Crazy Town lead singer Shifty Shellshock – whose real name is Seth Binzer – has sadly passed away at the age of 49.
According to the LA medical examiner, the beloved vocalist was found dead in his home in Los Angeles on Monday (June 24), although no cause of death has been given. Throughout his life, the musician has struggled with drug addiction, and famously appeared in the reality TV shows Celebrity Rehab and Sober House.
Back in 2012, Binzer suffered a terrifying ordeal when he was admitted to hospital after losing consciousness. The star was placed in a coma before he was released from hospital.
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The musician recently opened up about getting sober and his struggles with substance abuse. Eight weeks before his death, he took to Instagram to share a candid update about his challenges.
(Image: Getty Images)
He wrote: “I’m a lover than a fighter …but the one I need to love more Instead of fight with is myself .. mr shifty true Love # Sober alive and grateful (sic).”
Fans of the musician flooded to X – formerly known as Twitter – to share their heartache and messages of condolences online. One user penned: “Damn… RIP Seth Brooks Binzer a.k.a. Shifty Shellshock (Crazy Town).”
Another added: “RIP Set Binzer aka Shifty from Crazy Town. May you find peace” as a third chimed in with: “Seth Binzer AKA Shifty Shellshock died today. Condolences to his family, friends and the Crazy Town family.”
(Image: Getty Images for Rockefellas Studio)
The hitmaker first met Bret ‘Epic’ Mazur back in 1992, with the pair initially performing under the name Brimstone Sluggers. It wasn’t until 1999 that they co-founded Crazy Town, and they quickly went from strength to strength.
However, a year later the group were due to tour as part of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne’s Ozzfest. But Binzer was arrested shortly before the tour was due to kick off after he threw a chair out of a window while intoxicated.
The band were best known for their 2000 smash hit Butterfly, which soared to number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 for two non-consecutive weeks. Away from the US, the song topped the charts in seven countries around the world, including Austria, Denmark and Norway.
(Image: Getty Images)
It also reached the top ten on the charts of Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Their hit samples Pretty Little Ditty from the Red Hot Chilli Petters’ 1989 album Mother’s Milk.
Their debut album, The Gift of Game, sold more than 1.5million copies worldwide. But after their 2002 follow-up single Darkhorse was a flop, the pair parted ways. The group reformed back in 2007 and took to the stage two years later.
Their third studio album, The Brinstone Sluggers followed in 2015. In January 2017, Mazur announced he was leaving the band, with Rick Dixon, Nick Diiorio and Kevin Kapler also leaving three months later in April.
(Image: WireImage)
Following their departure, Binzer added an ‘X’ next to the band’s name, reportedly because it’s “used by gangs to symbolise a territory that has just been won.” But things soon fell apart for the singer when the Crazy Town tour bus crashed into a moose in Ontario, Canada.
After the incident, members of the crew, including Binzer, were treated for cuts and bruises at a nearby hospital. Away from the band, the hitmaker also boasted a solo career and joined forces with British producer and musician Paul Oakenfold.
The pair produced his 2002 single Starry Eyes Surprise which featured on his solo album, Happy Love Sick, that was released in 2004. The star often found himself in trouble with the law, and was charged with crimes including burglary and selling and using recreational drugs.
Binzer was famously in a relationship with Jasmine Lennard in 2010, but it is understood their romance didn’t end smoothly. Police were called to a domestic disturbance between the pair the following year shortly before they parted ways.
In 2022, he started dating his childhood friend and Punky Brewster actress Soleil Moon Frye, 47. The singer is survived by his two children, a son named Halo from his marriage to Melissa Clark and another son named Gage who he shares with a woman named Tracy.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
