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Public Enemy
Public Enemy performing at the Bilbao Urban Musikaldia, Vista Alegre bullring on October 8, 2006
Background information
Also known as	PE!
Origin	Roosevelt, Long Island, New York, U.S.
Genres	Hip hop, political hip hop, hardcore hip hop
Years active	1982–present
Labels	Def Jam/Columbia/Play It Again Sam
Website	publicenemy.com
Members
Chuck D Flavor Flav Professor Griff DJ Lord The S1W
Past members
Terminator X Sister Souljah

Public Enemy is an American hip hop group consisting of Chuck D, Flavor Flav, Professor Griff and his S1W group, DJ Lord (DJ who replaced Terminator X in 1999), and Music Director Khari Wynn. Formed in Long Island, New York in 1982, Public Enemy is known for their politically charged lyrics and criticism of the American media, with an active interest in the frustrations and concerns of the African American community.

In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked Public Enemy^[1] number forty-four on its list of the Immortals: 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.^[2] Acclaimed Music ranks them the 29th most recommended musical act of all time and the highest hip-hop group.^[3] The group was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame in 2007.^[4]

History[link]

Formation and early years (1982–1986)[link]

Developing his talents as an MC with Flavor Flav while delivering furniture for his father's business, Chuck D (Carlton Douglas Ridenhour) and Spectrum City, as the group was called, released the record "Check Out the Radio," backed by "Lies," a social commentary—both of which would influence RUSH Productions' Run-D.M.C. and Beastie Boys.

Chuck D put out a tape to promote WBAU (the radio station where he was working at the time) and to fend off a local MC who wanted to battle him. He called the tape Public Enemy #1 because he felt like he was being persecuted by people in the local scene. This was the first reference to the notion of a public enemy in any of Chuck D's songs. The single was created by Chuck D with a contribution by Flavor Flav, though this was before the group Public Enemy was officially assembled.

Around 1986, Bill Stephney, the former Program Director at WBAU, was approached by Sam the Assassin and offered a position with the label. Stephney accepted, and his first assignment was to help fledgling producer Rick Rubin sign Chuck D, whose song "Public Enemy Number One" Rubin had heard from Andre "Doctor Dré" Brown. According to the book The History of Rap Music by Cookie Lommel, "Stephney thought it was time to mesh the hard-hitting style of Run DMC with politics that addressed black youth. Chuck recruited Spectrum City, which included Hank Shocklee, his brother Keith Shocklee, and Eric "Vietnam" Sadler, collectively known as the Bomb Squad, to be his production team and added another Spectrum City partner, Professor Griff, to become the group's Minister of Information. With the addition of Flavor Flav and another local mobile DJ named Terminator X, the group Public Enemy was born."

According to Chuck, The S1W, which stands for Security of the First World, "represents that the black man can be just as intelligent as he is strong. It stands for the fact that we're not third-world people, we're first-world people; we're the original people [of the earth]."^[5]

Public Enemy started out as opening acts for the Beastie Boys during the latter's Licensed to Ill popularity, and in 1987 released their debut album Yo! Bum Rush The Show

However, over the next few years Public Enemy released It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, Fear of a Black Planet, and Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black. In addition to ushering in the golden age of hip hop, during this time, Public Enemy reached the height of their popularity, adulation, and controversy. The group then separated from Def Jam and has since been independently producing, marketing, and publishing their music.

Mainstream success (1987–1994)[link]

Their debut album, Yo! Bum Rush the Show, was released in 1987 to critical acclaim. The album was the group's first step toward stardom. The group released the album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back in 1988, which performed better in the charts than their previous release, and included the hit single "Don't Believe the Hype" in addition to "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos". Nation of Millions... was voted Album of the Year by The Village Voice Pazz and Jop Poll, the first hip hop album to be ranked number one by predominantly rock critics in a major periodical. It is also ranked the 17th best album of all time (and best album of the 1980s) by Acclaimed Music.^[3] Writing towards the end of 1987, music critic Simon Reynolds dubbed Public Enemy "a superlative rock band".^[6]

In 1989, the group returned to the studio to record Fear of a Black Planet, which continued their politically charged themes. The album was supposed to be released in late 1989,^[7] but was pushed back to April 1990. The title song "Fear of a Black Planet" addresses the fear some white people have of black and white relationships. It was the most successful of any of their albums and, in 2005, was selected for preservation in the Library of Congress. It included the singles "Welcome To The Terrodome", "911 Is a Joke", which criticized emergency response units for taking longer to arrive at emergencies in the black community than those in the white community, and "Fight the Power".^[8] "Fight the Power" is regarded as one of the most popular and influential songs in hip hop history. It was the theme song of Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing. It was ranked the 80th best song of all time by Acclaimed Music.^[3] Among other things, the song voices disgust for considering Elvis Presley and John Wayne standard American icons.

