What does Emperor's New Clothes mean?

Panic! At The Disco: Emperor's New Clothes Meaning

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Album cover for Emperor's New Clothes album cover

Song Released: 2015


Emperor's New Clothes Lyrics

Welcome to the end of eras
Ice has melted back to life
Done my time and served my sentence
Dress me up and watch me die
If it feels good, tastes good
It must be mine
Dynasty decapitated
You just might see a ghost tonight

And if you...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    FindersKeepers
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    Feb 14th 2016 !⃝

    OK, this is how I interpret it. I don't think it has anything to do with religion, despite the imagery. It's about star culture and the self-destructive hedonism that comes with it. The drug and party lifestyle can make you feel powerful and important especially with all those sycophants crowding around you reinforcing the feeling, but in reality, you're like the emperor with no clothes. You're not a magnificent king... you're naked and eventually powerless. It's empty. But who cares. It's fun for the moment. If it feels good, tastes good, it must be mine. Heroes always get remembered, but you know legends never die...

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    Jun 8th 2016 !⃝

    I mean there are a few good interpretations.

    On one hand it could be fictional. Brendon telling the story of a man who committed many evil acts in his life. As a result he turns into a demon and plans to overthrow/be bigger than Satan.

    On another hand, he could be talking about the band. After all he is the last remaining member. My best bet is a hat he's talking about how he lost everything (hence the death scene) and now is reborn as something completely new and different with a vengeance.

    These are my best interpretations but there's always a chance he just wrote it to have fun and test his vocal range.

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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    Jan 3rd 2017 !⃝

    So brendon is walking into heaven and stops to stare at the judge. He is so amazed he stops talking for so long, he falls through the trap door. As he hits the bottom, he is turning into Satan. When Satan says "take back the crown" he means he wants to get revenge on God. He wants to posess the holy judge, sending all to hell making chaos. He wants revenge from being tricked by God, like the Emperor was when he was naked. This interpretation is dumb, but it's just a theory. :3

  4. anonymous
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    Jan 18th 2021 !⃝

    Y'all that love Brendan Urie I guess want to hope he isnt singing about the devil. He steals the key which is evil and has a blood bath after killing like 20 men. At the end a girl beats him down and takes it. So why ain't she in hell but Urie is. Most of these theories are stupid because y'all wear your asses as hats..GTFOOH. he was mormon but just because of that dont make him bad nor good. Confused is what it is. I believe the devil and god are fighting for him. Just like everyone of us. God bless us all. Fuck the devils key or anything to do with him.

  5. anonymous
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    Jan 9th 2020 !⃝

    First of all if you watch Say Amen, This is gospel, and emperors new clothes in that order you will see that the videos to the song are all connected. See, by the of end Say Amen Brendon gets knocked out by a bat and you start hearing heart beats. In This is gospel you see Brendon in a hospital trying to get away from the doctors and I think this is because he is scared and doesn’t understand why he is in the hospital. In the middle of This is gospel Brendon is getting dressed up and being buried. In the beginning of Emperors new clothes you parts see parts of This is gospel. Then, you see Brendon in a white room and I think that white room is heaven. I think that, because Brendon is in heaven he thinks he’s going to stay in heaven but then a trap door opens and Brendon falls into hell. I think the reason Brendon fell into hell is because he stole a valuable relic. If you pay close attention in Say Amen you will see that Brendon has the devils key explained at the beginning of Say Amen, and that is why he becomes the devil.





    (Sorry about any grammar mistakes)

  6. anonymous
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    Jun 23rd 2019 !⃝

    I bet that the white room was meant to be pure and in a good relationship with God. Then maybe trap door was supposed to be the fall of Adam and Eve. Maybe if Brendon was turning into a demon it meant to show sin entering the world. He couldn't stop it and he did something to end up in that position. Then maybe taking back the crown meant taking back a good relationship with God. (He was raised in a Mormon church) all dressed up and naked probably means when Adam and Eve realize they have on no clothes. I see what's mine I take it probably means that if we except Christ we automatically go to Heaven (our one way ticket) which we can all take if we want it. I'm a Christian just my theory.

  7. anonymous
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    Mar 1st 2019 !⃝

    Most people don’t realize this but the origins of Judeo-Christianity is actually Monachistic (Worship of one god without the denial of other gods). In the beginning, El/Elyon was the chief god anYahweh was on of either 70 or 72 lesser gods. As any thoroughly well read Christian might know, Yahweh eventually replaced all of his contemporaries during a contest. After that, El was no longer worshipped and his son Satanael was cast out of Heaven and Yahweh became the new ruler of the Earth and heaven. I think that on a subconscious level, this song is about Satanael wanting to avenge his father El against Yahweh and reclaim his rightful place as the next ruler of Heaven.

