(Daily360.com) Shifty Shellshock, the lead singer of the early 2000s band Crazy Town, passed away at the age of 49. In 2001, the band had a number one hit single with “Butterfly,” but they were never able to match that success with later releases. Shellshock was born as Seth Binzer and he founded the band in 1995. A cause of death has not been revealed.
Shellshock had struggled with addiction and appeared on reality shows Celebrity Rehab and Sober House. His dad, Rollin Binzer, directed a Rolling Stones concert film that was released in 1973. Shellshock’s mom, Leslie Brooks, worked as a professional model.
The lead singer was initially inspired to form a rap group with a full band after listening to the Beastie Boys. Shellshock said the inspiration for the lyrics of the band’s hit song came from when his girlfriend questioned the lyrics of previous songs he wrote that came across as chauvinistic. That’s when Shellshock decided to write a song that was positive and sweet towards women.
The band was concerned that such a song could define their sound and limit the appeal of their music. In the end, Shellshock said the song was a “no-brainer” and it made rap music more accessible to the female audience. The debut album was released in 1999 and “Butterfly” was first released as a single in 2000. It didn’t gain popularity or hit number one until the following year.
The prevailing background riff of their hit song is a sample from the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ song “Pretty Little Ditty.” Shellshock, in an interview, explained that the sample was played by Flea as an interlude on an RHCP album and it wasn’t an actual song. He said it was the first sample they cleared another band to use and they loved how Crazy Town used it for their song “Butterfly.” After that, Shellshock said RHCP invited them to go on tour together.
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