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This disambiguation page is currently linked from a large number of articles. Please help direct these ambiguous links to articles dealing with the specific meaning intended. (February 2012)

Roach may refer to:

Animals[link]

• Cockroach
• Fish, including
  • Certain members of family Cyprinidae
  • the genus Rutilus
    • Common Roach (Rutilus rutilus)
  • the California Roach of the monotypic genus Hesperoleucus

Other[link]

• Roach (cannabis culture), the butt of a marijuana cigarette
• Roach (surname), people who bear the last name Roach
• Roach (headdress), traditional Native American headdress usually of porcupine hair
• Roach, Missouri, an unincorporated community in central Missouri
• Roach, Nevada, a rail siding in southern Nevad
• Roach, a character in Apocalypse Now
• Roach, a variant of the game pool (cue sports)
• Roach, a Zerg unit from video game StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
• Gary "Roach" Sanderson, a British playable character in Modern Warfare 2
• a part of a sail
• To clip, shave, or hog the mane of a horse
• a type of conformation of the back of a horse

See also[link]

• Papa Roach, an American hard rock band
• Food truck, sometimes referred to as a "roach coach"
• Roach stone, a type of Portland Stone with lots of shell fragments within the stone

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Vybz Kartel
Background information
Birth name	Adidja Palmer
Born	(1976-01-07) 7 January 1976 (age 36) Kingston, Jamaica
Origin	Portmore, Jamaica
Genres	Reggae, Dancehall, Reggae fusion
Occupations	Deejay, songwriter, entrepreneur, lyricist, producer
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Adidjaheim Records
Associated acts	Beenie Man, Aidonia, Elephant Man, Ninjaman, The Alliance, Portmore Empire, Major Lazer & Popcaan, Kano, Vanessa Bling
Website	www.vybzkartel.co.uk

Adidja Palmer (born 7 January 1976)- ^[1][2][3] better known as Vybz Kartel, is a Jamaican dancehall artist, songwriter and businessman. He has many nicknames, including: Addi, The Teacher, World Boss, Kartel, Vybz, Gaza General and Gaza Don.

Biography[link]

Adidja Palmer began his career as a teenager in 1993 with his first recording "Love Fat Woman", released on Alvin Reid's label "One Heart", using the moniker "Adi Banton", a homage to Buju Banton.^[4] Palmer was later part of the three-member group "Vybez Cartel", keeping the slightly altered name after group split up, and became a protege of Bounty Killer, for whom he claims to have written nearly 30 songs, including "Gal Clown".^[5]

Vybz Kartel rose to prominence in 2003 after a string of hits in Jamaica. The year culminated in a pre-planned on-stage clash with Ninjaman at the annual dancehall festival Sting in Kartel's hometown of Portmore. The clash turned violent when Kartel's crewmembers, as well as Kartel himself, threw punches and assaulted Ninjaman onstage.^[6] While Kartel's manager initially blamed Ninjaman for the fracas,^[6] Kartel himself quickly apologised to Ninjaman and Sting organizers for the fracas.^[7] Four days after the incident, the two artists appeared before the press to announce a settlement of their differences and to end any animosity.^[8]

He established his own label Adidjahiem/Notnice Records with his business partner and producer Ainsley "Notnice" Morris.^[9] In 2010, he released his album Pon Di Gaza 2.0 on Adidjahiem/Notnice Records in collaboration with Tads Record Inc.^[10] In Spring 2011, Vybz Kartel released an album entitled 'Kingston Story' with Brooklyn hip hop/electro producer Dre Skull.^[11]

Kartel has worked on collaborations and remixes with hip hop and R&B musicians Jay-Z, Rihanna, Missy Elliott, Busta Rhymes, M.I.A, Pharrell, Kardinal Offishall, Akon, Jim Jones, Lil Wayne and Eminem.

In 2009 he had succeeded internationally with his hit song featuring a popular female Jamaican Deejay 'Spice' - "Ramping Shop" debuting on the Billboard Top 100 Singles charts,^[12] and "Dollar Sign" being in regular rotation on urban radio stations in the US.^[13] His 2010 single "Clarks" was one of his biggest international successes, remaining in the top 3 Reggae Singles gaining the most radio plays in North America for 40 weeks.^[14] "Clarks" was also featured on the TV series So You Think You Can Dance Canada,^[15] and on a CNN segment on dancehall dance.^[16] MTV's Vice Guide to Dancehall featured Kartel at his weekly dance party, Street Vybz Thursday.^[17]

After splitting with Bounty Killer-led Alliance in 2006, Kartel founded the Portmore Empire, a group of dancehall deejays and singers from his Portmore neighborhood that he signed to his newly founded Adidjahiem/Notnice Records. Members of the group as of 2011 were: Popcaan, Shawn Storm, Sheba, Gaza Indu, Tommy Lee, Singing Maxwell, Singa Blinga, Lenny Mattic. Former members include Lisa Hype,^[18] Gaza Kim,^[19] Black Ryno,^[20] Jah Vinci, Dosa Medicine and Merital Family^[21].

Feud with Mavado[link]

Towards the end of 2006, Vybz Kartel left The Alliance. Tensions arose following Kartel's continued association with Bounty Killer's longtime enemy, Beenie Man, including Kartel attending Beenie Man's wedding to Bounty Killer's ex-girlfriend D'Angel.^[22] Due to Kartel's defection from The Alliance and his 'parring' (fraternising) with Beenie Man, a series of songs and counteraction songs ensued - the main proponents being Kartel and Mavado.

A very public feud between Vybz Kartel and former collaborator Mavado arose towards the end of 2006, stemming from Vybz' much publicized departure from the dancehall conglomerate group The Alliance. The feud resulted in numerous diss tracks released, in which each artist dissed the other and their associates over popular dancehall rhythms.^[23] In a police-overseen press conference in March 2007, both Mavado and Vybz Kartel publicly announced an end to hostilities and apologized to fans.^[24]

However, by the summer of 2008, tensions flared with a renewal of "diss tracks" from each artist, and a lyrical clash between the two at Sting 2008 left mixed views as to the "winner".^[25][26] Most of 2009 saw a continuation of the public feud, which dominated Jamaican media and, to a certain extent, Jamaican culture, with the two artists' factions, Gaza (Kartel) and Gully (Mavado), being adopted by Jamaican youth, in some cases leading to street violence.^[27][28]

On 8 December 2009, Kartel and Mavado met with Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding in an attempt to end the feud, which had by that time fueled mob attacks in some of the inner-city neighborhoods of Kingston.^[29] The two had performed together on-stage the previous night in a sign of goodwill at the West Kingston Jamboree, a concert promoted by drug lord^[30] Christopher "Dudus" Coke.^[23] After the truce in December 2009, the two artists were scheduled to perform a unity concert March 2010 in Barbados, which was later cancelled by the prime minister of that country.^[31]

Business[link]

