Maybe no one saw the humor, or maybe they were distracted by the barely competent heavy metal of the album, but rapper Ice-T's heavy metal group launched a hurricane of publicity with their self-titled debut album, Body Count. Ice-T's music had been hard as heavy metal for a number of years, and on 1991's landmark OG Original Gangster, he recorded the speed metal/hip-hop fusion "Body Count" with his band of the same name. Body Count's lineup included Ernie-C (guitar), D-Roe (guitar), Mooseman (bass), and Beatmaster V (drums), all of whom attended Crenshaw High School in South Central Los Angeles. On the 1991 Lollapalooza tour, Ice-T performed with Body Count and earned a substantial amount of fans and praise. "Body Count" was a highlight of OG and, not coincidentally, it was the most serious and best song on their 1992 album. For the rest of Body Count, the band engaged in heavy metal clichés and lyrics that were either humorously over the top or cringe-inducing.

After it was out ...

Full Body Count biography

Heavy Metal, Rap Core