The group’s next release, Apocalypse '91...The Enemy Strikes Black, continued this trend, with songs like "Can't Truss It", which addressed the history of slavery and how the black community can fight back against oppression; "I Don't Wanna be Called Yo Nigga", a track addresses on how the urban culture uses the word nigga outside of its usual derogatory context. The album also included the controversial song and video "By the Time I Get to Arizona," which chronicled the black community's frustration that some US states did not recognize Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a national holiday. The video featured members of Public Enemy taking out their frustrations on politicians in the states not recognizing the holiday.

In 1992, the group was one of the first rap acts to perform at the Reading Festival, in England, headlining the second day of the three day festival.

Terminator X's Exit and DJ Lord's Entrance (1998–current)[link]

After a 1994 motorcycle accident shattered his left leg and kept him in the hospital for a full month, Terminator X relocated to his 15-acre farm in Vance County, North Carolina. By 1998, he was ready to retire from the group and focus full-time on raising African black ostriches on his farm.^[9]

In late 1998, the group started looking for Terminator X's permanent replacement. Following several months of searching for a DJ, Professor Griff saw DJ Lord at a Vestax Battle and approached him about becoming the DJ for Public Enemy.^[10] DJ Lord joined as the group’s full-time DJ just in time for Public Enemy’s 40th World Tour.^[11] Since 1999, he has been the official DJ for Public Enemy on albums and world tours while winning numerous turntablist competitions, including multiple DMC finals.^[12]

Legacy[link]

Public Enemy at Vegoose in 2007. From left: DJ Lord, Chuck D, and Flavor Flav.

Terminator X's innovative scratching tricks can be heard on the songs "Rebel Without a Pause," and "Shut Em Down". The Bomb Squad offered up a web of innovative samples and beats. Critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine declared that PE "brought in elements of free jazz, hard funk, even musique concrète, via [its] producing team the Bomb Squad, creating a dense, ferocious sound unlike anything that came before."^[13][14]

Public Enemy made contributions to the hip-hop world with political, social and cultural consciousness; which infused itself into skilled and poetic rhymes, using raucous sound collages as a foundation. Public Enemy developed a strong pro-Black political stance. Before PE, politically motivated hip-hop was defined to a few tracks by Ice-T, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and KRS-One. Other politically motivated opinions were shared by prototypical artists Gil Scott-Heron and the Last Poets. PE was a revolutionary hip-hop act, basing an entire image around a specified political stance. With the successes of Public Enemy, many hip-hop artists began to celebrate Afrocentric themes, such as Kool Moe Dee, Gang Starr, X Clan, Eric B. & Rakim, Queen Latifah, the Jungle Brothers, and A Tribe Called Quest.

Public Enemy Official Logo.

Public Enemy was one of the first hip-hop groups to do well internationally. PE changed the Internet's music distribution capability by being one of the first groups to release MP3-only albums,^[15] a format virtually unknown at the time.

Public Enemy helped to create and define "rap metal" by collaborating with New York thrash metal outfit Anthrax in 1991. The single "Bring The Noise" was a mix of semi-militant black power lyrics, grinding guitars, and sporadic humor. The two bands, cemented by a mutual respect and the personal friendship between Chuck D and Anthrax's Scott Ian, introduced a hitherto alien genre to rock fans, and the two seemingly disparate groups toured together. Flavor Flav's pronouncement on stage that "They said this tour would never happen" (as heard on Anthrax's Live: The Island Years CD) has become a legendary comment in both rock and hip-hop circles. Metal guitarists Vernon Reid (of Living Colour) contributed to Public Enemy's recordings, and PE sampled Slayer's "Angel of Death" half-time riff on "She Watch Channel Zero."