In 2008, Vybz Kartel launched his own liquor line Street Vybz Rum. He hosts a weekly dance party Street Vybz Thursday, at the Building, Kingston nightclub he manages with Street Vybz Rum business partner Corey Todd.^[32] The rum is officially distributed by Vybz Distillers Limited. The same year, he also released his own condom line, Daggering Condoms.^[33] Kartel's goal for 2011 is to release his own shoe line named Addi's, as well as his own line of "cake soap".^[34]

When his singles "Clarks", "Clarks 2 (Clarks Again)" and "Clarks 3 (Wear Weh Yuh Have)" featured the British shoe brand Clarks in 2010, its sales numbers and prices in Jamaica increased considerably.^[35]

Vybz Kartel has also hosted his own reality television show "Teacha's Pet" on CVM Jamaica broadcast channel, the first reality television show hosted by a dancehall artist in Jamaica. The premise of "Teacha's Pet" finds 20 women living in a Kingston house vying for the artist's affection; the show's lascivious content elicited condemnation of its sponsor, telecommunications company LIME. The show came to a halt with the artist's arrest on murder charges in September 2011.

Controversies[link]

Whitening[link]

Vybz Kartel's Skin before and after he bleached his skin

Kartel has come under controversy over perceived skin whitening, or "bleaching", leading him to claim to the use of "cake soap" to lighten his skin.^[36][37] The Blue Power Group, Jamaican manufacturer of the popular cake soap (or "blue soap"), has refuted claims it changes skin color.^[38] Kartel then stated the soap used to lighten his skin was his own brand, which he intends to release on the local market.^[34]

Airwave Ban[link]

In September 2011 the National Communications Network of Guyana banned Vybz Kartel from the airwaves—the first such action against a specific artist. His music contained "obscene lyrics" and brought "nothing positive" to the entertainment industry, said NCN spokesman Martin Goolsarran (Wednesday, Sept 21st) after a week of internal debate. He said NCN was reviewing the lyrics of other musicians and could ban them as well. In fact the government had no problem with Kartel, its Tourism Ministry inviting him to an August music festival, but he angered it and Guyanese promoters when he failed to show up.^[39]

Murder charge[link]

Vybz Kartel being arrested in October 2011

On 29 September 2011, Kartel was arrested by police. Jamaica's Major Investigation Taskforce (MIT) charged him with murder, conspiracy to murder and illegal possession of a firearm. The deceased was Barrington 'Bossie' Burton, a 27-year-old businessman and music promoter based in the Kingston suburb of Portmore. They first visited Kingston's Norbrook community where the DJ resides, then went to a property on Swallowfield Avenue in Kingston's Havendale area. That residence was the scene of a fire several weeks ago; a scorched computer hard-drive and several boxes were removed. They then drove to Portmore to a home purportedly owned by Kartel's mother, where a number of items were similarly confiscated. Kartel was detained for the weekend in relation to a partially burned, decomposing body found inside the Swallowfield Avenue home.^[40]

Kartel was granted bail for the Burton murder 23 March 2012 for JD$3,000,000, but currently remains jailed in connection on a second murder, of one Clive 'Lizzard' Williams.^[41]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• 2003: Up 2 Di Time
• 2004: More Up 2 Di Time
• 2005: J.M.T.
• 2009: Most Wanted
• 2010: Pon di Gaza 2.0
• 2011: Kingston Story

Singles[link]

Guest appearances[link]

Awards[link]

Kartel has had several collaborations with international hip hop and pop stars. He has released two albums for the UK/US based label Greensleeves Records. He was also nominated for the Source,^[43] VIBE and UK MOBO awards, although his 2004 UK MOBO award nomination was withdrawn amidst controversy over homophobic content of his lyrics.^[44]

• 2003
  • Stone Love's 30th Anniversary
    • DJ of the Year 2005

• 2008
  • CUMA (Caribbean Urban Music Awards)

• 2009
  • EME Awards^[45]
    • Male DJ of the Year
    • Lyricist/Songwriter of the Year
    • Song of the Year (Romping Shop ft. Spice)

• 2010
  • EME Awards^[46]

References[link]

Papa Roach
Papa Roach live at the Zwarte Cross festival in Lichtenvoorde on July 18, 2010.
Background information
Origin	Vacaville, California, United States
Genres	Hard rock, heavy metal, rap rock, post-grunge, alternative metal
Years active	1993 (1993)–present
Labels	Eleven Seven Music, DGC, Interscope, Geffen, DreamWorks
Associated acts	Fight the Sky, Pulley
Website	www.paparoach.com
Members
Jacoby Shaddix Jerry Horton Tobin Esperance Tony Palermo
Past members
Will James Dave Buckner

Papa Roach is an American rock band from Vacaville, California.^[1] Their first major-label release was the triple-platinum album Infest (2000). The group's success continued with their gold album Lovehatetragedy (2002), their platinum album Getting Away with Murder (2004), The Paramour Sessions (2006), and Metamorphosis (2009). The band's seventh album, Time for Annihilation, was released on August 31, 2010. Papa Roach has sold about 10 million album copies worldwide, and are known for their hits "Last Resort", "Between Angels And Insects", "She Loves Me Not", "...To Be Loved", "Scars", "Forever", and "Hollywood Whore".

Band history[link]

Formation and early years: 1993–1999[link]

The formation of Papa Roach began in January 1993, when lead singer Jacoby Shaddix and drummer Dave Buckner met on the Vacaville High School football field during an intense match, where the two ended up talking about music. They were later joined by trombonist Ben Luther and bass guitarist Will James. They decided to enter the school's talent show, where they performed a cover version of Jimi Hendrix's song "Fire", but they ultimately did not win the contest. In March 1993, trombonist Ben Luther was replaced by lead guitarist Jerry Horton from nearby Vanden High School. Horton was introduced to the band through his girlfriend, who was a fan. However, Jerry was at first apprehensive about joining the band because Jacoby, Buckner, and Will all went to different high schools. At this point, Papa Roach were practicing every day and touring on every gig they could get. Their first tour van was called Moby Dick, where Jacoby was inspired to come up with his first stage name "Coby Dick". The band's name comes from Shaddix's step-grandfather, Howard William Roatch, who was nicknamed Papa Roach. Roatch committed suicide in 2006 because he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The band pay homage to him with The Paramour Sessions and during live performances of the song "Roses On My Grave".^[2]

In 1994, Papa Roach released their first ever EP titled Potatoes for Christmas. Drummer Dave Buckner was temporarily replaced by Ryan Brown, as Buckner was spending the year in Seattle studying art. In 1995, they released a demo at Sound Farm Studios titled Caca Bonita. By this time Buckner was back. In 1996, they replaced original bass guitarist Will James, who had become heavily involved in a church summer camp, by Tobin Esperance, because James' absence would limit the band's summer practicing and touring. As Esperance had been with the band as a roadie for a while, the transition was an easy one.

