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Biography
about|the band||Body count (disambiguation)Infobox musical artist | name = Body Count| caption = Body Count performs at a concert in Prague , 2006| image_size = | landscape = yes| background = group_or_band| alias =| origin = Los Angeles , California , U.S.| genre = Speed metal , thrash metal | years_active = 1990—2006; 2009—present| label = Sire Records|Sire , Virgin Records|Virgin , Escapi Music| associated_acts =| website = URL| http://www.icet.com/| current_members = Ice-T Ernie C O.T. Vincent Price Bendrix| past_members = Lloyd Roberts|Mooseman Victor Ray Wilson|Beatmaster V D-Roc the Executioner Griz Body Count is an American Heavy metal music|heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles , California , in 1990. The group is fronted by rapper and actor Ice-T , who founded the group out of his interest in heavy metal music, taking on the role of vocalist and writing the lyrics for most of the group's songs. Lead guitarist Ernie C has been responsible for writing the group's music. Their controversial Body Count (album)|self-titled debut album was released on Sire Records in 1992.
The song " Cop Killer (song)|Cop Killer " was the subject of much controversy. Although Sire Records' parent company, Warner Bros. Records , defended the single, Ice-T chose to remove the track from the album because he felt that the controversy had eclipsed the music itself. The group left Sire the following year. Since then, they have released three further albums on different labels, none of which have been received as commercially or critically well as their debut album.
3 out of the band's original 5 members are deceased: D-Roc_the_Executioner|D-Roc (cancer), Victor Ray Wilson|Beatmaster V (leukemia) and Lloyd Roberts|Mooseman (drive-by shooting).
History
Pre-formation
Ice-T 's interest in heavy metal music|heavy metal stemmed from sharing a room with his cousin Earl, who was a fan of rock music and only listened to the local rock stations. Ice-T particularly enjoyed heavy metal, citing Edgar Winter , Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath as his favorite bands. Ice-T attended Crenshaw High School , where a few classmates shared his interest in the genre, including musicians Ernie C , Lloyd Roberts|Mooseman , Victor Ray Wilson|Beatmaster V and D-Roc the Executioner . Ice-T began a solo career as a rapper, and later decided to form Body Count with these friends.cite web |url=Allmusic|class=artist|id=p26209|pure_url=yes |title=Body Count Biography |accessdate=2007-10-08 |author= |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher= Allmusic |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=
Ice-T cowrote the band's music and lyrics with lead guitarist Ernie C, and took on the duties of lead vocalist, even though he felt that he did not have a great singing voice.cite book |last= |first= |author=Ice T |coauthors=Sigmund, Heidi |editor= |others= |title=The Ice Opinion: Who Gives a Fuck? |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=1994 |month= |publisher=Pan Books |location= |language= |isbn=0-330-33629-0 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages=99–101; 166–180 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= The original line-up consisted of Mooseman on bass guitar|bass , Beatmaster V on drum kit|drums and D-Roc on rhythm guitar .
Early days
Ice-T introduced the band at Lollapalooza in 1991, devoting half of his set to his hip hop songs, and half to Body Count songs, increasing his appeal with both alternative music fans and middle-class teenagers.cite web |url=Allmusic|class=artist|id=p89063|pure_url=yes |title=Ice-T > Biography |accessdate=2007-10-09 |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |work= Allmusic |publisher= Macrovision Corporation Some considered the Body Count performances to be the highlight of the tour.cite book |last=Apter |first=Jeff |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=Fornication: The Red Hot Chili Peppers Story |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=2004 |month= |publisher=Omnibus Press |location= |language= |isbn=1-84449-381-4 |oclc= |doi= |id= |page=250 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= The group made its first album appearance on Ice-T's 1991 solo album O.G. Original Gangster . The song, "Body Count", was preceded by a spoken introduction in which Ice-T responds to allegations that he had "sold out" by incorporating rock elements into his rap albums by pointing out that rock music originated with African-American artists such as Chuck Berry , Bo Diddley and Little Richard , in addition to stating that "as far as I'm concerned, music is music. I don't look at it as rock, Rhythm and blues|R& B , or all that kind of stuff. I just look at it as music. ... I do what I like and I happen to like rock 'n' roll , and I feel sorry for anybody who only listens to one form of music."Ice-T (1991). "Body Count". O.G. Original Gangster . Sire Records|Sire / Warner Bros. Records . ISBN 7-5992-6492-2
Body Count's Body Count (album)|self-titled debut album was released on Sire Records|Sire / Warner Bros. Records on March 31, 1992. On the strength of the album, Body Count toured internationally, developing a strong following. When the group performed in Milan , Italy , some of the punk subculture|punks in the crowd began spitting at Ernie C. Ice-T attempted to calm the situation by telling the crowd not to spit, but the spitting continued. As the band prepared to play " Cop Killer (song)|Cop Killer ", Ice-T identified an audience member who spit in his direction; Ice-T responded by rushing into the crowd and punching the spitter. As the band began to play, some of the audience began fighting with Ice-T. Body Count escaped the crowd mid-song, and the promoter immediately shut the concert down.
