Fall Out Boy

Band

Photo: Lola's Big Adventure! · CC BY 2.0
Active 2001-present
Origin Wilmette, Illinois
Albums 8
Tracks 97
Most frequent collaborator Neal Avron · 46 tracks
Genres Pop PunkEmoAlternative RockPop RockPunk Rock
Complete Artist
100%
Authorship

Holds writing credit on 97 of 97 tracks

Does Fall Out Boy write their own songs?

Yes, and the writing splits cleanly between two members. Pete Wentz writes the lyrics and Patrick Stump composes the music and melodies, so the band holds a writing credit on nearly every track, from 'Sugar, We're Goin Down' to 'Centuries.' A few later songs add outside writers through samples, but the core songwriting is theirs.

By the Numbers

8
Studio Albums
97
Tracks Credited
100%
Self-Written
25
Years Active
36
Collaborators

Authorship Breakdown 97 / 97 self-written

Who wrote the songs?

Across all 97 tracks: how many Fall Out Boy wrote alone, how many they co-wrote, and how many were written by others. The bracket marks every track they hold any writing credit on.

Fall Out Boy has a writing credit100%
95%
5%
Sole author92tracks95%
Co-written5tracks5%
Outside writers0tracks0%

Role Fingerprint how they contribute

Lyricist Performer Composer Producer
Fall Out Boy's roles across the catalogue

Share of all 97 tracks where they are personally credited, by role.

Lyricist (words)100%
Composer (music)100%
Producer3%
Performer100%

Member Credit Breakdown share of tracks each member is credited on

Percentage of all 97 tracks, across every album, where each member holds a credit - split by role.

MemberPeriodLyricsMusicProductionPerformance
Patrick Stump 2001-present
100%
100%
1%
100%
Pete Wentz 2001-present
100%
100%
0%
100%
Joe Trohman 2001-present
0%
100%
0%
100%
Andy Hurley 2001-present
0%
100%
0%
100%

Authorship Over Time writing credit per album

Fall Out Boy's writing credit per album, in release order. Hover any bar for the album.

avg 100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
100%
2003Take This to Your Grave
2005From Under the Cork Tree
2007Infinity on High
2008Folie à Deux
2013Save Rock and Roll
2015American Beauty/American Psycho
2018Mania
2023So Much (for) Stardust
Early · 100% written
Mid · 100% written
Late · 100% written

Authorship by Decade track-weighted

100%
2000s
Take This to Your Grave, From Under the Cork Tree +2 more
100%
2010s
Save Rock and Roll, American Beauty/American Psycho +1 more
100%
2020s
So Much (for) Stardust

Authorship Spectrum pure performer to complete author

Where Fall Out Boy sits on the scale from a pure performer (0%, sings songs written by others) to a complete author (100%, writes everything). The bright marker is their catalogue authorship score, plotted against other artists on the site.

Fall Out Boy
Other artists on the site

Reference artists spread across the scale, closest by genre and era.

Michael Bublé15%
Backstreet Boys25%
Kelly Clarkson49%
One Direction57%
Omarion67%
Kesha77%
Jonas Brothers89%
100%Fall Out Boy
Pure Performer0%
Songwriter~50%
Complete Author100%

Who Really Wrote the Hits signature songs

Sugar, We're Goin Down
From Under the Cork Tree
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
Dance, Dance
From Under the Cork Tree
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race
Infinity on High
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
Thnks fr th Mmrs
Infinity on High
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
I Don't Care
Folie à Deux
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
America's Suitehearts
Folie à Deux
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
What a Catch, Donnie
Folie à Deux
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)
Save Rock and Roll
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
Alone Together
Save Rock and Roll
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley
Wrote it
Centuries
American Beauty/American Psycho
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley, Suzanne Vega
Co-wrote
Uma Thurman
American Beauty/American Psycho
Written by Pete Wentz, Patrick Stump, Joe Trohman, Andy Hurley, Jack Marshall
Co-wrote

Discography 8 albums

Collaborator Network who they worked with most

Fall Out Boy97 tracks
NA46Neal Avron, 46 tracks 16Butch Walker, 16 tracks JS14Jake Sinclair, 14 tracks SO12Sean O'Keefe, 12 tracks BO4Brendan O'Brien, 4 tracks 3Brendon Urie, 3 tracks on Panic! at the Disco's page JS3Jesse Shatkin, 3 tracks DS3D. Sardy, 3 tracks B2Babyface, 2 tracks AD2Alex DeLeon, 2 tracks JH2John Hill, 2 tracks JW1Jeff Warren, 1 track J1Jay-Z, 1 track WB1William Beckett, 1 track EC1Elvis Costello, 1 track TM1Travis McCoy, 1 track GS1Gabe Saporta, 1 track LW1Lil Wayne, 1 track DH1Debbie Harry, 1 track F1Foxes, 1 track BS1Big Sean, 1 track CL1Courtney Love, 1 track EJ1Elton John, 1 track DL1Demi Lovato, 1 track S1SebastiAn, 1 track SV1Suzanne Vega, 1 track JR1J.R. Rotem, 1 track OE1Omega El Fuerte, 1 track JM1Jack Marshall, 1 track YW1Young Wolf Hatchlings, 1 track I1Illangelo, 1 track JC1Jonny Coffer, 1 track AW1Andrew Wells, 1 track BB1Burna Boy, 1 track RB1Robert Byrd, 1 track EH1Ethan Hawke, 1 track

Bubble size = tracks worked on together. NA Neal Avron · JS Jake Sinclair · SO Sean O'Keefe · BO Brendan O'Brien

Photo credits

Portraits in the web and the rail come from Wikimedia Commons. The artist's own photo carries its credit under the picture.