On February 4, 1997, the band produced their first full-length album, entitled Old Friends from Young Years. Still touring heavily, they supported bands such as Incubus, Powerman 5000, Hed PE, Snot, Far and Static-X.

In 1998, they released an EP titled 5 Tracks Deep. It sold more than 1,000 copies in its first month of release. In 1999, they produced another EP, which would end up being their last independent release, titled Let 'Em Know. Its success caught the attention of Warner Music Group, who as part of a development deal provided a small amount of money for the production of a five-track promo-demo CD.^[3] The band decided they wanted influential rock producer Jay Baumgardner on board to produce the record.^[3] In an interview with HitQuarters, Baumgardner said, “At first I wasn’t really convinced it would work out, but then I saw a video of them performing at a club - I saw all these kids going wild, knowing the songs by heart - and that’s when I realized that they definitely had potential.”^[3]

Warner Brothers was not convinced by the demo, however, and elected not to sign them.^[3] The unreleased disc included the songs "Infest", "Last Resort", "Broken Home", "Dead Cell", and "She Loves Me Not" - the first four would later feature on their Infest album, and the last on Lovehatetragedy.

Soon after, DreamWorks Records offered the band a recording contract.

Breakthrough and mainstream success: 1999–2005[link]

After signing with DreamWorks Records in October 1999, they immediately hit the studio to record their debut major-label album titled Infest. The album included old songs from their independent releases, these being "Infest", "Last Resort", "Broken Home", "Dead Cell" from the Warner Brothers demo CD; "Revenge In Japanese" as "Revenge" and "Thrown Away" from their 5 Tracks Deep EP; "Legacy", "Binge", "Snakes", and a softer version of the originally heavier "Tightrope" from the Let 'Em Know EP; which were re-recorded, and three additional newly written songs: "Between Angels and Insects", "Blood Brothers", and "Never Enough". Infest was released on April 25, 2000, and sold 30,000 copies in its first week of release. With their debut album released, and the music video for "Last Resort" recorded, they hit the Vans Warped Tour and numerous other large tours, including the Anger Management Tour with Limp Bizkit and such rap acts like Eminem, E-40, Xzibit, and Ludacris.

In late 2000, they toured the United Kingdom, highlighting how quickly their popularity had spread worldwide. In 2001, the band toured Ozzfest, where they performed on the prestigious main stage, on both the United States and United Kingdom tours.

The song "Blood Brothers" was also featured on the popular video game Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2.

After enormous amounts of touring worldwide, most notably in the United States, United Kingdom and Japan, the band hit the studio again to record their second major-label album which was to be titled Born to Rock, but was re-named to Lovehatetragedy. The album was released in the United States on June 18, 2002, and though it did not outsell Infest, it managed to chart higher in both the United States and United Kingdom album charts. The album has sold over 500,000 copies and has been certified Gold. The album marked a change in sound, morphing from nu metal to rock, except on the album's first single, "She Loves Me Not". The music video for "Time and Time Again" was also featured on the Pepsi Blue commercial.

In late 2003, Papa Roach wrote and recorded their third major-label album with the working title Dancing In the Ashes, but released as Getting Away with Murder. The band worked with well-recognized producer Howard Benson. After completion, the band filmed the video for the title track, "Getting Away with Murder", and went on a small summer club tour to warm-up for the new album and tours to follow. Some long time fans of the band criticized Getting Away with Murder for its softer alternative rock sound, compared to their previous albums. Regardless of the perceived backlash, Getting Away with Murder outsold Lovehatetragedy, mainly due to the enormous popularity of the album's second single, "Scars". Currently, the album has sold more than 1 million copies and has been certified Platinum. On November 9, 2004, the band released their fifth EP, Rolling Stone Original. The EP is only available digitally. On November 22, 2005 they released their first video album, Papa Roach: Live & Murderous in Chicago.

In 2005, the band spent a large proportion of the year on tour. This included a full United States and European tour alongside bands such as Slipknot, Dead Poetic, Trust Company, Chronic Future, Skindred, 311 and Unwritten Law.

[edit] The Paramour Sessions and departure of Dave Buckner: 2006–2008

On September 12, 2006 Papa Roach released their fourth major-label album The Paramour Sessions. The band chose the title in respect to the recording location, the Paramour Mansion. The band was given the idea of doing an album in a mansion while they were recording Getting Away with Murder, recording in a manor was getting popular for the unique sound and feeling (which is reflected on the lyrics) of recording in a manor, Jacoby Shaddix stated it on a fan board. He also stated that the album was likely to be titled Days of war, Nights of Love, which is a lyrical quote from the song "No More Secrets" on the album, as well as an anarchic book published by CrimethInc. in 2000. Other tentative titles for the album were "Redemption" and "Forever", the title of the album's second single. The band hadn't picked their first single but had narrowed it down to "Crash", "What Do You Do?", and "Forever". However, "...To Be Loved" ended up being the first single for the album, and was the official theme song for WWE Raw from 2006 to 2009 until being replaced by "Burn It to the Ground" by Nickelback. The album marked a more alternative rock-based sound compared to earlier efforts but still contained the softer ballads akin to Getting Away with Murder. The album debuted at #16 on the Billboard 200 Charts.

The band started touring their new album in August 2006, with an American tour followed by one in Europe. On October 2006, Papa Roach toured with bands such as Guns N' Roses, during their Chinese Democracy tour, and Deftones throughout the United States, having major success. They were also the special guest band during the Zippo Hot Tour with Hed PE and Eyes Set To Kill.

On October 10, 2006 a String Quartet tribute album entitled Perfect Murder: Strung Out on Papa Roach was released by Vitamin Records.^[4]

The band originally planned to release a compilation of acoustic recordings for their songs, such as "Forever", "Scars", and "Not Coming Home", which was recorded for KROQ-FM's charity Christmas album, Kevin and Bean's Super Christmas. The acoustic compilation has since been cancelled. In an interview with billboard.com, Jacoby Shaddix, had stated that he didn't think fans are quite ready for the acoustic direction.^[5]

On April 25, it was announced that drummer Dave Buckner would be sitting out the band's current tour. A statement issued by the group's record label said, "Buckner has taken time off from touring with the band due to personal matters". He was expected to rejoin the group later. Jacoby Shaddix later confirmed in an interview with Launch Radio Networks that Dave had checked himself into rehab, stating "Dave, he went to rehab and went to go clean his act up 'cause he was out of his mind". Unwritten Law drummer, Tony Palermo filled in on drums for touring duties.^[6]

"Forever" is the second single from The Paramour Sessions and was in heavy rotation across America. On May 23, 2007, more than four months after the album's second single, "Forever", had impacted radio stations, the band shot the official video for the song in Los Angeles, directed by Meiert Avis. Dave Buckner was in the video and had returned from rehab at that time. On June 15, the single was released and the video made its official debut on AOL.^[7]

On July 17, the band released their sixth EP, Live Session (iTunes Exclusive). On July 24, they released their seventh EP, Hit 3 Pack: Forever. Both EPs are available exclusively through iTunes.