Members of the Bomb Squad produced or remixed works for other acts, like Bell Biv DeVoe, Ice Cube, Vanessa Williams, Sinéad O'Connor, Blue Magic, Peter Gabriel, L.L. Cool J, Paula Abdul, Jasmine Guy, Jody Watley, Eric B & Rakim, Third Bass, Big Daddy Kane, EPMD, and Chaka Khan. According to Chuck D, "We had tight dealings with MCA Records and were talking about taking three guys that were left over from New Edition and coming up with an album for them. The three happened to be Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, and Ronnie DeVoe, later to become Bell Biv DeVoe. Ralph Tresvant had been slated to do a solo album for years, Bobby Brown had left New Edition and experienced some solo success beginning in 1988, and Johnny Gill had just been recruited to come in, but [he] had come off a solo career and could always go back to that. At MCA, Hiram Hicks, who was their manager, and Louil Silas, who was running the show, were like, 'Yo, these kids were left out in the cold. Can y'all come up with something for them?' It was a task that Hank, Keith, Eric, and I took on to try to put some kind of hip-hop-flavored R&B shit down for them. Subsequently, what happened in the four weeks of December [1989] was that the Bomb Squad knocked out a large piece of the production and arrangement on Bell Biv DeVoe's three-million selling album Poison. In January [1990], they knocked out Fear of a Black Planet in four weeks, and PE knocked out Ice Cube's album AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted in four to five weeks in February."^[16] They have also produced local talent such as Son of Bazerk, Young Black Teenagers, Kings of Pressure, and True Mathematics—and gave producer Kip Collins his start in the business.

Poet and hip-hop artist Saul Williams uses a sample from Public Enemy's "Welcome to the Terrordome" in his song "Tr[n]igger" on the Niggy Tardust album. He also used a line from the song in his poem, amethyst rocks.

Public Enemy's brand of politically & socially conscious hip hop has been a direct influence on new hip hop artists such as The Cornel West theory.

The Manic Street Preachers track "Repeat (Stars And Stripes)" is a remix of the band's own anti-monarchy tirade by Public Enemy production team The Bomb Squad of whom James Dean Bradfield and Richey Edwards were big fans. The song samples "Countdown to Armageddon" from It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. The band had previously sampled Public Enemy on their 1991 single Motown Junk.

American punk rock band NOFX references Public Enemy in their song "Franco Unamerican", stating "I'm watching Michael Moore expose the awful truth/I'm listening to Public Enemy and Reagan Youth."

The influence of the band goes largely beyond hip-hop as the group was cited by artists as diverse as Autechre (selected in the All Tomorrow's Parties (music festival) in 2003, Nirvana (It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back being cited by Kurt Cobain among his favorite albums), Nine Inch Nails (mentioned the band in Pretty Hate Machine credits), Björk (included Rebel Without a Pause in her The Breezeblock Mix in July 2007), Tricky (did a cover of Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos and appears in Do You Wanna Go Our Way ??? video), Prodigy (included Public Enemy No. 1 in The Dirtchamber Sessions Volume One), Ben Harper, Underground Resistance (cited by both Mad Mike and Jeff Mills), Orlando Voorn, M.I.A., Amon Tobin, Mathew Jonson and Aphex Twin (Welcome To The Terrordome being the first track played after the introduction at the Coachella festival in April 2008).

In September 2009, VH1 aired a show called "100 Greatest Hip Hop Songs" where Public Enemy earned the number one spot with their hit song, Fight the Power.^[17]

The group's last album to date is How You Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul?. Public Enemy's single from the album was "Harder Than You Think". The repercussions of Public Enemy are felt to this day. Public Enemy showed that hip-hop was not, as Alan Light says, "just a silly novelty, a fleeting fad."