The Authorship Story

Data Insight

Fall Out Boy's member credit table is unique: it shows Pete Wentz with near-100% lyricist credit and near-0% composer credit, and Patrick Stump with the exact inverse. No other band on this site splits the creative roles this cleanly. The data makes visible what fans have always known: Wentz is the writer, Stump is the musician, and together they are greater than the sum of their parts.

Quick Facts

  • LineupStump (vocals), Wentz (bass), Trohman, Hurley
  • Label eraFueled by Ramen, then Island Records
  • BillboardFour number-one albums on the Billboard 200
  • BreakthroughFrom Under the Cork Tree (2005), 2.7M+ in the US
  • GrammysTwo nominations (Best New Artist; Best Rock Album)

Creative Fingerprint

A two-man songwriting split as clean as any on the site: Pete Wentz writes the lyrics and Patrick Stump writes the music, so between them the band holds nearly all of its own writing.

The Story

Fall Out Boy is an American rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois in 2001. The band (Patrick Stump on vocals and guitar, Pete Wentz on bass, Joe Trohman on guitar, and Andy Hurley on drums) built their reputation on the Fueled by Ramen pop-punk circuit before crossing over to mainstream success with From Under the Cork Tree in 2005. What makes Fall Out Boy structurally unusual among rock bands is the near-total division of creative labor between two members: Pete Wentz writes the lyrics for virtually every song, while Patrick Stump composes the music and melody. The result is a songwriting partnership as symbiotic as Lennon/McCartney but with an even sharper division of roles.

Awards & Recognition

Four number-one albums on the US Billboard 200
From Under the Cork Tree (2005) has sold over 2.7 million copies in the US, their best-selling album
Two Grammy nominations, for Best New Artist (2006) and Best Rock Album (2018)
Infinity on High (2007) debuted at number one on the Billboard 200

Frequently Asked Questions Fall Out Boy

Does Fall Out Boy write their own songs?
Yes, and the writing splits cleanly between two members. Pete Wentz writes the lyrics and Patrick Stump composes the music and melodies, so the band holds a writing credit on nearly every track, from 'Sugar, We're Goin Down' to 'Centuries.' A few later songs add outside writers through samples, but the core songwriting is theirs.
Who writes Fall Out Boy's lyrics?
Pete Wentz, the band's bassist, writes the lyrics for virtually every Fall Out Boy song. Patrick Stump, the singer, then sets them to music. It is one of the sharpest lyricist and composer divisions in modern rock.
Who wrote 'Sugar, We're Goin Down'?
'Sugar, We're Goin Down' (From Under the Cork Tree, 2005) is credited to the whole band, with Pete Wentz's lyrics and Patrick Stump's music. It was their commercial breakthrough.
Who wrote 'Centuries'?
'Centuries' (American Beauty/American Psycho, 2015) is credited to Fall Out Boy along with Suzanne Vega, because it interpolates her 1987 song 'Tom's Diner.'
How many albums has Fall Out Boy released?
Eight studio albums, from Take This to Your Grave (2003) to So Much (for) Stardust (2023), including a 2013 to 2018 run of three straight number-one records.
Is Patrick Stump or Pete Wentz the main songwriter?
Both, in different roles. Wentz is the lyricist and Stump is the composer, so neither writes a full song alone; the songs are the product of their partnership.
How many Grammys has Fall Out Boy won?
None, though they have two nominations: Best New Artist in 2006 and Best Rock Album for Mania in 2018.
What was Fall Out Boy's breakthrough album?
From Under the Cork Tree (2005), which has sold over 2.7 million copies in the US and pushed them from the pop-punk underground into the mainstream with 'Sugar, We're Goin Down' and 'Dance, Dance.'
Did Fall Out Boy write 'Thnks fr th Mmrs'?
Yes. 'Thnks fr th Mmrs' (Infinity on High, 2007) is credited to the band, with Wentz's lyrics and Stump's music, and is one of their signature singles.
Why is Fall Out Boy's songwriting split unusual?
Because the roles are so cleanly divided. In most bands members share both words and music, but in Fall Out Boy the lyrics are almost entirely Wentz's and the music almost entirely Stump's, a split closer to a composer and lyricist team than a typical rock band.

Sources

Wikipedia: Fall Out Boy Wikipedia: Take This to Your Grave Wikipedia: From Under the Cork Tree Wikipedia: Infinity on High Wikipedia: Folie à Deux (Fall Out Boy album) Wikipedia: Save Rock and Roll Wikipedia: American Beauty/American Psycho Wikipedia: Mania (Fall Out Boy album) Wikipedia: So Much (for) Stardust Fall Out Boy - Flickr