On January 28, 2008 Jacoby announced on Papa Roach's MySpace that Buckner would officially be parting ways with Papa Roach for good. He stated that Dave was still trying to get his life back together. Jacoby also mentioned that the band would be going back to the Paramour Mansion for the next month to begin work on their fifth studio album. Tony Palermo would continue drumming with the band for their upcoming album and for their tour in support of the album.

[edit] Metamorphosis and Tours: 2008–2010

In an interview in February 2008 with 99.7 The Blitz, a rock radio station in Columbus, Ohio, Jacoby Shaddix stated that the band was currently working on their new album, which, like The Paramour Sessions, was to be titled Days of War, Nights of Love, which is a lyrical quote from the song "No More Secrets" and the titles of two songs from the album: "Days of War" and "Nights of Love". However, the album was renamed to Metamorphosis to mark the band's ten years since their signing with DreamWorks Records in 1999 and to mark all of the changes the band has gone through in the past ten years.

On April 15, Papa Roach announced they would be touring as part of Mötley Crüe's Crüe Fest, along with Buckcherry, Sixx:A.M., and Trapt. The tour began on July 1 in West Palm Beach, Florida.^[8] The release date for the album was confirmed as August 26 during Crüe Fest. During the tour, Tony Palermo served as a touring drummer for Sixx:A.M., as the band didn't have a drummer because the band never planned on touring and James Michael programmed all the drums on The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack.

The band also went on tour with Seether, Staind, and Red later in the year. They changed the release date of Metamorphosis to March 24, 2009 during that tour.

On October 26, Papa Roach released the music video for the song, "Hollywood Whore", and was released as an EP in Canada and as a digital single on October 28. According to the band, the video was just something for the fans while they waited for Metamorphosis, and was not intended to be a single. The album's first official single, "Lifeline", was released on the band's MySpace profile on January 9, 2009. The band also went on tour with Buckcherry, Avenged Sevenfold, and Burn Halo in early 2009. The Crüe Fest DVD was released on March 24, the same day Metamorphosis was released. The second single, "I Almost Told You That I Loved You", was released on June 1. On June 23, they released their ninth EP, Naked and Fearless: Acoustic EP. The EP is available through the Zune Marketplace, iTunes, and Rhapsody.

Papa Roach toured with Nickelback on their Dark Horse Tour through Live Nation outdoor amphitheater's along with Hinder and Saving Abel in the summer. During that tour, Jacoby Shaddix confirmed that "Had Enough" would be the album's third single, before playing the song itself. Online, Papa Roach asked fans what they "Had Enough" of and showed a fan-made video of the song online. Despite this, the music video was not released and was cancelled as a single due to label issues, according to the band.

"Lifeline" was nominated for Fuse TV's Best Video of 2009 contest, beating Metallica's "All Nightmare Long", Daughtry's "No Surprise", Shinedown's "Sound of Madness", and Paramore's "Ignorance", before finishing 2nd to Britney Spears for her song "Circus" in the final round.

[edit] Time for Annihilation and move to Eleven Seven Music: 2010–2012

On January 8, 2010, Jacoby Shaddix announced on Papa Roach's official Twitter account that the band was about to start working on new songs. On February 8, Jerry Horton said that he was at the studio starting to write. The band also said on their website that they would be releasing 'Big News' in the next couple of weeks. The band continued to add to rumors of a new album or other release on twitter.

On February 23, Jerry Horton officially announced that the 'Big News' fans were waiting for was the news of the band new album, a combination of live tracks and new songs. He said that they recorded it on the last run of their 2009 co-headlining tour with Shinedown at the Binghamton, New York show and were recording five new songs in the studio for it.^[9]

In March, Jacoby said he was recording vocals for two new songs called "Nemesis" and "No Matter What".^[10] Later that month, the band released the official teaser for the live album and confirmed that the release date would be in the summer of 2010. In June, on Nikki Sixx's radio show, Sixx Sense, Jacoby confirmed that the final new song for the album would be "The Enemy", and that "Nemesis" had been renamed to "One Track Mind".

In April, the band played two new songs, "Burn" at the Chili Cook Off in Richmond, Virginia on April 17, and "Kick In the Teeth" on April 30. In May, Jerry Horton said in an interview that the name of the album would be Time for Annihilation, and would feature nine live tracks and five new songs, making it a live album and a studio album. He also said that the new single would be "Kick In the Teeth" and that the band switched labels to Eleven Seven Music.^[11] Later, Jacoby added on that the album would be released on August 31.^[12] "Kick In the Teeth" was released as a single on June 22.^[13]

On June 29, the band's former label, Geffen Records, released a greatest hits compilation of the band's biggest hits, titled ...To Be Loved: The Best of Papa Roach. The band, however, told fans not to buy it, saying that the band was making no money off of the album's sales and that the label released the album against the band's will. Masters and/or copyrights by Papa Roach are represented by Downtown Music Publishing. The band no longer owns the rights to their songs, but can still play the songs live.

On August 1, the song "Kick in the Teeth" was leaked onto the internet. Four days later, the rest of the Time for Annihilation album was leaked. Time for Annihilation was released on August 31. The band announced that the next singles from the album would be "Burn" and "No Matter What". They also said they were interested in releasing another live DVD, but want to wait until they have a headlining show in Europe. In October, Papa Roach began the "Monsters of Annihilation" tour with Skillet.

From November 15 to December 13, The band toured with Disturbed, Buckcherry and Halestorm on the Taste of Chaos tour, and from March 1 to March 18, Papa Roach co-headlined the Canada leg of the Jägermeister Music Tour with Buckcherry, and special guests My Darkest Days and Bleeker Ridge.

In an interview, guitarist Jerry Horton said that the band is going to release a new album in 2012 after a tour "We are going to start touring in March 2011 then we'll enter the studio in late September / early October to work on the new album". He also mention that Papa Roach is going to explore "electronic sounds" for this upcoming record.^[14]

In an interview with Upvenue, Tobin Esperance said that Time for Annihilation was really just the end of a decade of Papa Roach. "We put out five major label, full-length records, and we were transitioning from a major label, going independent, and we wanted to do something different [...] we'd always talked about doing a live record, and it turned into 'let's add a couple of bonus songs' [...] and now it's half live, half new songs and it's kind of the past and present of Papa Roach, and I think it's a good representation and a good reminder of what this band's about, [...] and it gives you a look at where our sound can go."^[15]

Starting April 25, Papa Roach will headline the Raid The Nation tour, the first leg consisting of Finger Eleven, and the second leg with Escape the Fate, both legs of the tour will also have special guests Pop Evil. On June 23 and 25, the band will co-headline the Sonisphere Festival with Linkin Park.

Papa Roach played two intimate shows in London and Sheffield in July with the band Yashin.^[16] They also co-headlined the Rock Allegiance Tour from August 24 to September 25 with Buckcherry. Also on the tour was Puddle of Mudd, P.O.D., Red, Crossfade, and Drive A.