Pop culture[link]

• Public Enemy's "Fight the Power" plays a central role in Spike Lee's 1989 film "Do the Right Thing." In addition to opening the film with the actors dancing to the song, Character "Radio Raheem" carries his beat-box everywhere listening to the same song, prompting one character to ask if he ever listens to anything else. Radio Raheem acts surprised and explains "It's Public Enemy!"
• The song "Power of Equality" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers makes a reference, saying, "I got tapes I got CDs, I got my Public Enemy." The band have also performed segments of Public Enemy's You're Gonna Get Yours as an intro to their song Give It Away at concerts.
• John Connor in the 1991 movie Terminator 2: Judgement Day wore a Public Enemy t-shirt for the majority of the film.
• Part of NOFX song Franco Unamerican says "I´m watching Michael Moore expose the awful truth, I´m listening to Public Enemy and Reagan Youth."
• The episode of Futurama titled 'Fear Of A Bot Planet' is a reference to the album 'Fear Of A Black Planet'
• Shawn Wayans' stage name while serving as DJ on "In Living Color" was SW1, a reference to Public Enemy's S1Ws.
• In the Video Game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas the song "Rebel Without a Pause" from the album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back can be heard on the radio station Playback FM

Controversy[link]

In 1989, in an interview with Public Enemy for the Washington Times, the interviewing journalist, David Mills, lifted some quotations from a UK magazine in which the band were asked their opinion on the Arab–Israeli conflict. Professor Griff's comments apparently sympathized with the Palestinians and was accused of anti-Semitism. According to Rap Attack 2, he suggested that "Jews are responsible for the majority of the wickedness in the world" (p. 177). (In turn a quote from The International Jew) Shortly after, Ridenhour expressed an apology on his behalf.^[18] In an attempt to defuse the situation, Ridenhour first fired Griffin. He later rejoined the group in the album Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age. In the late 1990s, he rejoined the band, and Ridenhour and Griffin took on a side project, the rap rock outfit Confrontation Camp.

In his 2009 book, entitled Analytixz,^[19] Griff criticized his 1989 statement: "to say the Jews are responsible for the majority of wickedness that went on around the globe I would have to know about the majority of wickedness that went on around the globe, which is impossible... I'm not the best knower. Then, not only knowing that, I would have to know who is at the crux of all of the problems in the world and then blame Jewish people, which is not correct." Griff also said that not only were his words taken out of context, but that the recording has never been released to the public for an unbiased listen.

The controversy and apologies on behalf of Griff spurred Chuck D to reference the negative press they were receiving. In 1990, Public Enemy issued the single "Welcome to the Terrordome", which contains the lyrics: "Crucifixion ain't no fiction / So-called chosen frozen / Apologies made to whoever pleases / Still they got me like Jesus". These lyrics have been cited by some in the media as anti-Semitic, making supposed references to the concept of the "chosen people" with the lyric "so-called chosen" and Jewish deicide with the last line.^[20]

In a letter to the editor, Leo Haber alludes to criticism by New York Times writer Peter Watrous of the group's supposed homophobia.^[21]

Reviewers John Alroy and David Wilson said that Fear of a Black Planet contained "homophobic babbling" which challenged politically correct thinking.^[22]

Zoe Williams defended Public Enemy against charges of homophobia by stating that

• "If you look at the seminal black artists at the start of hip-hop, Public Enemy and Niggaz With Attitude, you won't actually find much homophobia. The only recorded homophobic lyric in Public Enemy's canon was: 'Man to man/ I don't know if they can/ From what I know/ The parts don't fit' [a lyric from "Meet the G that Killed Me" on Fear of a Black Planet]".^[23]

although Spin magazine noted that 'It only brings agony, ask James Cagney / He beat up on a guy when he found he was a fagney / Cagney is a favorite he is my boy' from "A Letter to the New York Post" on their album Apocalypse '91 has also been accused of homophobia.^[24]

Public Enemy have also been supporters of Nation of Islam Supreme Minister Louis Farrakhan,^[25][26] who has been controversial for his commentary which is often interpreted as being black nationalist, homophobic, and anti-Semitic.^[27]

Band members[link]

• Chuck D – MC (1987–present)
• Flavor Flav (William Drayton) – hype man, occasionally lead vocals
• Khari Wynn – music director
• DJ Lord (Lord Aswod) – DJ
• Professor Griff

Former members[link]

• Terminator X (Norman Rogers) – DJ, producer
• Big Casper (Tracy Walker)
• Brother James (James Norman)
• Brother Roger
• The Interrorgator (Shawn K Carter),
• Crunch
• Jacob shankle AKA (big Jake)
• The Bomb Squad
  • • Hank Shocklee (James Henry Boxley III)
    • Keith Shocklee (Keith Boxley)
    • Eric "Vietnam" Sadler
    • Gary G-Wiz (Gary Rinaldo)
    • Kerwin "Sleek" Young
    • Professor Griff (Richard Griffin)
    • Johnny "Juice" Rosado
• Brian Hardgroove – bassist

