It is the band's most successful song, having reached number one on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks, and helped the album achieve gold status in 2001.

Lyrically, "Breakdown" describes a high school student filled with resentment and self-disgust.

In combination with the band's acoustic-heavy sound, "Breakdown" also utilizes a digital effect at the end of the chorus.

The tightly produced arrangement makes for a well balanced ratio of hard rock and pop.

He described the meaning behind "Breakdown" in an interview with MTV: The song was included on the soundtrack to the 2001 film Driven and The Shield: Music from the Streets in 2005.