Outside the venue, angry audience members trashed the band's tour bus. The band hailed a taxicab, but its driver abandoned the cab when the mob surrounded the taxi, leading Body Count to steal the taxi in order to escape, abandoning it and their tour coats a mile away from the venue. They hailed another cab, and the driver attempted to take them back to the venue until the band screamed at the driver to take them to the hotel. The incident was the subject of much controversy and coverage on Italian television. The band appeared on a Milan radio station, where the disc jockey told his audience, "Some clowns tried to ruin his concert. We should be angry at them. Ice-T is a guest in our country, we invited him to do all these sold-out shows, and we love him!" Several Italian fans apologized for the behavior of the Milan audience.
Cop Killer
main|Body Count (album)|Cop Killer (song) The song "Cop Killer", intended to criticize corrupt police officers , encountered controversy, as it was seen as an attack against the entire police force.cite news |url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,976203,00.html |title=Ice T Melts |accessdate=2007-10-09 |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=August 10, 1992 |year= |month= |work= |publisher= Time (magazine)|Time |pages= |language= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= According to Ice-T, "I thought I was safe. I thought within the world of rock'n'roll, you could be free to write what you want. Hell, I was listening to Talking Heads singin' ' Psycho Killer .' Fuck it, I'll make 'Cop Killer'& #33; But, that was the cross of metal with something that was real. Now we’re not just killing your family, we’re killing somebody so real that everybody just went, 'oh shit.'"cite web |url= http://www.escapimusic.com/eu/index.php? option=com_content& task=view& id=108& Itemid=31 |title=Body Count |accessdate=2007-10-09 |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= |year= |month= |work= |publisher=Escapi Music Group |pages= |language= |archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20070928084335/ http://www.escapimusic.com/eu/index.php? option=com_content& task=view& id=108& Itemid=31 |archivedate=2007-09-28
The Dallas Police Association and the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas launched a campaign to force Warner Bros. Records to withdraw the album.cite book |last=Osgerby |first=Bill |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=Youth Media |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=2004 |month= |publisher=Routledge |location= |language= |isbn=0-415-23808-0 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages=68–69 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= Within a week, they were joined by police organizations across the United States . Some critics argued that the song could cause crime and violence. Many defended the song on the basis of the group's right to freedom of speech . In The Ice Opinion: Who Gives a Fuck , Ice-T wrote that "The people who did have a platform were way off backing me on the First Amendment. That's not where all the anger should have been directed. The anger should have been generated back at the police. ... Because people jumped on the wrong issue they were able to drive this thing totally through Warner Brothers."
Over the next month, controversy against the band grew. Vice President Dan Quayle branded "Cop Killer" as being "obscene," and President George H.W. Bush publicly denounced any record company that would release such a product. At a Time-Warner shareholders' meeting, actor Charlton Heston stood and read lyrics from the song "KKK Bitch" to an astonished audience and demanded that the company take action. The criticism escalated to the point where death threats were sent to Time-Warner executives, and stockholder s threatened to pull out of the company. Finally, Ice-T decided to remove "Cop Killer" from the album of his own volition.cite web |url= http://www.theroc.org/roc-mag/textarch/roc-11/roc11-09.htm |title=Ice-T speaks out on censorship, Cop Killer, his leaving Warner Bros., and more|accessdate=2007-10-09 |last=Heck |first=Mike |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= |year= |month= |work= |publisher=The Roc |pages= |language= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= In an interview, Ice-T stated that "I didn't want my band to get pigeon-holed as that's the only reason that record sold. It just got outta hand and I was just tired of hearing it. I said, 'fuck it,' I mean they're saying we did it for money, and we didn't. I'd gave the record away, ya know, let's move on, let's get back to real issues, not a record but the cops that are out there killing people."