Discography[link]

• 1987: Yo! Bum Rush the Show
• 1988: It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
• 1990: Fear of a Black Planet
• 1991: Apocalypse 91... The Enemy Strikes Black
• 1992: Greatest Misses
• 1994: Muse Sick-n-Hour Mess Age
• 1998: He Got Game
• 1999: There's a Poison Goin' On
• 2002: Revolverlution
• 2005: New Whirl Odor
• 2006: Rebirth of a Nation (with Paris)
• 2007: How You Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul?
• 2012: Most of Our Heroes Don't Appear on a Stamp ^[28]
• 2012: The Evil Empire of Everything ^[29]

Further reading[link]

• Young Rick- cofounder/ cowriter of lyrics*Chuck D with Yusuf Jah, Chuck D: Lyrics of a Rap Revolutionary, Off Da Books, 2007 ISBN 0-9749484-1-1
• Chuck D with Yusuf Jah, Fight the Power, Delacorte Press, 1997 ISBN 0-385-31868-5
• Fuck You Heroes, Glen E. Friedman Photographs 1976-1991, Burning Flags Press, 1994, ISBN 0-9641916-0-1

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
  • Videos
• Discography at Discogs
• Live performance of Public Enemy
• Chuck D Interview: Intellectual Vietnam (Part One)
• Chuck D Interview: Intellectual Vietnam (Part Two)

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Public enemy is a phrase which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though in fact the phrase had been used for centuries to describe pirates and similar outlaws.

Origin and usage[link]

The phrase originated in Roman times as Latin: hostis publicus, typically translated into English as the "public enemy".

The modern use of the phrase was first popularized in April 1930 by Frank J. Loesch, then chairman of the Chicago Crime Commission, in an attempt to publicly denounce Al Capone and other organized crime gangsters.^[1]

In 1933, Loesch recounted the origin and purpose of the list:

"I had the operating director of the Chicago Crime Commission bring before me a list of the outstanding hoodlums, known murderers, murderers which you and I know but can’t prove, and there were about one-hundred of them, and out of this list I selected twenty-eight men. I put Al Capone at the head and his brother next, and ran down the twenty-eight, every man being really an outlaw. I called them Public Enemies, and so designated them in my letter, sent to the Chief of Police, the Sheriff every law enforcing officer. The purpose is to keep the publicity light shining on Chicago's most prominent, well known and notorious gangsters to the end that they may be under constant observation by the law enforcing authorities and law abiding citizens."

All of those listed were reputed to be gangsters or racketeers and most were rum-running bootleggers. Although all were known to be consistent law breakers (most prominently in regard to the widely broken Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution banning alcohol) none of those named were fugitives or were actively wanted by the law. The list's purpose was clearly to both shame those named and spur the authorities to prosecute them.

The phrase was later appropriated by J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI who used it to describe various notorious fugitives that they were pursuing throughout the 1930s. Unlike Loesch's use of the term, the FBI's "Public Enemies" were wanted criminals and fugitives who were already charged with crimes. Among the criminals whom the FBI called "public enemies" were John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson, Bonnie and Clyde, Pretty Boy Floyd, Ma Barker, and Alvin Karpis.

The phrase was used so extensively during the 1930s that some writers call that period of the FBI's early history the "Public Enemy Era". Dillinger, Floyd, Nelson, and Karpis, in that order, would be deemed "Public Enemy No. 1" from June of 1934 to May of 1936. Use of the phrase eventually evolved into the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.

The FBI's website describes the bureau's use of the phrase: "[The] FBI and the United States Department of Justice made use of the term, "public enemy," in the 1930s, an era in which the term was synonymous with "fugitive" or "notorious gangster."^{[citation needed]} It was used in speeches, books, press releases, and internal memoranda.

