How's It Going to Be

"How's It Going to Be"
Single by Third Eye Blind
from the album Third Eye Blind
B-side	"Horror Show"
Released	November 1997
Format	CD
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	4:13
Label	Elektra Entertainment
Writer(s)	Stephan Jenkins Kevin Cadogan
Producer(s)	Stephan Jenkins Eric Valentine Ren Klyce
Third Eye Blind singles chronology
"Graduate" (1997) "How's It Going to Be" (1997) "Losing a Whole Year" (1998) Audio sample file info · help

"How's It Going to Be" is a song by the American rock band Third Eye Blind. It was released in November 1997 as the third single from their self-titled debut album. The song deals with the trauma of the ending of a relationship and how the transition from friends to acquaintances is a brutal one.^[1] It reached number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, to become the band's second consecutive top 10 single, following "Semi-Charmed Life".^[2] In the UK, the single peaked at number 51.

Content

In an interview with Stephan Jenkins published in Billboard in 1998, he explained:

The song’s inspiration came about when Third Eye guitarist Kevin Cadogan was tinkering around with an autoharp, ‘which is a vintage-sounding instrument that you can’t really play without it having a sort of nostalgic sound to it. That inspired this emotional condition in me,’ Jenkins says. That condition surrounds the idea of lost love, of realizing that there may come a despairing day when the two meet and no longer know each other. ‘I think we all feel violated when we find that a relationship actually has time limits, that it’s not unconditional. That’s the thing that aches in people,’ he explains. ‘That’s something everybody can relate to, even when you know you have no business being with this person anymore.’^[3]

Music video

The song's music video was directed by Nigel Dick. In the video, the band members are in a car parked on a city street. On the opposite sidewalk, they spot a woman carrying many items (implied as an ex-girlfriend) enter a nearby building and immediately bring their instruments inside. They follow her to her office. As the band performs in front of the office, the woman hides behind a divider as another employee calls building security.

Charts

Chart (1997–98)	Peak position
Canada Top Singles (RPM)	6
Canada Alternative 30 (RPM)	4
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)	51
US Billboard Hot 100	9
US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[4]	5
US Billboard Adult Top 40 Tracks	5
US Billboard Mainstream Top 40	14

End of year charts

Chart (1998)	Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[5]	11

References

1. "Meaning of How's It Going to Be". stephanjenkins.com.
2. Whitburn, Joel. The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th ed., Billboard Publications, Inc. 1996. ISBN 0-8230-7632-6
3. Third Eye Blind Finds Another Audience Connection With Latest Crossover Cut. Billboard.
4. "How's It Going to Be - Third Eye Blind". billboard.com. Retrieved March 19, 2011.
5. "Billboard Top 100 - 1998". Retrieved 2010-08-28.