Body Count is a popular American rap metal band. At the origins of the team is a rapper who is known to fans and music lovers under the creative pseudonym Ice-T. He is the main vocalist and author of the most popular compositions of the repertoire of his "brainchild". The musical style of the group had a dark and sinister sound, which is inherent in most traditional heavy metal bands.
Most music critics believe that the presence of a rap artist in a heavy metal band paved the way for the development of rap metal and nu metal. Ice-T practically did not use recitative in his tracks.
Body Count: The history of the creation and composition of the group
The team was formed in Los Angeles (California) in early 1990. The "father" of the group is considered to be the talented American rapper Ice-T.
Ice-T has been interested in heavy metal since childhood. The future musician was raised by a cousin named Earl. The latter adored listening to rock songs. He listened to the tracks of rock bands of the early 1980s.
Tracy Marrow (real name Ice-T) positioned himself as a rapper at the beginning of his creative career. A little later, together with like-minded people, he formed the Body Count group. Ice-T continued to develop himself as a solo singer and rap artist in parallel with his work in the group.
The second member of the new group was the musician Ernie C. Tracey Murrow became the main vocalist.
Music critics were ambivalent about Murrow's vocal abilities. And they commented that his singing is far from professional level.
The first members of the group were:
- Tracy Murrow;
- Beatmaster V;
- Dee Rock;
- Ernie C.
Throughout the existence of the collective, the composition of the group has changed several times. Beatmaster V, Mooseman, Sean E. Mack, Dee Rock (The Executor), Jonathan James, Grise, OT, Bendrix are all listed as former members of the band.
Some members of the group are no longer alive. For example, Dee Rock died of lymphoma, Beatmaster V died of blood cancer, and Mooseman was killed. At this time, the line-up looks like this: Ice-T, Ernie C, Juan of the Dead, Vincent Price, Will Ill Will Dorsey Jr., Sean E Sean and Little Ice (son of the frontman).
The creative path of the group
Ice-T presented the new band at one of the music festivals in 1991. The frontman devoted half of the set to hip-hop compositions, and the second part to Body Count songs. This made it possible to interest fans of different age categories and musical preferences. The team first appeared on the debut LP Ice-T OG Original Gangster. In general, the group was warmly received by fans of alternative music.
In 1992, the band's discography was replenished with the debut disc of the same name. Album produced by Sire/Warner Records. Longplay became the reason for organizing a long tour. As a result, the musicians managed to fall in love with their tracks even more music lovers.
A year later, a cover version of the Hey Joe track was presented for the Jimi Hendrix tribute album. The musicians managed to convey the incredible sound of the musical composition. They kept the general mood of the composition, adding an individual sound to it.
In 1994, the group's discography was replenished with a second disc. The collection was called Born Dead.
Longplay recorded on Virgin Records.
In the late 1990s, the album Body Count Violent Demise: The Last Days was recorded. Before the creation of the LP, bassist Musman left the band. He was replaced by Grizzly. After the presentation of the record, it turned out that Beatmaster V had blood cancer. In the year of the presentation of the third studio album, the musician died. His place was taken by O.T.
Losses in the team
After some time, the talented Grizz left the team. These were not the only losses. Dee Rock died in 2004 due to complications from lymphoma. Thus, only the “fathers” of the group, Ice-T and Ernie C, remained from the first line-up.
Losses did not take away the desire to create from the musicians. In the summer of 2006, the premiere of the fourth disc took place. The Murder 4 Hire compilation was created thanks to the label Escapi Music.
At the time of the recording of the fourth studio album, the line-up consisted of Ice-T, Vincent Price (bassist) and Bendrix (rhythm guitarist). After the presentation of the record, the group was not seen for some time. The musicians needed time to breathe.
At the stage of a creative break, the musicians gathered for the occasion. In 2009, they attended several festivals and celebrations. And in 2010, Body Count wrote the track The Gears of War. It was the music score for the computer game Gears of War.
Restoration of the creative activity of the Body Count team
In 2012, it became known that Body Count was working on a new album. Then it turned out that the musicians signed a contract with a new label.
The band's discography was replenished with the full-length LP Manslaughter (2014). In the teaser for the new record, Ice-T presented the track Talk Shit, Get Shot. The collection was warmly received not only by fans, but also by music critics.
The presentation of the sixth studio album Bloodlust took place in 2017. The album was produced by Century Media Records. The release of the full-length LP was preceded by the premiere of the single No Lives Matter. Invited musicians took part in the recording of the collection: Max Cavalier, Randy Blythe and Dave Mustaine.
After the presentation of the collection, Ice-T confirmed the information that his son Tracy Marrow Jr. (Little Ice) joined the group. A relative of the frontman in the team took the place of the backing vocalist.
In 2018, it turned out that the musicians were working on a new LP in a recording studio.
The musicians revealed the title of the upcoming Carnivore album.
As a result, the musicians started recording the collection only a year later. The title track was released as a single at the end of the year. The presentation of the seventh studio album took place in 2020. In November 2020, it became known that the Body Count group was nominated for a Grammy Award.
Group Body Count in the current time period
In 2021, the Grammy Music Awards ceremony took place in the United States of America. The event took place without spectators, as the country was subject to restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Body Count with their track Bum-Rush won the prestigious award in the nomination "Best Metal Performance". The guys bypassed such groups as In This Moment, Power Trip and singer Poppy.