Eighth studio album: 2012-present[link]

Papa Roach entered the studio on November 1, 2011 - to work on a new album,^{[citation needed]} aiming for a mid-2012 release.^{[citation needed]} In the meantime, the band contributed a track, "Even If I Could", to the The Avengers soundtrack.

Papa Roach will participate on the Rockstar Uproar Festival, on the main stage.

Musical style[link]

In their early independent releases and on their first two major label albums, Infest and Lovehatetragedy, the band tended to use nu metal and rap metal.^{[citation needed]} Their music has often been described as hard rock, heavy metal, rap rock and post-grunge as well as alternative metal.^{[1][17][18][19]} Additionally, with their 2009 album, Metamorphosis, as the name expresses, the band feels that their music is going through a transformation to "stuff that's...harder and faster",^[20] compared to the softer sound of their last few albums.

Frontman Jacoby Shaddix said the following in an interview with the Dallas Music Guide regarding the band no longer using rapping in their music: "...the rapping's gone! I don't feel like rapping. I'm just over that...I just want to be a rocker. It's what I wanted to be when I was a kid". Shaddix has added this remark in another interview: "We’re a band that tries to walk that line between metal, hardcore, punk rock and pop music, and we do our best at trying to make it all cool".^[21]

Guitarist Jerry Horton said later in an interview by VerdamMnis Magazine that "It's kind of a natural thing for us, we've always been changing throughout the years. Of course, there are some things that stay the same in our sound but we do like to try new things to sort of stretch out a little bit our basis and therefore make it more interesting". He also said that the band is going to explore "electronic sounds for the next record".^[14]

Band members[link]

Current members

• Jacoby Shaddix - lead vocals (1993–present)
• Jerry Horton - lead guitar, backing vocals (1993–present)
• Tobin Esperance - bass guitar, rhythm guitar, programming, backing vocals (1997–present)
• Tony Palermo - drums, percussion (2008–present)

Former members

• Will James - bass guitar, backing vocals (1993–1997)
• Dave Buckner - drums, percussion (1993–2008)

Former session members

• Ben Luther - trombone (1993)
• Ryan Brown - drums, percussion (1994)
• Mike Doherty - rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2002)

Discography[link]

• Old Friends from Young Years (1997)
• Infest (2000)
• Lovehatetragedy (2002)
• Getting Away with Murder (2004)
• The Paramour Sessions (2006)
• Metamorphosis (2009)
• Time for Annihilation (2010)

Awards and Nominations[link]

Grammy Awards

Mtv Video Music Awards

Tours[link]

• Warped Tour (2000)
• Issues Tour (2000) with Korn and Powerman 5000
• Total Request Live Tour (2000) with (həd) p.e. and Taproot
• Raid the Nation Tour (2001) with Orgy, (həd) p.e. and Alien Ant Farm
• Ozzfest (2001)
• Headlining tour (2003) with Nonpoint, Reach 454 and Die Trying
• The Bad Boys of Rock Tour (2007) with Buckcherry, The Exies, 12 Stones, Hinder and Rev Theory
• Crüe Fest (2008) with Mötley Crüe, Buckcherry, Trapt and Sixx:A.M.
• The Illusion of Progress Tour (2008) with Staind, Seether, Red and State of Shock
• Dark Horse Tour (2009) with Nickelback, Hinder and Saving Abel
• Headling Fall Tour (2009) with Jet, Kill Hannah and Aranda
• Headling December Tour (2009) with Shinedown and Halestorm
• Headling Spring Tour (2010) with Puddle of Mudd, 12 Stones, Hellyeah, Adelitas Way and Seasons After
• Monsters of Annihilation Tour (2010) with Trapt, Skillet and My Darkest Days
• Taste of Chaos Tour (2010) with Disturbed, Buckcherry and Halestorm
• Jägermeister Music Tour (2011) with Buckcherry, My Darkest Days and Bleeker Ridge
• Q101 Jamboree (2011) with Sum 41, Seether and 30 Seconds To Mars
• Raid the Nation the Finger Eleven and Pop Evil
• Rock Allegiance Tour (2011) with Drive A, Crossfade, RED, P.O.D., Puddle of Mudd, Buckcherry
• Uproar Festival (2012) with Staind, Shinedown, Godsmack, P.O.D., Fozzy and Adelitss Way.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

Mary Roach
Mary Roach speaking at TED in 2009. Photograph by Bill Holsinger-Robinson.
Born	Etna, New Hampshire
Occupation	Author (non-fiction)
Nationality	American
Genres	Popular science
www.maryroach.net

Mary Roach is a columnist and popular science writer. Raised in Etna, New Hampshire, she holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from Wesleyan University and currently resides in Oakland, California. To date, she has published four books: Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers (2003), Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife (2005) (published in some markets as Six Feet Over: Adventures in the Afterlife), Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex (2008) and Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void (2010).

Life and career[link]

She began her writing career at the San Francisco Zoological Society, producing press releases on such topics as elephant wart surgery.^[1] In 1986, she sold a humor piece about the IRS to the San Francisco Chronicle. That led to a spate of humorous first-person essays for such publications as Sports Illustrated, Vogue, The New York Times Magazine, Discover, Outside, Reader's Digest (for whom she wrote a monthly humor column) and GQ.

Roach's work has a serious edge, as well. Her book, Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, was selected for Washington State University's Common Reading Program in 2008-09.

Roach appeared on The Daily Show on August 2, 2010 to discuss her newest book Packing for Mars.^[2]

Bibliography[link]

• Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers. Penguin. 2003. ISBN 978-0-393-32482-2. 
• Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife. W. W. Norton & Company. 2005. ISBN 978-0-393-32912-4. 
• Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex. W. W. Norton & Company. 2008. ISBN 978-0-393-06464-3. 
• Packing for Mars: The Curious Science of Life in the Void. W. W. Norton & Company. 2010. ISBN 978-0-393-06847-4. 

