Citizen King was an American alternative rock band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The group formed in 1993 after the breakup of their previous band, Wild Kingdom. Citizen King's style blended hip-hop, soul, and punk elements. Their first LP and EP achieved local commercial success around Wisconsin and were well received by critics. In 1995, they released Brown Bag LP, produced in part by Speech from Arrested Development. The band followed up with the EP Count the Days in April 1996. They toured extensively, including a performance at the South by Southwest festival that led to their signing with Warner Bros. Records. In March 1999, Citizen King released their album Mobile Estates, which included their top hit "Better Days (And the Bottom Drops Out)". The song peaked at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was featured in the pilot episode and series finale of Malcolm in the Middle. It also reached number 3 on the Modern Rock chart, number 33 on Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales, and Number 1 on Top 40 Recurrents. The band performed at Humble & Fred Fest at Fort York in Toronto that year. A remix of "Better Days (And the Bottom Drops Out)" was used in the 2000 movie Gone in 60 Seconds, and the original version appeared in the video game Street Sk8er 2. The band disbanded in 2002, with keyboardist Dave Cooley continuing his career as a producer and mastering engineer.
