Crazy Town consists of Anthony Valli (guitar), Bret Mazur (vocals), Doug Miller (bass), Kraig Tyler (guitar), Kyle Hollinger (drums), Seth Binzer (vocals).
Crazy Town (aka. CXT) is a hip hop band influenced by Hardcore Punk roots ( Rapcore). Formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles in the fall of 1995 by rappers/producers; Boston born " Shifty Shellshock" (aka. Seth Brooks Binzer) and Brooklyn born " Epic Mazur" (aka. Bret Mazur) who both moved to L.A. at very young ages.
Binzer and Mazur discovered hip hop at a young age. Binzer started writing rhymes when he was 12, and was a fan of Punk Rock. Mazur began cutting and sampling records at High School. The two met at a studio in Hollywood sometime in 1995, forming a group originally called the Brimstone Sluggers.
Incorporating other band members in 1999, to add elements of punk and metal to their sound, Crazy Town emerged during a wave of alternative rock bands heavily influenced by hip hop. Notable contemporary bands include Papa Roach and P.O.D..
Their debut album, The Gift of Game, was released in 1999 and became a multi-platinum seller. The third single to be released from the album, "Butterfly" became one of the biggest selling singles of the year worldwide, reaching #1 in the US Hot 100 for two weeks in 2001. Butterfly sampled the Red Hot Chili Peppers track, "Pretty Little Ditty". The song was an instant favourite amongst TRL audiences, and received massive airplay on MTV, helping their debut album "The Gift of Game" to achieve multi-platinum status, and sales of more than 2.5 million copies. Later in 2001, the band performed on MTV's spring break, and headlined the main stage at the Ozzfest, alongside Linkin Park, Papa Roach, Marilyn Manson, Slipknot & Disturbed. The band was not popular with the mostly "metal" crowd, which can be attributed to the mainstream success achieved by "Butterfly".