Seth Binzer, the American singer of the rap-rock band Crazy Town, which had a number one hit in 2001 with “Butterfly,” has died of a drug overdose, the band’s manager told The Guardian on Friday.
Crazy Town manager Howie Huberman said the musician known as Shifty Shellshock died Monday from unintentionally ingesting a lethal amount of pharmaceutical and street drugs, but the coroner in the singer’s hometown of Los Angeles has yet to release details about the official cause or manner of death.
“We let Shifty down, the people like me who made it possible for him to do this and that. If we had been successful, he’d still be here,” Haberman said in a brief interview Friday.
Binzer (49) was found dead at her Los Angeles home. Binzer spoke about her struggle with substance abuse in a documentary filmed by actor and director Soleil Moon Frye. It has been confirmed that she had been dating Frye since around 2021.
“It’s a portrait of his daily life and his daily struggle with drug addiction,” Huberman said of the film, which had not yet been released at the time of Binzer’s death. “The film exists, and we want to spread the message of the film now more than ever.”
In the United States alone, about 108,000 people died from drug-related overdoses in 2022, the most recent year for which there was complete data as of Friday. That figure includes illegal and prescription drugs. Federal Government.
butterfly is the third single from Crazy Town’s 1999 debut album, The Gift of Game. Released as a single in 2000, Butterfly reached number one on the US charts the following year and peaked at number three in the UK.
Binzer knew the song would be a hit because it was “radio friendly.” [and] “We love the female crowd.” He and his bandmates feared that Butterfly would define the band, but that fear proved prescient when their 2002 sophomore album, Dark Horse, failed to garner the same success as their first, and the band soon went on a four-year hiatus.
As a solo artist, Binzer has provided vocals on Paul Oakenfold’s singles. Starry Sky SurpriseIt peaked at number six in the UK and came within one spot of reaching the US Top 40 in 2002.
Crazy Town would later work together again, but former members Last Epic died in 2004 and DJ AM died in 2009. Binzer eventually changed the group’s name to Crazy Town X.
In addition to his music career, Binzer gained recognition for appearing on the VH1 reality show Celebrity Rehab and on the spin-off show Sober House, which portrayed his drug relapse.
Among Binzer’s publicly documented legal troubles was an arrest in 2022 on suspicion of drunk driving.
Huberman on Friday described Binzer as a friend who fought to overcome his addiction problems. He said Binzer leaves behind three children.
“We weren’t able to give him any help and he’s not here anymore,” Haberman said.
