Stuck Mojo

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Stuck Mojo is a rap metal group from Atlanta, Georgia. They were formed in 1989 by guitarist Rich Ward and original bassist Dwayne Fowler. Lead vocalist Bonz joined later in the year. They released their first album, Snappin' Necks, in 1995, with Century Media Records. In 1996 they released the Devin Townsend produced Pigwalk alongside new bassist Corey Lowery and drummer Bud Fontseré. Their fame was minimal until the release of their 3rd album, Rising. The album sold over 50,000 copies and remained Century Media's highest selling album until 2004, when Lacuna Coil's 5th album Comalies broke that record. The band's love for professional wrestling was especially exhibited through this album, as World Championship Wrestling's U.S. Heavyweight Championship belt was prominently featured on the cover. Also, the video for the song "Rising" featured then-WCW stars "Diamond" Dallas Page, Raven, and The Flock. Despite critical praise and good sales of their follow-up albums, Stuck Mojo broke up in 2000 but continued to perform New Year's Eve reunion shows every year at the Masquerade Club in Atlanta. Bonz started the band 420 Monks and later Dead Gospel. Ward, Fontseré, and former bassist Dan Dryden, together with (World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler) Chris Jericho, formed the band Fozzy and another band called Sick Speed, and Corey Lowery joined Life Of Agony, started Stereomud, and later Dark New Day. Rich Ward released a solo album under the name "The Duke" on May 3, 2005. Stuck Mojo are considered pioneers of the nu-metal subgenre, and are considered an influence by many popular nu-metal groups. In 2005, Stuck Mojo reunited, with Bonz, Ward, and Fontseré back in the lineup, with new bassist Sean Delson replacing Dan Dryden. Current plans include a new album, titled "Southern Born Killers", as well as a full-scale tour. Fontsere has since left and been replaced by Rodney from Dead Gospel.

Contents

[edit] Biography and History

1989 - Guitarist/songwriter Rich Ward teamed up with bassist Dwayne Fowler and drummer Richard Farmer to form what would become the foundation for rap metal pioneers Stuck Mojo. After 39 agonizing vocalist auditions, Andrew Freund was chosen to front the band. Thanks to artists such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Aerosmith with RUN DMC and other, smaller acts like Urban Dance Squad, the lines between rap, funk, and heavy rock music were becoming less distinct. The young musical outfit set out to experiment with this new, genre-blending hybrid.

At the time, Ward was working delivering pizzas to support his musical habit. One of his co-workers was, as he recalls, “the most annoying person I've ever met. All he did while making pizza was blast the f@#king boom-box and rap along with it from the moment he came to work until the moment he left. I could tell that hip-hop was not just what he wanted to do, it was who he was.” Despite the annoyance, Ward felt that “Bonz,” the pizza-making rapper, would be the perfect person to coach their current vocalist in the ways of hip-hop and the street. Not surprisingly, vocalist Freund was soon replaced by new frontman “M.C. Bonz.” For the next two years the band consistently played shows in Atlanta while building an impressive fan base. The talent buyers and local booking agents didn't get it, but the fans sure did.

1993 - Under the guidance of their new management team of Mark Willis and Nancy Camp, Stuck Mojo took their show on the road hitting dozens of cities such as Chicago , Tampa , Charlotte , Columbia , Macon , Tallahassee , etc. A bi-racial, heavy rock band fronted by a rapper, Stuck Mojo was an anomaly and was, at times, met with prejudice and animosity from predominantly white audiences and club owners. More often than not this resulted in a physical confrontation. However, this only added to their growing reputation as a kick-ass band (no pun intended). After six straight months of touring, Willis and Camp put the band in the studio with producer Joseph Nuyens to record a three song demo at his studio outside of Nashville , Tennessee . This demo ended up in the hands of heavy metal A&R legend Monty Connor of RoadRunner Records. Monty subsequently passed the demo on to his friend Borivoj Krgin at Century Media Records and insisted that this was the band to sign. Bori quickly agreed and signed the band sight unseen!

1995 – Stuck Mojo's debut album,“Snappin' Necks,” was released in March. The band toured for three months as the main support for Machine Head. This exposure cemented their reputation as one of metal's best live acts. However, the rigors of the road produced some friction between band members and both Brent Payne (drummer) and Dwayne Fowler (bass) exited the band.