References[link]

Criminal justice portal

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Zakk Wylde
Wylde in August 2010
Background information
Birth name	Jeffrey Phillip Wielandt
Also known as	Ghode, The Ghost of Rock Past, The Idol
Born	(1967-01-14) January 14, 1967 (age 45) Bayonne, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres	Heavy metal, southern metal, groove metal, southern rock
Occupations	Musician, songwriter, actor, producer
Instruments	Guitar, vocals, bass, banjo, piano, keyboards, mandolin, harmonica, organ, mellotron
Years active	1987–present
Labels	Geffen, Spitfire, InsideOut Music, Artemis, Roadrunner, Epic, Sony
Associated acts	Ozzy Osbourne, Black Label Society, Pride & Glory, Steel Dragon, Britny Fox
Website	zakkwylde.com
Notable instruments
Zakk Wylde Signature Les Paul, Zakk Wylde Signature Gibson Flying V

Zachary Phillip "Zakk" Wylde (born Jeffrey Phillip Wielandt, January 14, 1967), is an American musician, songwriter, and occasional actor who is best known as the former guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne and founder of the heavy metal band Black Label Society. He was the lead guitarist and vocalist in Pride & Glory, who released one self-titled album in 1994 before disbanding. As a solo artist he released Book of Shadows in 1996.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Wylde was born in Bayonne, New Jersey. Wylde started playing the guitar at the age of 14 and worked at Silverton Music in Silverton, New Jersey. He grew up in Jackson, New Jersey, and went to Jackson Memorial High School, where he graduated in 1985. Wylde has stated that he would practice playing the guitar as much as 12 hours per day and would often play the guitar almost non-stop between coming home from school and leaving for school the next morning, then sleeping through the school day.

Music career[link]

Wylde played locally with his first band Stone Henge, then later with local Jersey band Zyris. Later, he landed the role as lead guitarist and co-writer for Ozzy Osbourne. He sent Ozzy a demo tape in 1987 and was hired to replace Jake E. Lee, who had replaced the deceased Randy Rhoads. Rhoads remains Wylde's foremost guitar-playing and stagecraft influence.^[1]

Wylde gravitated toward a particular Les Paul guitar, which has become known as "The Grail"; his infamous bullseye-painted Gibson Les Paul custom. Wylde lost the guitar after it fell from the back of a truck transporting equipment as he was travelling between gigs in Texas. Rewards were offered to anyone that had information about the guitar. Wylde and The Grail were reunited years later when a fan bought it at a Dallas pawn shop and saw the initials "Z.W." carved into the humbucker pickups backs. He contacted Wylde's former webmaster Randy Canis to arrange its return to Wylde. He bartered for it, in exchange for two other Les Pauls.^{[citation needed]}

Osbourne has maintained a flexible attitude with regard to his backing band, leaving his band members free to leave as they wish, but Wylde has remained faithful to Osbourne. Wylde was replaced in Osbourne's band by Joe Holmes from 1995 until his return in 2001. On January 17, 2006, Zakk Wylde was recognized at the Hollywood Rock Walk of Fame, featuring his handprints and signature, in recognition of his successful career as a musician and his contribution to the music industry. The event was open to the public and many rock celebrities were present, including Ozzy Osbourne.^{[citation needed]}

After auditions in 2005/2006, Ozzy Osbourne announced Wylde as the official guitarist for his upcoming album, Black Rain, which was released in 2007. On stage with Osbourne, Wylde has been credited for lending a high level of energy and passion to performances. Black Label Society's album Shot To Hell, was released on September 11, 2006 in the UK, and September 12, 2006 in the U.S. through Roadrunner records, with production by Michael Beinhorn. Black Label Society headlined the second stage at the 2006 Ozzfest, with Wylde playing double duty with Ozzy on certain dates. Ozzy Osbourne's album Black Rain, was released in May 2007.^{[citation needed]}

Black Label Society released 'The Song Remains Not the Same' on May 10, 2011 on E1. Wylde also played a guitar solo on Black Veil Brides cover of Kiss' "Unholy," on the band's Rebels EP released in December 2011.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

Wylde lives with his wife, Barbaranne, and his three children: Hayley Rae, Hendrix, and Jesse—who is godson to Ozzy Osbourne. Wylde was a close friend of Darrell "Dimebag" Abbott before he was murdered in 2004. As of 2011, he is in partnership with Blair's Sauces and Snacks to produce "Berserker" Hot Sauce and several variations.^[2] Wylde is Irish Catholic and has spoken about his faith, calling himself as a "soldier of Christ".^{[citation needed]} Wylde's health has come under scrutiny for several years. Wylde was asked by Sharon Osbourne to attend rehab, but left early on.^[3] In August 2009, Wylde was hospitalized due to blood clots.^[4] He was forced to cancel his tour with Mudvayne and Static-X due to an embolism.^{[citation needed]}