  8. anonymous
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    Oct 29th 2018 !⃝

    I just want to point out that almost every line in this song is an "idioms and quotes", and he took all of these quotes and literally made them HIS "if it feels good, it must be mine"

  9. anonymous
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    Aug 16th 2018 !⃝

    What if the video has nothing to do with this song? People make videos with songs all the time. My guess it means either 1} just being a king with a kingdom, then it gets ripped away. 2} Greed.
    Besides if it was about hell, then what about the line, "Ice has melted back to life?" Hell is fiery, right?

  10. anonymous
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    Apr 6th 2018 !⃝

    The way I see it, because of my faith, is that the imagery is Hell, and PAD sings "if it feels good, tastes good, it must be mine." The way I interpret it is that they are essentially saying that all the pleasurable things come from Hell, or in this case the Emperor.

  11. Pokemonlover626
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    Dec 17th 2017 !⃝

    what if the song just means that someone wants power and things and he trys to take a crown and he was tricked and feels like the emperor from the story the emperor's new cloths cloths?I have no utter clue, I'm horrid, just a theory, a very crappy one at that though...

  12. anonymous
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    Oct 3rd 2017 !⃝

    I honestly think it's just meant to be the representation of megalomania, someone who only wants more power. by any means, i think people are misinterpreting the "If it feels good, tastes good
    It must be mine." in my opinion, it's not him claiming he owns those things, but stating that he wants those things, whatever they may be. and the "Sycophants on velvet sofas" indicates he simply thinks himself above that stuff, "i am so much more than royal" perhaps a god complex going on there.

  13. anonymous
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    Mar 27th 2017 !⃝

    Nothing to do with Brendon he's just a puppet for this song basically Satan was thrown down to earth in 1914 from heaven to prove a point(if you've read the bible then you'll know what im meaning) but basicall this means that Satan is saying my sentence heres almost finished im taking as many souls as i can and going to "try" take back the crown he's wanted from god all along

  14. anonymous
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    Mar 23rd 2017 !⃝

    Ok. So we all know that this is gospel was supposed to be about individuality, and how society or the the church will throw hurtful things towards, or hold you down from you being who you want to be. In the end of this is gospel, the people who are holding him down finally let go. (This could symbolize that they are finally letting him do what he wants, and if he goes to hell then so be it. Or they are still condemning his acts) When he arrived in hell, he seems to be having a rather "good time". Maybe he is saying that if al the fun stuff is evil, than he is willing to become "evil"

  15. anonymous
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    Feb 18th 2017 !⃝

    I want to say a possible theory. what if the whole heaven and hell in the video wasn't really not needed to be in that video. the lyrics fit more with "don't threaten me with a good time". what if the song really means greed and being over taken by fame?

  16. anonymous
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    Nov 1st 2016 !⃝

    November 1st, 2016
    R.I.P. Mitch Lucker
    "Heroes always get remembered, but you know legends never die." Mitch will always be remembered.

  17. anonymous
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    Feb 25th 2016 !⃝

    As you can see at the beginning of the video he is on his way to heaven but isn't accepted. Then he goes to hell and proof of this "welcome to the end of era's" and for anyone that has read some part of the bible or believe in god (no offense if you don't I believe it is 100% your choice)In the bible it says all sinners shall have a place in hell until the end of time "and when it says "I see what's mine and take it" I believe it is referencing to Satan trying to over throw God and his kingdom and when it says "you might just see a ghost tonight" I think it is saying that demons might be coming back from the dead because in the older days and sometimes in our days now demons are said to posses people and may commonly be named ghost instead. Such as Bethesda who is a demon that takes over the body and mind of people. Dynasty decapitation meaning the ruler of something has been killed in this case God. This song could also apply the other way saying that satan has already overthrown heaven and heaven has basically switched places with hell and now this is God planning to take back his kingdom.

  18. Eve_Marie
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    Feb 13th 2016 !⃝

    Okay so I will try not to offend all you fellow believers out there, but I read your comments and I must say you fell for the obvious misconception. Just because he dressed up like a demon everyone wants to assume he's in hell and being punished? Come on! Look deeper! This song is about answering the call of heaven! Think about it like this, the "crown" is the kingdom of heaven, and those who believe in the Christ concept know that we are the children I.e. "heirs" of God. So then it says I'm taking back the crown, I'm all dressed up and naked. Back in the time before sin people didn't cover themselves with clothes while they walked with God. I see what's mine and take it, refers to the fact that those who have heard the Word know they are promised the kingdom of heaven so of course if its ours we can take it. That I would like to emphasize for the person who took this line as evidence that he "steals" something. You can't steal that which is yours! The finders keepers loosers weepers refers to just shrugging off the people who don't get the Christ concept. They are missing out but we can't let that stop us. The other lyric that's relevant here is the "Dirty dirty trick in the back ground that refers to the dirty trick our sin plays on us by making us continue to believe we are unworthy of the kingdom. The demonic imagery serves to relay the truth that no matter how ""dirty" we see ourselves, heaven is already ours, we just have to "take it". Don't fall for the dirty dirty trick"! Lol

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