Green Day Tease "Idiot" Musical in "Last of the American Girls" Video

In "Last of the American Girls," the latest video off Green Day's 21st Century Breakdown, the band bridge the gap between their punk-rock operas and their upcoming American Idiot Broadway musical with a video that's one part rock-out in the desert, another part Glee. The video, which debuted today at MTV.com, tells the story of a mundane day in the life of the "Last American Girl," with two dancing blond twins giving the video a more theatrical flavor. Billie Joe Armstrong and Green Day perform the track in the desert, but otherwise they don't interact with our leading ladies.

"Last of the American Girls" is kind of like a low budget version of Lady Gaga and Beyoncé's epic "Telephone" video: Russ Meyer scenario? Check. Girl-on-girl bathing? Got it. Cartoon gunplay? Cars explode and targets burst when the lead actress simply makes the shape of a gun with her hands. The video, like its 21st Century predecessors, was directed by Marc Webb, who also helmed the equally musical-influenced (500) Days of Summer. This might be the last time Webb gets behind the camera for Green Day for awhile because he's been tapped to direct the Spider-Man reboot, a job that'll likely keep him too busy to moonlight on music videos. (Though we nominate Webb to direct if American Idiot, as rumored, heads to the big screen.)

As Rolling Stone previously reported, Green Day's American Idiot stage musical is currently in preview performances at New York's St. James Theatre. For much more on the loudest musical to hit Broadway since Tommy, including a taste of the title song as performed by the cast and interviews with the band, check out all our coverage:

• Green Day Talk "American Idiot" on Broadway and Film at Sneak Peek of New Show
• Green Day Talk American Idiot as Musical Debuts: On the Scene in Berkeley
• The Birth of Green Day's American Idiot Musical

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Song Stories

“1999”

Prince | 1982

“I don’t consider myself a great poet,” Prince told Rolling Stone. “I just know I’m here to say what’s on my mind.” In the case of the apocalyptic party anthem “1999,” he was worried about then-president Ronald Reagan’s foreign policies. The song’s melody is based on a riff borrowed from the Mamas and Papas’ “Monday, Monday,” and Prince originally envisioned the first verse with three-part harmony but later split the vocals between himself and members of the Revolution. Because Warner Bros., with whom Prince was locked in a contractual battle, owned the original’s masters, Prince rerecorded the song and appropriately released that version in 1999.

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