Ask American Songwriter, in a light feature, revisits three rock songs from the 1990s that it argues carry lessons beyond entertainment, from self-reflection to social awareness. Rather than hard news, the piece is a themed listicle celebrating how the decade's rock music engaged with weighty real-world subjects such as addiction, self-criticism and gun violence.

The three tracks highlighted are Radiohead's "Creep," praised for its self-deprecating honesty; Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Under the Bridge," in which Anthony Kiedis recounts his past drug addiction; and Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," inspired by a real news story about a boy who shot himself in his classroom, which the article credits with raising awareness of gun violence.