Equipment[link]

He is known for his use of Gibson Les Paul Custom model guitars with a "bulls-eye" graphic on them, a design he used to differentiate himself visually from Randy Rhoads - who was also frequently identified by his white Les Paul Custom. The "bulls-eye" paint job was originally supposed to look like the spiral from the movie Vertigo, but when it came back incorrect from the luthier, he liked the result and stuck with it. He was sometimes criticized by viewers and media for taking the idea of the "bulls-eye" from Eddie Ojeda from Twisted Sister, however, both Eddie and Zakk deny it and suppose it to be coincidence. One of Wylde's favorite stage guitars is a replica of Rhoads' Flying V, with the colours inverted (i.e. White with black dots).

Wylde's signature Les Pauls include a red flame-maple bulls-eye model, a black and antique-white bulls-eye model, an orange "buzz-saw" model, the pattern on which was inspired by a design on a Zippo lighter,^[5] and a "camo" bulls-eye model with mother of pearl neck inlays and a green camouflage paint scheme. His original bulls-eye Les Paul was purchased from one of the owners of Metaltronics Amplification. Metaltronics was building a one-off live rig for Wylde that was designed around one of the owner's guitars, a creamy white Les Paul Custom with EMG pickups, which would later become known as "The Grail". Wylde has a custom Dean Splittail with a mud splatter bulls-eye graphic, as well as a signature Splittail shaped Gibson model called the "ZV". Another Dean in his collection is a Dime series Razorback with custom Bulls-eye graphics ordered for him specially by Dimebag Darrell shortly before his death; since receiving the guitar, he has only ever used it on stage to play "In This River," Zakk's personal tribute to Dimebag.

In practice, Wylde uses Marshall MG Series practice combos ranging in wattage levels from 10-30W during tour/private use especially in hotels and buses. Wylde has an extensive relationship with Marshall Amplification due to his love for their amplifiers, both solid state and valve powered. Live, Wylde exclusively uses Marshall JCM 800's with twin 4 X 12 Cabinets loaded with EVM12L 300W Black Label Speakers. His usual signal path consists of his guitar > (on stage pedal board) Dunlop Wylde Wah > Dunlop Rotovibe > MXR EVH Phase 90 (soon to be replaced by the new MXR Wylde Phase) > MXR Wylde Overdrive > MXR Carbon Copy Delay Delay > (to a back stage pedal board) > MXR EVH Flanger > MXR Black Label Chorus > split signals, one to each distorted amp into the High Gain input.

Media appearances[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (August 2008)

Music[link]

Wylde has made guest appearances on various albums by other artists:

• He appears as guest vocalist and guitarist on the tracks "Soul Bleed" and "Reborn" on Damageplan's debut album, New Found Power.
• He played guitar solos on Dope's single "Addiction" from their newest album, No Regrets.
• He plays a solo on Fozzy's 2005 release "All That Remains" on the song, Wanderlust.
• He has also worked on five of Derek Sherinian's solo albums: Inertia, Black Utopia, Mythology, Blood of the Snake and Molecular Heinosity alongside Yngwie Malmsteen and others.
• Wylde was also a judge for the 8th annual Independent Music Awards. His contributions helped assist independent artists' careers.^[6][7]
• In 2010 he played lead guitar on My Darkest Days first single "Porn Star Dancing", along with guest singers Chad Kroeger and Ludacris.^[8]
• In 1993 Ozzy Osbournes double album Live and Loud was released. Wylde is the guitarist.
• In 2011 he featured in Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed's new project, "Jasta" in the song "The Fearless must Endure".
• He plays the guitar solo on Black Veil Brides cover of the Kiss song "Unholy" on their EP, Rebels.