1996 - Bassist Corey Lowery joined the band and Frank Fontsere' took over on drums. The band immediately entered the studio. The result was “Violated,” a Europe-only EP on Century Media. The EP was meant to prime the fans overseas for Stuck Mojo's first tour of Europe . In late April, Stuck Mojo landed in Frankfurt , Germany to join four other bands on the “Crossover 2000” tour including dates in Germany , France , Italy , England , Austria , Denmark , Poland , Belgium and the Czech Republic . On the last show of the tour, Stuck Mojo performed on the main stage at the prestigious Dynamo Festival in Eindhoven , Netherlands . Having been named the year's best live band by MTV Europe, many rock journalists covering the event noted that Stuck Mojo was the highlight of the show. The band returned to the States and entered the studio with co-producers Devin Townsend and Daniel Bergstrand to begin work on their sophomore release “Pigwalk.” This vocally aggressive, over the top album changed the musical landscape and rapcore was born. It also separated Mojo from any further comparisons to Rage Against the Machine or anyone else for that matter.

1997 - Highlighted by tours with Type O Negative, Life of Agony, Testament and a second tour of Europe , Stuck Mojo performed over 250 shows for the 3 rd straight year. The band entered the studio with notable producer Andy Sneap at the helm to begin sessions for their third release “Rising.” A professional wrestling-themed video with appearances by Diamond Dallas Page and other WCW stars was filmed in support of “Rising.”

1998 - “Rising” was released in March. Thanks to the airing of the “Rising” video on MTV and “WCW Monday Nitro” on the eve of the album's release, Stuck Mojo experience their highest sales to date and become the first Century Media band to hit the Billboard charts. A headlining tour of Europe then followed in June and ended with another appearance on the main stage at Dynamo. This was followed by a week of dates opening for Pantera, and a fall tour with Clutch along with fellow Atlanta group Sevendust. This put Mojo at over 300 performances for the year. In December, Corey Lowery (bass) left the band to join Life of Agony. Minnesota native Dan Dryden was brought in to replace him.

1999 - Stuck Mojo headlined a six month tour with the last date being at their home venue, the Masquerade in Atlanta . During this performance the band recorded a live album.Titled “HVY 1,” the disc also featured two new studio tracks. Released in September, the band followed up with a headlining tour to support it.

2000 - Years of living out of suitcases, occasional substance abuse, and friction between Mojo's management and Century Media caused the band to fracture. Rich Ward formed two side projects with drummer Fontsere'; Sick Speed and Fozzy with WWE wrestling star Chris Jericho. Stuck Mojo, however, still had unfinished business. With the desire to write an album that would once again redefine the genre, the band recorded its final studio album, “Declaration of a Headhunter.” Ward considered the album his personal swan song and proceeds to write not only all the music but the lyrics as well. Bonz was not happy with this situation and the band decided not to tour. After only four regional shows Stuck Mojo drifted apart.

2001 - In order to fulfill lingering contractual obligations and prevent Century Media from being able to exercise any ownership rights over future recorded materials, Rich Ward agreed to enter the studio once more. Recording two new tracks taken from his archive of unused material, the songs were added to an album of rarities and B-sides titled “Violate This.” Bonz did not participate in the sessions.

2004 to Present – The fans' demand for new material has not faded with the passage of time. In response to this demand, Rich Ward has collaborated with Ed Aborn of Intersonic Multimedia to compile the comprehensive DVD titled “Inside the Monster: The Evilution of Stuck Mojo. Vol. 1.” (available at www.StuckMojoMedia.com). With their last tour five years behind them, Bonz once again entered the studio with Rich to lay vocal tracks for Allison, a new artist Rich is producing. The collaboration went very well and the two decide to resurrect Stuck Mojo and hit the road once again in 2005 after which a new record will be written and recorded. Currently, the band is considering multiple record company offers.

2006 - New tracks from the upcoming album 'Southern Born Killers' are available on the Official Stuck Mojo myspace and the full album is available for download from stuckmojomedia.com

[edit] Albums

  • Snappin' Necks (1995)
  • Pigwalk (1996)
  • Rising (1998)
  • HVY 1 (Live, 1999)
  • Violated (EP, 1999)
  • Declaration of a Headhunter (2000)
  • Violate This (2001)
  • Inside the Monster: The Evilution of Stuck Mojo Vol. I (DVD, 2005)
  • Southern Born Killers (2006)

[edit] Current Band Members

  • Lord Nelson - Vocals (since 2006)
  • Rich "The Duke" Ward - Guitar and Backup Vocals
  • Sean Delson - Bass (since 2004)
  • Rodney - Drums (since 2006)

[edit] Former Band Members

  • Bonz - Vocals
  • Benjamin Reed - Drums
  • Brent Payne - - Drums
  • Corey Lowery - Bass/Backing Vocals
  • Frank "Bud" Fontsere - Drums
  • Dan Dryden - Bass
  • Eric Sanders - Drums

[edit] External links

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