"Cop Killer" was replaced by a new version of "Freedom of Speech," a song from Ice-T's 1989 solo album The Iceberg/Freedom of Speech...Just Watch What You Say . The song was re-edited and remixed to give it a more rock-oriented sound. Ice-T left Warner Bros. Records the following year because of disputes over the Ice-T solo album Home Invasion (album)|Home Invasion , taking Body Count with him. Despite the controversy, the album received some praise, including A- reviews from Entertainment Weekly and The Village Voice , who later ranked the album among their list of The 40 Best Albums of 1992 .cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |author= |coauthors= |title=The 40 Best Albums Of 1992 |url= |work= |publisher= The Village Voice |id= |pages= |page= |date=March 2, 1993 |accessdate=2007-10-09 |language= |quote= |archiveurl= |archivedate= Variety (magazine)|Variety reported that the album had sold 480,000 copies by January 29, 1993.cite news |first= |last= |authorlink= |author=Augusto, Troy J. |coauthors=Turman, Katherine |title=WB board put Ice-T out in cold |url= http://www.variety.com/article/VR103473.html? categoryid=16& cs=1 |work= |publisher= Variety (magazine)|Variety |id= |pages= |page= |date=January 29, 1993 |accessdate=2007-10-09 |language= |quote= |archiveurl= |archivedate=
Later albums
In 1993, Body Count recorded a cover of " Hey Joe " for the Jimi Hendrix tribute album Stone Free: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix .cite web |url=Allmusic|class=album|id=r188440|pure_url=yes |title= Stone Free: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix overview |accessdate=2007-10-09 |author= |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher= Allmusic |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= The band released their second album, Born Dead in 1994 on Virgin Records . Prior to the recording of Body Count's third album Violent Demise: The Last Days (1997), bassist Mooseman left the group and was replaced by Griz. Drummer Beatmaster V died of leukemia soon after the album was completed,cite web |url= http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/icet/articles/story/6436921/body_count_guitarist_dead |title=Body Count Guitarist Dead |accessdate=2007-10-09 |last=Devenish |first=Colin |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=August 19, 2004 |year= |month= |work= |publisher=Rolling Stone |pages= |language= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote= and a new drummer named O.T. filled in the position. Bassist Griz left the band later on, and in the meanwhile, former bassist Mooseman was shot in a drive-by shooting in February 2001 after recording an album and preparing for another tour with Iggy Pop in his band the Trolls. In late 2004, rhythm guitarist D-Roc died due to complications from lymphoma, leaving only Ice-T and Ernie C from the original line-up.
Ice-T has stated that "For me, honestly, after something like that, you can either come to a dead stop or you can go on. ... It was so emotional. We were in the middle of making a new record together and he goes and dies? It was like, 'damn!' Soon enough, though, everybody was like, 'c'mon c'mon you gotta do it.' It was make-or-break. The key essence of Body Count is it's a band made up of friends. It's not about going out and hiring the best drummer or the best guitarist. If we don't know you, you can’t be in the band."
In July 2006, Body Count released their fourth album, Murder 4 Hire on the indie record label Escapi Music. Its album cover, featuring Uncle Sam holding a cardboard sign reading "Will Kill for Money," compares the United States military to contract killers .cite web |url= http://www.decibelmagazine.com/features_detail.aspx? id=4908 |archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20061020204850/ http://www.decibelmagazine.com/features_detail.aspx? id=4908 |archivedate=2006-10-20 |title=Interview with Ice-T |accessdate=2007-10-09 |last=Bennett |first=J |publisher= Decibel Magazine Their current line-up includes drummer O.T., bassist Vincent Price and rhythm guitarist Bendrix. Body Count plan to continue to play live and record. In regards to the future of Body Count, Ernie C stated, "We will carry on the band. I don't know if it will be Body Count, but in some form, Ice and I will always play together."
On September 6, 2009, Body Count made an appearance at the Warped Tour|Vans Warped Tour 15th-anniversary party at Club Nokia in downtown Los Angeles. The group played a 20-minute set, covered Slayer , and closed with their controversial classic "Cop Killer".cite web |url= http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.Net/news.aspx? mode=Article& newsitemID=126679 |date=2009-09-09 |title=Body Count Is Back& #33; |accessdate=2009-09-11 publisher= Blabbermouth.net Also on the bill were NOFX , Katy Perry , Pennywise (band)|Pennywise , Bad Religion and Rise Against . Mike Sullivan of ExploreMusic recently caught up with Ernie C at the 2010 edition of the Vans Warped Tour. While briefly chatting, Ernie C divulged that there will be a new Body Count record in the future; the estimated release of the album was to be summer 2011, but the album did not come out.cite web |url= http://www.exploremusic.com/explore-music-radio/2010-07-06/Heres-The-Deal-MySpace-Google-Iron-Maiden-Body-Count |title=Interview with Ernie C |accessdate=2010-07-07 |publisher= ExploreMusic Body Count wrote an exclusive song, "The Gears of War", for the video game Gears of War 3 , and performed it at a party promoting the game.cite web|url= http://kotaku.com/5809789/what-do-ice+t-gears-of-war-3-and-heavy-metal-have-in-common |title=This Was Ice-T's Gears of War 3 Concert |publisher=Kotaku.com |date=2011-06-08 |accessdate=2012-03-01
Style
Lyrics
