live shows and irreverent lyrical toilet humor.

The band was initially known as Blink until Irish band Blink threatened legal action; they appended "-182". Cheshire Cat (1995) led the band to tour with Pennywise and NOFX on the Warped Tour. Dude Ranch (1997) was co-distributed by major label MCA Records and featured their first rock radio hit, "Dammit (Growing Up)". Raynor was fired midway through a 1998 tour and replaced by Barker. Enema of the State (1999) was an enormous success on the strength of hit singles "What's My Age Again?", "Adam's Song" and "All the Small Things", which enjoyed massive airplay and became MTV staples. Take Off Your Pants and Jacket (2001) reached number one in the United States, Canada, and Germany. The eponymously titled Blink-182 followed in 2003 and marked a stylistic shift for the group, infusing experimental elements into their usual pop punk formula, resulting in a more mature sound. DeLonge left the group in 2005, sending the band into what was termed an "indefinite hiatus". The trio reunited in 2009, producing their sixth album, Neighborhoods (2011). In 2015, DeLonge again exited, and was replaced by Alkaline Trio guitarist and vocalist Matt Skiba.