Is 'horrorcore' getting a bad rap?

Adam Graham / Detroit News Pop Music Writer

A pair of heinous crimes allegedly committed by fans of so-called "horrorcore" music has people re-examining the link between entertainment and reality.

Last month, after attending the Strictly for the Wicked 2009 Festival in Southgate, 20-year-old Richard McCroskey -- an aspiring rapper who goes by the name Syko Sam and who bragged in songs about killing people and the joy of "watching their last breath" -- was accused of killing four people in Farmville, Va. A week prior in Pennsylvania, four fans of infamous Detroit rap duo Insane Clown Posse confessed to beating a 21-year-old man to death with metal baseball bats.

The two incidents are shedding light on horrorcore, its artists and its fans, and raising questions of whether there's a link between the music and the killings. The events also are spotlighting Detroit's role as a mecca for the music, a brutally violent subgenre of rap.

While artists say horrorcore -- also known as "acid rap" and "wicked s---" -- is a cathartic, non-violent way to express anger and frustration with everyday life, some experts contend that not everyone can separate the lyrics from their actions.

Art form defended

Esham, a Detroit rapper, is known as a pioneer of the genre that traffics mostly in gruesome fantasies of murder and mutilation, where anything goes and extreme rules. He defends the art form as strictly entertainment and said he's no different from film directors Wes Craven and Quentin Tarantino, who are known for their violent and bloody imagery on screen. There's a clear separation, he says, between the music and any real-world consequences.

"I'm totally against if anybody thinks listening to the music and going out and hurting somebody is what it's all about, 'cause it's really not," said Esham, who has released more than a dozen albums over the course of his 20-year career. "A lot of people get it. I would say 99 percent of the culture gets it. But there's always that one guy."

No subject is taboo in horrorcore. Conversely, the more taboo the subject matter, the better. It's a genre where rapping about cannibalism and necrophilia are commonplace.

Horrorcore is basically the rap music equivalent of death metal, and shares that genre's distaste for organized religion. The music is built on a foundation of two things teenage boys love: hip-hop and horror movies, said Jeremy Wallach, an associate professor in the department of Popular Culture at Bowling Green State University.

"This is an adolescent music that appeals to suburban teenagers, mostly male, who feel alienated by the high school social structure," said Wallach, adding fans tend to grow out of the genre by the time they reach their 20s.

Insane Clown Posse is perhaps the most successful example of a group with ties to the horrorcore genre, though Eminem, D12 and the Geto Boys have dabbled in horrorcore-type material. ICP and its label, Psychopathic Records, declined to comment for this story.

The genre has never achieved much mainstream success, as its boundary-pushing subject matter and disturbing imagery make it difficult for many listeners to stomach, and nearly impossible for radio programmers to embrace. Even Eminem had problems getting airplay for "3 A.M.," his horrorcore-leaning single from this year's "Relapse" album, which contained lyrics about dismembering family members and drinking their blood.

Horrorcore was on the precipice of mainstream acceptance in 1994 when "6 Feet Deep," the debut album from Gravediggaz -- a group featuring hip-hop production maestros the RZA and Prince Paul -- was released, but the album stiffed at retail. Since then, horrorcore -- the musical equivalent of the "Faces of Death" video series -- has existed in an increasingly underground capacity.

The genre has a zealous fanbase online on sites such as MySpace. In the wake of the McCroskey case, horrorcore rapper Sicktanick -- who headlined the first-ever "Strictly for the Wicked" festival -- released a statement on MySpace where he said his music was going to get "more blasphemous, more violent and more (expletive) brutal," as his way of honoring the tragedy's victims.

Meanwhile, entertainment being blamed for inspiring bad behavior in wayward youth is as old as entertainment itself. Music has been especially at the forefront of the debate, from shock-rocker Marilyn Manson catching heat for supposedly inciting the Columbine killings to Judas Priest going on trial in the 1980s for allegedly encouraging a fan to kill himself through subliminal messages in the band's music.

Comedian Chris Rock addressed the issue in his 1999 stand-up special, "Bigger and Blacker," performed not long after the Columbine High School killings. "Everybody is wanting to know what music were the kids listening to, or what movies were they watching. Who (cares) what they was watching! Whatever happened to crazy? What, you can't be crazy no more?"

Esham, a noted influence on Insane Clown Posse and others, says the music and its imagery is nothing more than a reaction to society -- an extreme reaction, sure, but a reaction nonetheless. And he said his music is therapeutic for some listeners.

"People hear my records and they run up and they say, 'Yo E, man, that record changed my life,'" Esham said. "They say, 'A lot of things you were saying, I was really frustrated inside, and once I listened to your record, it calmed me down and got me back on track.' It's like venting for some people, without actually acting out on some of those things."

Charles Wilson, a Southgate horrorcore rapper who goes by the name Ikkurruz, goes so far to include disclaimers inside some of his songs. During a spoken word interlude in "I Will Kill You All" -- which sounds like a threatened murder spree but actually details the action inside a mosh pit -- he recites, "Don't be confused by the music, I mean no harm. This is therapy, follow me and release the energy."

"There's some kids out there that are really screwed up and I think they misinterpret a lot of things," said Wilson, who also performed at the Southgate concert McCroskey attended. "I just try to entertain 'em, give them a place to go and have fun and make new friends. Our shows ain't violent, there are no fights."

Wilson said he's a lifelong fan of horror movies and gore, and said he never enjoyed writing until he began writing rap lyrics. He said it helps cool him off and air his frustrations with the world.

Not everyone agrees

But not everybody agrees with the theory that the music is therapeutic for listeners. In a 2003 study, Iowa State University's Craig A. Anderson found exposure to violent lyrics increases the accessibility of aggressive thoughts and affect. "In sum, listening to angry, violent music does not appear to provide the kind of cathartic release that the general public and some professional and pop psychologists believe," Anderson wrote.

Likewise, Dr. Gerald A. Shiener, a psychiatrist who works with Wayne State University, says some aren't able to successfully separate the music from the real world. Teenagers, especially, are susceptible to be influenced by artists they listen to, he said.

"Kids get carried away, and get mixed up between what's cool and what's real," said Shiener. He said studies show teenagers are more immature than people realize.

"Teenagers tend to act like little adults, but they think more like children than adults, and it's hard to remember and to appreciate that," he said.

Shiener said wayward teens looking for some sort of belonging can easily latch onto a scene and begin identifying themselves with it. Music, in particular, is absorbed by an "emotional, visceral" part of the brain and is more easily internalized than other forms of sensory stimulation.

Still, Shiener said, there's a danger in placing blame on art or musicians, and adds that parents need to look for warning signs in their children, such as isolation, social withdrawal and a preoccupation with disturbing content.

Producer Mike E. Clark, who has worked with Insane Clown Posse for nearly 20 years, believes it's "absurd" when the finger gets pointed at musicians in the wake of violent crimes.

"I think people are generally crazy, no matter what they're into, whether it's God, classical music, country, horrorcore, horror movies or comedies," he says. "If he was into Whitney Houston, would she be responsible? If music inspires someone to go out and kill someone, then you're screwed up to begin with and I'm sure you were going to do it regardless, whether or not there was a song made about it.

"I just think people should be responsible for their own actions."

agraham@detnews.com (313) 222-2284