Human Clay is the second studio album by the post-grunge rock band Creed. It was released on September 28, 1999, under Wind-Up Records. “Higher,” the album’s first single, was released on August 24, 1999. The second, third, and fourth singles (“What If”, “With Arms Wide Open,” and “Are You Ready?” were released on January 31, 2000, April 24, 2000, and August 7, 2000, respectively.
Stylistically, Human Clay is a hard rock and post-grunge record. The album helped push the post-grunge genre into a more mainstream and commercial light.
Human Clay became a massive commercial success, reaching #1 on the Billboard 200 chart and eventually becoming certified 11x Platinum by the RIAA.
Mark Tremonti, Creed’s lead guitarist, the clay human on the album’s cover art represents:
…our actions, that what we are is up to us, that we lead our own path and make our own destiny.