Chop Suey!

In an interview, Daron Malakian explained, "The song is about how we are regarded differently depending on how we pass. Everyone deserves to die. Like, if I were now to die from drug abuse, they might say I deserved it because I abused dangerous drugs. Hence the line, 'I cry when angels deserve to die.'"[5] The lyrics for the midsection ("Father into your hands I commend my spirit") were randomly picked out by Serj Tankian from Rick Rubin's book collection after Tankian was struggling for ideas.[6] Although it was not revealed what book the line was taken from, it is originally from the Bible, appearing in Luke 23:46.[7]

The song was originally titled either "Suicide" (according to Odadjian) or "Self-Righteous Suicide" (according to Rubin), but the name was changed in response to real or anticipated pushback from Columbia Records.[8][9] According to Odadjian, the song title is a wordplay: "Suey" is "suicide", "chopped" in half.[9] Most pressings of the album include an intro to the track where lead singer Serj Tankian can faintly be heard saying "we're rolling 'Suicide'" while drummer John Dolmayan is counting the band in.

The music video was the band's first collaboration with the acclaimed director Marcos Siega, and is set in the parking lot of the Oak Tree Inn motel in Los Angeles, hometown of the band. The members are performing the song on stage, surrounded by approximately 1,500 fans. Editing devices are used to create the effect of the band members "walking through" one another and teleporting on and off the stage, an effect similar to one used in the Red Hot Chili Peppers video "Around the World". One scene briefly shows Tankian eating chop suey with some fans, the only reference to the title dish in either the song or the video. The video makes use of the SnorriCam technique, in which an actor will have a camera attached to them with a harness, making it appear as though the background is moving and the actor is stationary. In the middle of the video the Flag of Armenia can be seen. The video has been viewed over one billion times on YouTube, making it the first metal music video to do so (shortly followed by "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica).

As of 2023, the video currently has over 1.2 billion views on YouTube, making it one of the most viewed rock videos on the platform, ranked at tenth place.

Loudwire included the song in its list of The Best Hard Rock Songs Of The 21st Century, where it was ranked at number one.[10] Loudwire and Kerrang both named it as System of a Down's best song.[11][12] In March 2023, Rolling Stone ranked "Chop Suey!" at number 37 on their "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time" list.[13]

"Chop Suey!" is the first single of Toxicity, an album that was number one on the charts during the week of the September 11, 2001 attacks. A controversy surrounding the popular single, especially the line '"I don't think you trust in my self-righteous suicide"', at the time led to Clear Channel Radio placing the song on a list of post-9/11 inappropriate titles. Although it was never actually banned completely from the air, Clear Channel Radio stations were advised against playing any of the songs on the list.[14]

"Chop Suey!" was a moderate success on the charts around the world. In Australia, after hitting No. 3 on the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2001, with virtually no airplay on commercial radio, it debuted and peaked at No. 14 in February 2002. It is System of a Down's highest-charting single in Australia. In the United States, the song peaked at No. 76, making it the band's lowest peaking song on the Hot 100 due to the fact it was taken off the radio for its political lyrics. On the Modern Rock Tracks, "Chop Suey!" peaked at No. 7, becoming the band's first top ten single.[15] In the UK Singles Chart, it debuted and peaked at No. 17.

• "Chop Suey!" Live Performance Video on YouTube