Prije tri desetljeća, legenda losanđeleske hip hop scene, veliki Ice-T i njegov dugogodišnji prijatelj Ernie C odlučili su iskoristiti zajednički interes za heavy metal glazbu kako bi oformili Body Count – bend koji je među prvima uspješno spojio hip hop, thrash i hardcore punk.
Nakon prvog nastupa, koji je održan 1991. godine na poznatom Lollapalooza festivalu, ovi rap metal pioniri zahvaljujući svojoj inovativnosti postali su jedni od najutjecajnijih izvođača u glazbenoj povijesti. “Body Count“, njihov kultni prvijenac koji nam je donio klasike kao što su istoimena “Body Count”, “KKK Bitch”, “Bowels of the Devil” te kontroverzna “Cop Killer”, smatra se jednim od najboljih metal izdanja svih vremena. Iako je zahvaljujući njemu grupa stekla ogroman broj obožavatelja, eksplicitne teme koje se provlače kroz svaku pjesmu izazvale su burne reakcije brojnih utjecajnih političara i novinara.
Tijekom nadolazećih godina povijest benda obilježile su tragične smrti čak trojice članova originalne postave. Basist Mooseman bio je žrtva drive-by pucnjave, dok su bubnjar Beatmaster V i gitarist D-Roc preminuli od bolesti.
Body Count iza sebe ima šest LP-a, a posljednja dva, “Manslaughter” i “Bloodlust“, spadaju u sam vrh najnovije metal glazbe. Da je bend još uvijek utjecajan i cijenjen pokazuje i činjenica da je jedan od njegovih najrecentnijih singlova, “Black Hoodie”, 2017. godine nominiran za nagradu Grammy u kategoriji najbolje metal izvedbe.
Posljednji nastup u Hrvatskoj održali su davne 1997., a ove godine zagrebačku će publiku raspametiti svojim opakim gitarskim riffovima 19. lipnja u Boćarskom domu. Do tada, neće štetiti da se još jednom prisjetimo nekih od njihovih najupečatljivijih tekstova.
“Cops are killing people and never do time, in the hood we killing each other like that ain’t no crime. I’m feeling the tension, don’t tell me you don’t. These fools will get us all killed, don’t tell me they won’t.”
14. “Last Days” – (“Violent Demise: The Last Days”, 1997.)
“Under normal circumstances I would be waking you and your rich parents up at gunpoint, demanding the combination to the wall safe. Why are you here? Is this some voyeuristic bullshit? See a black man sing?”
13. “Pop Bubble” – (“Manslaughter”, 2014.)
“Children starve, our veterans come out to the real war. They’re penitent on borrowed time. The beggars steal, the media lies.”
“Take you down to my hood, take you out to play. See the results of AK spray, pick up a baby girl missing a leg. Come home and find your whole family dead, get a 4.5 cocked up to your head.”
11. “Dirty Bombs” – (“Murder 4 Hire”, 2006.)
“Good evening, welcome to Channel 4 news. Beware of all Middle Eastern people, they could possibly be terrorists.”
10. “No Lives Matter” – (“Bloodlust”, 2017.)
“We say that black lives matter, well truthfully they really never have. No one ever really gave a fuck.”
9. “Street Lobotomy” – (“Born Dead”, 1994.)
“I love to smoke crack. I love to shoot smack. I love to fuckin’ drink. I love my smoke when it stinks. I need it in my veins. I need it in my brain. I love to do blow, that’s the way to go. You got some PCP? How ’bout some LSD? I’m havin’ lots of fun. I might as well use a gun. Don’t even ask me why. Maybe I wanna die.”
8. “Necessary Evil” – (“Born dead”, 1994.)
“Cop killed a little girl. Armed robbery. Shooter of a drive-by. Smokin’ cain. Sellin’ joints in junior high. Head from a minor.”
7. “There Goes the Neighbourhood” – (“Body Count”, 1992.)
“Don’t they know rock’s just for whites? Don’t they know the rules? Those blacks want everything in the fucking world.”
6. “Bowels of the Devil” – (“Body Count”, 1992.)
“Some ol’ sucker, he tried to put a move on me. I shot him in the face. Murder in the first degree.”
5. “Body Count” – (“Body Count”, 1992.)
“I hear it every night. Another gun fight. The tension mounts, on with the body count. Last weekend thirty seven kids killed in gang warfare in my back yard.”
4. “Freedom of Speech” – (“Body Count”, 1992.)
“Freedom of speech, that’s some motherfuckin’ bullshit. You say the wrong thing, they’ll lock your ass up quick. The FCC says ‘profanity – no airplay’? They can suck my dick while I take a shit all day. Think I give a fuck about some silly bitch named Gore?”
3. “Shallow Graves” – (“Born Dead”, 1994.)
“MIA, yeah right, you think they give a fuck? You’re just pawns in the game off the board, brainwashed to the point where you kill at the drop of a dime. But it’s not called a crime. Vietnam, Persian Gulf, did we win ? Did we lose?”
2. “KKK Bitch” – (“Body Count”, 1992.)
“D-Roc had this Nazi girl, my man Mooseman had a skinhead. I fell in love with Tipper Gore’s two twelve year old nieces.”
1. “Cop Killer” – (“Body Count”, 1992.)
“I’m ’bout to bust some shots off. I’m ’bout to dust some cops off. I’m a cop killer, better you than me. I got this long-assed knife and your neck looks just right.”