References[link]

External links[link]

• Mary Roach's website
• 2011 Interview on the Geek's Guide to the Galaxy Podcast
• Interview: Swoopy; Colanduno, Derek (August 24, 2010), "Ep. #137 - Packing for Mars", Skepticality (Skeptic Magazine), http://www.skepticality.com/packing-for-mars/, retrieved November 27, 2011 
• Video: Mary Roach discusses Bonk at BODIES...The Exhibition in New York City on 4/6/2009 (via fora.tv)
• Video: Mary Roach at the Los Angeles Public Library (Fora.tv)
• Video: Mary Roach on SlateV.com
• Video: Mary Roach's TED talk 10 things you didn't know about orgasm
• New York Times review of Spook by Janet Maslin
• New York Times review of Bonk by Pamela Paul
• HoboTrashcan's Getting to Know ... Mary Roach an in-depth feature article on Roach and Bonk
• Review of Spook; interview with author, 10-05
• BookBanter Episode 7 featuring recent interview with Mary Roach from April 23rd, 2009
• Interview with Mary Roach, mostly about Bonk on Little Atoms podcast, 27 June 2008
• Mary Roach articles for Outside magazine

This article about a United States writer of non-fiction is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Nick Diaz
Born	Nicholas Robert Diaz (1983-08-02) August 2, 1983 (age 28) Stockton, California, United States
Other names	El Diablo
Nationality	American [1]
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	169 lb (77 kg; 12 st 1 lb)
Division	Lightweight (2007) Welterweight (2001–2006) – (2008–present)
Reach	76 in (193 cm)
Style	Boxing, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Sambo[2]
Stance	Southpaw
Fighting out of	Stockton, California
Team	Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu El Niño Sports Combat Sports Academy Fairtex Gym
Trainer	Cesar Gracie, Richard Perez, Val Ignatov
Rank	Black Belt in Gracie Jiu-Jitsu
Years active	2001–present
Professional boxing record
Total	1
Wins	1
Mixed martial arts record
Total	35
Wins	26
By knockout	13
By submission	8
By decision	5
Losses	8
By knockout	2
By decision	6
No contests	1
Other information
Notable relatives	Nate Diaz, brother
Website	diazbrothers.com
Boxing record from Boxrec
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: 18 September 2011

Nicholas Robert Diaz (born August 2, 1983) is a American mixed martial artist of Mexican descent.^[3] He is the former Strikeforce Welterweight Champion, WEC and IFC Welterweight Champion. He has competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Pride Fighting Championships and Elite Xtreme Combat. Diaz was promoted to black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by Cesar Gracie on May 8, 2007. Diaz trains at the Diaz brother's Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Lodi, California. Diaz holds the distinction of having never been submitted, and has been finished by strikes only once in 35 fights. He is currently ranked the #4 welterweight in the world by Sherdog, ESPN, MMAWeekly,^[4] and USA Today.^[5]

Biography[link]

Diaz was born in Stockton , California. He is the older brother of UFC fighter Nate Diaz. He went to Tokay High School in Lodi for one year before dropping out. While a freshman, he was a member of the swimming team. Diaz has stated in the past that he is thankful his mother got him into swimming classes because swimming is one of the main reasons why his cardio is so impressive during his fights. Diaz has also said on multiple occasions that he had a hard childhood and grew up without his biological father.

Diaz originally started training in martial arts because he was being bullied by other teenagers who were bigger than he was. He then watched the UFC for the first time and soon wanted to be able to fight in the organization. His younger brother, Nathan is also a professional MMA fighter in the Lightweight division and the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 5. Nick also regularly competes in triathlons as part of his training. Diaz started training in Sambo at the age of 16 under a Bulgarian National Sambo Champion Val Ignatov.^[2] In his recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Diaz stated that he still trains Sambo under the same coach hence the reason his ground game is different from other MMA fighters that only train in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.^[2]

Mixed martial arts career[link]

After years of practicing various combats sports and martial arts, Diaz became a professional mixed martial arts fighter in 2001 just after his 18th birthday and won his first fight, submitting Mike Wick with a triangle choke at IFC Warriors Challenge 15. Diaz would become a champion in just his second professional fight, defeating Chris Lytle for the IFC United States Welterweight title in July 2002 at IFC Warriors Challenge 17.

Diaz was then invited to participate in Ultimate Athlete's King of the Mountain, a single-night tournament that took place two months later. He won his first two fights but eventually lost in the finals to Jeremy Jackson (fighter) by TKO. Diaz would fight in Warriors Quest and Shooto against Harris "Hitman" Sarmiento and Kuniyoshi Hironaka respectively before winning the WEC's Welterweight Title in 2003 at WEC 6, submitting Joe Hurley with a kimura.

Diaz returned to defend his IFC Welterweight belt against the man who defeated him one year earlier, Jeremy Jackson at IFC Warriors Challenge 18. This time around it was Diaz who was able to get the win, winning by TKO in the first round. Taking notice of his success, the UFC signed Diaz over the summer and he made his debut at UFC 44, completing the trilogy against Jeremy Jackson and submitting him with an armbar in the last round of the back and forth fight that Diaz appeared to be winning on the scorecards.

Rise[link]

Diaz returned to the Octagon at UFC 47, set to take on highly-touted Welterweight Robbie Lawler. Lawler was a heavy favorite coming into the fight but it was Diaz who took the offensive, chasing Lawler around the cage for the majority of the bout. In the second round, Diaz taunted Lawler, who swung wildly and missed, allowing Diaz to connect with a right hook that knocked Lawler out. Diaz was then matched up with Karo Parisyan at UFC 49, but ended up losing a hard-fought split decision. He rebounded with wins over Drew Fickett at UFC 51 and Koji Oishi at UFC 53 before losing for the second time in the UFC at the hands of The Ultimate Fighter Middleweight winner Diego Sanchez at The Ultimate Fighter 2 Finale.

The two came into the fight with a good amount of bad blood between them. They reportedly exchanged heated e-mails before and after the official signing of the fight, which was spurred on by Diaz's public opinion that Sanchez and the rest of The Ultimate Fighter participants were being given an easier path to the top compared to the rest of the fighters in the UFC.

Things went to another level in the locker room before the fight when Diaz taunted Sanchez and threw a shoe at him.[3] Diaz was obviously confident coming into the bout but was unable to achieve success in the match, ultimately losing to Sanchez by unanimous decision. During the televised post-fight interview in the ring, Diaz continued the controversy by declaring that he respected Sanchez fighting ability but did not think he deserved to be there, despite Sanchez's win.

Diaz's next fight was against Joe Riggs at UFC 57. Similar to his treatment of Sanchez, Diaz made sure that he taunted his opponent plenty before their fight starting at the official press conference at the event in which Diaz confronted Riggs and the two exchanged words. They continued their conversation at the official weigh-ins in which both fighters had to be separated by UFC president Dana White and other officials present.

Riggs prevailed in a hard-fought battle, winning by unanimous decision and giving Diaz his second straight loss. After the fight, the two were taken to the hospital for observation and post-fight tests. It was there that Diaz and Riggs had an altercation, but when the police arrived no charges were laid.

Diaz lost his third consecutive match in a unanimous decision to Sean Sherk at UFC 59. The UFC subsequently terminated his contract and released him during the spring of 2006.

Return to UFC[link]

Diaz returned to his hometown of Stockton and participated in the International Cage Fighting Organization's inaugural event, defeating Ray Steinbeiss by split decision. Diaz was slated to fight in his hometown again against John Alessio when he received an unexpected call the night before the fight from the UFC asking to fill in for an ill Thiago Alves at UFC 62.