Ice-T's lyrics focus on reality-based themes, including gang life, because he felt it would be scarier than the fantasy-based horror themes of most heavy metal bands. The band's third album, Violent Demise: The Last Days , featured album cover art depicting the hand signs of these gangs. According to Ice-T, "We named the group Body Count because every Sunday night in L.A., I'd watch the news, and the newscasters would tally up the youths killed in gang homicides that week and then just segue to sports. 'Is that all I am,' I thought, 'a body count? '"
When the band's debut album was released, Ice-T defined it as being "a rock album with a rap mentality." Like Ice-T's hip hop albums, the group's material focused on various social and political issues, with songs focusing on topics ranging from police brutality to drug abuse. Ernie C has stated that "We were just a band that played the songs that we knew how to write. Everybody writes about whatever they learned growing up, and we were no exception. Like the Beach Boys sing about the beach, we sing about the way we grew up."cite news |first=Aaron |last=Yoxheimer |authorlink= |author= |coauthors= |title=Despite a high body count of its own, band is a survivor |url= http://www.popmatters.com/pm/article/despite-a-high-body-count-of-its-own-band-is-a-survivor |work= |publisher= The Morning Call |id= |pages= |page= |date=April 6, 2007 |accessdate=2007-10-09 |language= |quote= |archiveurl= |archivedate=
Music
Body Count's musical style derives from the dark, ominous tone of heavy metal music|heavy metal bands such as Black Sabbath .cite book |last1=Marrow |first1=Tracy |authorlink1= |last2=Century |first2=Douglas |title=Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption—from South Central to Hollywood |year=2011 |publisher=Random House |isbn=97804345523280Please check ISBN|reason=Invalid length. |pages=127–140 |chapter=Freedom of Speech The band's music is described as speed metal cite book |last=Rose |first=Tricia |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=1994 |month= |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |location= |language= |isbn=0-8195-6275-0 |oclc= |doi= |id= |page=130 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= cite book |last=Austin |first=Joe |authorlink= |coauthors=Willard, Michael Nevin |editor= |others= |title=Generations of Youth: Youth Cultures and History in Twentieth-century America |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=1998 |month= |publisher=NYU Press |location= |language= |isbn=0-8147-0646-0 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages=401–402 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= and thrash metal .cite book |last=Dellamora |first=Richard |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=Postmodern Apocalypse: Theory and Cultural Practice at the End |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=1995 |month= |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |location= |language= |isbn=0-8122-1558-3 |oclc= |doi= |id= |page=251 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= cite book |last=Christie |first=Ian |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=Sound of the Beast: The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition= |series= |date= |year=2003 |month= |publisher=HarperCollins |location= |language= |isbn=0-380-81127-8 |oclc= |doi= |id= |page=300 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= According to Ernie C, "We wanted to be a big punk rock|punk band ... Our first record is almost a punk record." The album has since been credited for paving the way for the rise of rap metal|rap-metal and nu metal ,cite news |url= http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/Music/9910/27/ice.t/ |title=No thaw for rapper Ice T |accessdate=2007-10-09 |last=Freydkin |first=Donna |date=October 27, 1999 |work= |publisher=CNN |archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20050212155357/ http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/Music/9910/27/ice.t/ |archivedate=2005-02-12cite book |last=Taylor |first=Steve |title=A to X of Alternative Music |year=2006 |publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group |isbn=0-8264-8217-1, 9780826482174 |page=127 |chapter=Ice-T |chapterurl= |quote= |ref= even though Ice-T does not rapping|rap in Body Count songs, and considers it to solely be a rock music|rock band. According to Ernie C, "A lot of rappers want to be in a rock band, but it has to be done sincerely. You can’t just get anybody on guitar and expect it to work. ... Ice and I, on the other hand, really loved the music we were doing, and it showed." Ice T has recently stated that he and Ernie C are the only remaining members of Body Count.
Discography
Body Count (album)|Body Count CD/LP/CScite book |last=Strong |first=Martin Charles |authorlink= |coauthors= |editor= |others= |title=The Great Rock Discography |origdate= |origyear= |origmonth= |url= |accessdate= |edition=7th edition |series= |date= |year=2002 |month= |publisher=Canongate |location= |language= |isbn=1-84195-615-5 |oclc= |doi= |id= |pages=724–725 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= (1992, re-released later the same year without the song "Cop Killer") - #26 on the Billboard 200
Born Dead CD/LP/CS (1994) - #74 on the Billboard 200
D-Roc the Executioner (deceased) – rhythm guitar (1990—2004)
Griz – bass guitar|bass (2001)
col-end
References
Reflist|2
External links
http://www.icet.com/ Official Ice T/Body Count website
MySpace|bodycount|Body Count
Body CountGood article Category:African American musical groups Category:African American rock musicians Category:Heavy metal musical groups from California Category:Crossover thrash groups Category:Body Count|* Category:Sire Records artists Category:Virgin Records artists Category:Musical groups from Los Angeles, California Category:Musical groups established in 1990 Category:Musical quintets Category:Obscenity controversies