Live performances[link]

Black Label Society performing at Allen Event Center in Allen, Texas on October 16, 2011

• On August 1, 1993, at Great Woods Amphitheatre in Mansfield, MA, Wylde appeared on stage with the Allman Brothers on lead guitar since Dickey Betts was unable to make the show, and they needed a guitarist at the last minute. This show is documented on the bootleg "Zakk Goes Wylde".
• Wylde is a New York Yankees fan. He performed the National Anthem on the electric guitar during a New York Rangers game in October 2005. He has also played the anthem at Los Angeles Kings and Dodgers games. A video of a Kings performance is included as an extra feature, on the DVD Boozed, Broozed, and Broken-Boned.
• On February 1, 2007 Wylde and Nick Catanese began a tour of acoustic shows at the Hard Rock Cafe in various cities across North America. Although Catanese had to leave mid-tour due to unspecified personal reasons, Wylde continued to play shows alone. He performed several songs, on both the acoustic guitar and keyboard. The tour was eventually canceled due to unspecified reasons.
• On April 13, 2011 he was the guitarist for James Durbin on American Idol, during Durbin's performance of "Heavy Metal", by Sammy Hagar.
• On May 14, 2011 he performed the National Anthem at Rockfest in Kansas City, Missouri.
• Wylde appeared on stage December 8, 2011 in Indianapolis, IN, to play a cover of AC/DC's "Whole Lotta Rosie" with Guns N' Roses while Black Label Society opened for Guns N' Roses during a leg of the US Tour. Wylde also did this on subsequent shows before BLS finished their run on the tour.

Film and television[link]

• On June 5, 2011, he appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and performed with The Roots
• Wylde's film credits include Rock Star (As "Ghode", guitarist of the fictitious band Steel Dragon)
• Wylde also appeared on the TV show Angel in the season four episode "The Magic Bullet" where he plays acoustic on the song "Mandy" while Angel and Conner sing along.
• Wylde has also appeared as a guest star on the TV show Aqua Teen Hunger Force. In it, he plays guitar on a track produced by Master Shake that is supposed to become the next big birthday song, which is called "Spirit Journey Formation Anniversary." Wylde becomes irate when he finds out that Shake cannot pay him for his input on the project. Later in the show, Wylde is killed when caught between the crossfire of two robotic banjo-playing scorpions.
• On September 26, 2003, Wylde appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and sat in with the house band. During the course of the night he repeatedly made fun of and threatened to beat up Fred Durst, the front man for Limp Bizkit.^[9]
• On January 30, 2007, Wylde, alongside Black Label Society, were the musical guests for MTV's Wrestling Society X debut episode. He worked the night as a guest commentator as well.
• On February 2, 2007, Wylde guest hosted on Seattle's 99.9 KISW on the afternoon program The Men's Room.
• On the May 18 edition of WWE Smackdown!, Wylde appeared with Ozzy Osbourne to perform the song "I Don't Wanna Stop", at the First Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland.
• Wylde performed alongside Osbourne on the 2007 VH1 Rock Honors broadcast.
• On October 18, 2009, Zakk Wylde performed the National Anthem on Total Nonstop Action Wrestling's biggest PPV, Bound for Glory, before the matches officially started.
• He appears as a guest in Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage.
• He appears in the Pantera episode of Behind the Music.
• He appears as a music store worker in a scene from the TV show Californication on Showtime, Season 4 Episode 2.t
• He was on tour with Black Label Society in 2010 on the Ozzfest Tour that also had Ozzy and Mötley Crüe, among many others.
• He performed "Heavy Metal" by Sammy Hagar with James Durbin during season 10 of American Idol.

Video games[link]

• Wylde recorded a guitar duel for the video game Guitar Hero: World Tour. He also appears as a playable character performing the songs Stillborn and, along with Ozzy Osbourne, Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley.
• Some of Wylde's signature guitars have been for sale to play with throughout the Guitar Hero series. These include "The Grail", "The Camo Grail", and "The Buzzsaw".
• Wylde was featured in the first Guitar Hero with the studio version recording of Fire it Up.
• He was the guitarist in the remix of "Bring The Noise" called "Bring The Noise 20XX" that appeared in Guitar Hero 5 as a playable track

Discography[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Zakk Wylde

• Official website
• Black Label Society official website
• Zakk Wylde Video Workshop (Videos in engl.) Source: Bonedo.de
• Zakk Wylde Interview Source: Bonedo.de
• [1] Source: Alternative Press