After Alessio pulled out, Diaz took advantage of the opportunity, submitting Josh Neer in the third round. Seemingly back in the UFC, Diaz stopped newcomer Gleison Tibau with strikes in his next fight at UFC 65. However, even after the win and the reassurance that the UFC would give him another fight, Diaz decided to sign with the Gracie Fighting Championships and leave the UFC.^[6] GFC had Diaz scheduled to fight Thomas Denny in January 2007, but due to poor ticket sales the event was ultimately scrapped.^[6]

Pride FC[link]

Diaz was signed to a two-fight deal with Pride Fighting Championships with the first scheduled to be against current Lightweight champion Takanori Gomi in a non-title fight on February 24 in Las Vegas. Pride 33 was Diaz's first fight in the Pride organization and at the weight of 160 lb. While Gomi started the fight strong, once knocking Diaz to the ground, and twice ending up in his guard, the Californian dominated the standup battle with his unorthodox style, picking his opponent apart with quick and accurate jabs and looping punches.^[7] At the end of the first round, apparently due to poor cardio on Gomi's part, the Japanese fighter was clearly stunned, throwing much wilder punches and barely maintaining his defense. At one point though, the fight was stopped to check a cut suffered under Diaz' eye. The second stanza saw a continuation of wild punches by Gomi, then eventually taking the fight to the ground and leaving himself open to a Gogoplata submission by Diaz and tapping at 1:46 of the round.^[7] This was the second successful Gogoplata attempt in Pride's history (the first performed by Shinya Aoki on Joachim Hansen less than two months earlier at Pride's New Year's event).

On April 10, 2007, the Nevada State Athletic Commission announced that Diaz failed the drug test that was taken shortly before his win over Takanori Gomi, testing positive for marijuana. The NSAC declared the fight a "No Contest" and suspended him for 6 months with a fine of 20% of his earnings ($3,000) won from the fight against Gomi. The Commission felt that the result of Diaz's THC test, an enormous 175, was a contributing factor in his performance during the fight. Commission Chairman Dr. Tony Alamo said that while a result of 15 is considered positive, the NSAC has a threshold of 50 for athletes. He also believes they "feel very comfortable that everyone that tests positive in Nevada is truly positive."

Dr. Alamo went on to say, "Mr. Diaz was 145. This creates a unique situation. I was there at this fight and believe that you were intoxicated and... that it made you numb to the pain. Did it help you win? I think it did." Despite Diaz being surrounded by other athletes and video cameras for several hours before the fight, Alamo gave no explanation for why he believed Diaz had used marijuana in the hours preceding the event. Diaz himself dismissed the assertion that marijuana was a Performance-enhancing drug, or that he was smoking it prior to the fight.^[8][9][10]

EliteXC[link]

Diaz made his debut for EliteXC in Hawaii on September 15, 2007 on Showtime. He won a hard fought split decision over his opponent Mike Aina.^[11] MMA Weekly reported that Nick Diaz signed a two year deal with EliteXC and in his next fight, fought KJ Noons for the vacant 160 pound title. Once the fight began, the two exchanged rather evenly on the feet until Noons dropped Diaz with a well timed right counterpunch. Diaz attempted several takedowns, all of which were stuffed by Noons, on one occasion with a swift right knee which opened up a notable gash on Diaz's face, eventually resulting in a loss via doctor stoppage due to multiple cuts on his forehead. A disappointed Diaz left the arena immediately and on his way out he flipped off the doctor from the arena entrance and shoved the camera out of his face.^[12] Interestingly, he stated in pre-fight interviews that the only way he was going to lose this fight was from a cut above his eye.^[13]

After losing the Noons fight via-doc stoppage due to a cut, Diaz had surgery and had the bone filed down on his eyebrows to prevent any bad cuts in future bouts. Diaz came into his next fight at EliteXC's "Return of the KING" event in Honolulu, Hawaii against Muhsin Corbbrey 9 pounds over the weight limit.^[14] Diaz earned a tough win over Corbbrey, following the main event an altercation between Nick and his brother Nate broke out with KJ Noons and his corner. EliteXC executives asked Diaz to come to the ring and make a statement about a possible title rematch with Noons. Noons, a Native of Hawaii, asked the crowd their opinion, resulting in an echo of boos for Diaz.^[15] After Nick spoke over the microphone to Noons, saying, "don't be scared homie,"^[16] Carl Noons, KJ's father, lunged at him prompting Nate Diaz to throw a water bottle at the elder Noons.^[17] The Diaz brothers were quickly escorted out of the cage by a group of security staff. During interviews the next day Nick claimed Carl was intoxicated and overreacting. Meanwhile Carl claimed his incident was prompted by the thrown bottle. Video replay of the event showed Nate throwing the bottle after Carl jumped at Nick. No one was injured as the Diaz brothers left the arena entrance "throwing the bird" to the fans and Noons' corner.^[18]

Nick went on to face well-traveled veteran Thomas "Wildman" Denny at the EliteXC Event "Unfinished Business" in Nick's hometown of Stockton, California. After a sluggish start to the fight, Diaz found his range and punished Denny during the latter half of the First Round.^[19] Diaz continued to keep the fight standing and maintained a high-paced tempo for the remainder of the fight, earning an impressive TKO victory over the veteran Denny 0:30 into Round Two.^[19] Diaz was rumoured to have a rematch against the current EliteXC Lightweight Champion KJ Noons, airing on CBS October 4, 2008. However, KJ Noons and his camp refused to accept the match. Mark Dion, KJ's manager was quoted as saying "As far as Nick Diaz, he's not the No. 1 contender out there.".^[20] Diaz was scheduled to face Eddie Alvarez for the EliteXC 160 pound title on November 8, 2008 before the company ceased operations.^[21]

Strikeforce and Dream[link]

Diaz was victorious in Dream 3, defeating Katsuya Inoue by corner stoppage (TKO) in the first round.^[22] With Strikeforce's acquisition of ProElite's assets, CEO Scott Coker had announced that Nick will face off against MMA legend Frank Shamrock at a catchweight of 179 lb, at their upcoming event Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz in Shamrock's hometown of San Jose on April 11 at the HP Pavilion.^[23] Nick was successful in the fight, defeating Shamrock via TKO, due to strikes in the second round. Throughout the fight, Diaz was dominant in all areas using effective positioning on the ground, once mounting Frank in the end of the first round and then finally finishing in the second round due to a body shot crumpling Frank to the mat and then following up with punches before referee John McCarthy called a halt to the bout. In the interview he stated "It's hard to hate the guy, he's been doing what I've been wanting to do and saying what I've wanted to say for a long time".

At Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields Diaz met Scott Smith at a catchweight of 180 pounds. Although Smith took Diaz down once in the first round, Diaz controlled the majority of the bout with his superior boxing, utilizing his reach, stalking jabs and repeatedly punishing Smith with hooks to the body, twice dropping him in the second and third round. Upon landing the body shot that dropped Smith in the third round, Smith assumed a turtle position and Diaz took his back until securing a rear naked choke to finish the bout at 1:41 of the final round.

It was announced that Diaz would be fighting Joe Riggs ^[24] at Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg taking place on August 15, in which would have been a rematch of their first fight that took place at UFC 57: Couture vs Liddell 3, in which both fighters fought in the cage and then again at the local hospital later in the evening.^[25] The fight would have been for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship but, Joe Riggs had to pull out of the bout due to an adverse reaction to a drug. Diaz was then scheduled to instead face Jay Hieron for the Welterweight Championship.^[26] This fight has since been canceled due to Diaz's failure to attain his license after not attending a pre-fight drug test.^[27] Jesse Taylor replaced Diaz and the title was no longer on the line, Hieron defeated Taylor by unanimous decision.

Diaz faced Strikeforce newcomer Marius Žaromskis to crown the first Strikeforce Welterweight Champion on January 30, 2010 at Strikeforce: Miami.^[28] Žaromskis came out aggressively and the two men exchanged on the feet until Diaz tied his opponent up in the clinch and landed numerous knees to Žaromskis' right leg. Diaz then scored a takedown and looked for a guillotine choke – quickly shrugged off by his opponent. The two men continued to exchange, with Diaz utilizing his unorthodox boxing skills, until rocked by a Žaromskis left hook and falling to his back. Žaromskis landed few effective shots while Diaz was turtled on the floor, allowing him to recover and stand back up. In the few remaining minutes, Diaz opened up with his boxing range, tagging Žaromskis cleanly several times with combos composed of jabs, hooks and seamless bodyshots; forcing him against the side of the cage where he landed a solid uppercut and continued to punish his opponent leading to the referee to stop the contest at 4:38 of the first round. Diaz was then crowned the inaugural Strikeforce Welterweight Champion.

Diaz defeated Hayato Sakurai by submission (armbar) in a non-title bout at Dream 14.^[29] Diaz defeated KJ Noons in a rematch of their 2007 bout for the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship. Diaz won via Unanimous Decision (48–47, 49–47, 49–46). Diaz defeated Evangelista Santos who had an 18–13^[30] MMA record going into the bout on January 29, 2011 at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg via armbar in the second round.^[31] Diaz defeated Paul Daley at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley via TKO (punches) at 4:57 of round 1, and became the first Strikeforce fighter to successfully defend the welterweight belt 3 times in a row.^[32]

Return to UFC[link]

UFC president Dana White stated that a matchup between Diaz and UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre was a possible consideration.^[33] Diaz and St.Pierre were rumored to be the next coaches for TUF 14 (The Ultimate Fighter) reality show, but the show debuted on September 21, 2011, with Michael Bisping and Jason Miller as coaches. UFC president Dana White confirmed via Twitter that Diaz would face GSP at UFC 137 at the Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 29, 2011. Nick Diaz vacated his Strikeforce Welterweight Championship title prior to his bout with Georges St-Pierre ^[34] Dana White made the decision to take Nick Diaz out of the fight and replace him with Carlos Condit, due to Diaz missing multiple flights for a press event to support the fight.^[35] It was announced that Diaz would fight B.J. Penn in the main event at his original fight card, UFC 137.^[36] Diaz won via unanimous decision. Diaz called out Georges St. Pierre in the post-fight interview, who was scheduled to fight Carlos Condit at the same event but had been forced out of the bout with a knee injury.

Following his successful return, Diaz was expected to face Georges St. Pierre for the UFC welterweight title at UFC 143 during Super Bowl weekend.^[37] However, due to a ACL injury sustained by St-Pierre, Diaz faced Carlos Condit in the main event, with the winner being awarded an Interim UFC Welterweight Championship.^[38] Condit defeated Diaz via a unanimous decision. After the fight, Diaz said that he would retire from MMA.^[39] After the event UFC President Dana White said that he believes Diaz will fight again.^[40] It was reported that an immediate rematch with Condit was to be scheduled,^[41] but was cancelled when Diaz tested positive for marijuana metabolites in a post-fight drug test.^[42] The Nevada State Athletic Commission temporarily suspended Diaz shortly after the positive test, pending a full disciplinary hearing.^[43]

It was announced at the hearing in May 2012 that Diaz was suspended for one year, retroactive to February 4, 2012, and fined 30 percent of his fight purse earned from the Condit bout. Diaz will be eligible to return to MMA competition in February 2013.^[44]

Diaz was set to take on Braulio Estima in a grappling match at the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo on May 12, 2012.^[45] However, Diaz no-showed the event. Hours following the event, Diaz was seen liking a YouTube video featuring Estima's reaction on Diaz's no-show, calling it "disrespectful." The day after the event Diaz alleged that Estima failed to make weight within the agreed upon timeframe prior to the fight and also alleged that the promoters of the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo failed to make good on their claims of donating proceeds from the fight to charity.^[46]

Fighting style[link]

Diaz is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Cesar Gracie whom he has been training with since he was a teenager. He is accomplished in both gi and no-gi jiu-jitsu. Some of the major titles he has won include the US Purple Belt Open in 2004 and a Pan American Brown Belt Medium Weight Division title in 2005.^[47] He also owns a victory over renowned grappler Jorge Patino in competition via kneebar. He is known for having a modified BJJ style that suits his MMA career very well. Diaz lists his favorite submission as the kimura.^[48] He is widely known for his impressive closed guard which he frequently uses in his fights. Diaz currently teaches jiu-jitsu at his and brother Nathan's school in Lodi, CA.

Diaz is also a professional boxer and fights in the Super Middleweight weight class. He made his professional debut in April 2005 against Alfonso Rocha at the Radisson Hotel in Sacramento, California.^[49] Diaz was victorious, winning by unanimous decision after four rounds. He has not fought since. Nick and Nate Diaz are now being trained by former WBA and WBC World Champion Luisito Espinosa and are training with the highly skilled Jason "Gumby" Robison. Nick has also recently been training with Olympic Boxing Gold Medalist Andre Ward.^[50]

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Mixed Martial Arts[link]

• Strikeforce
  • Strikeforce Welterweight Championship (One time; first)
  • Most consecutive Welterweight title defenses in Strikeforce history (Three)
  • Most successful Welterweight title defenses in Strikeforce history (Three)
  • 2010 Fight of the Year vs. K.J. Noons on October 9
  • 2010 Male Fighter of the Year

• World Extreme Cagefighting
  • WEC Welterweight Championship (One time; first)

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (One time)

• International Fighting Championships
  • IFC U.S. Welterweight Championship (One time)
  • One successful title defense

• Inside Fights
  • Fight of the Year (2007) vs. Takanori Gomi on February 24
  • Fight of the Year (2010) vs. K.J. Noons on October 9
  • Fight of the Year (2011) vs. Paul Daley on April 9

Mixed martial arts record[link]

Boxing record[link]

Result	Record	Opponent	Method	Date	Round	Location	Notes
xWin	1–0	Alfonso Rocha	UD	02005-04-29April 29, 2005	4	Radisson Hotel, Sacramento, California	Boxing Debut

See also[link]

• List of current mixed martial arts champions

References[link]