Crazy Town star Shifty Shellshock shared cryptic final post on ‘fakes’ before his tragic death aged 49
CRAZY Town singer Shifty Shellshock shared a mysterious message to Instagram before he died aged 49.
The Los Angeles rapper, whose real name was Seth Binzer, posted about people who are “fake” alongside an eerie picture of a masked man.
Binzer co-founded the rap rock band best known for their 2000 single “Butterfly”.
He was found dead at home on Monday but his cause of death has not yet been revealed.
The rapper forged Crazy Town alongside Bret Mazur and struggled with addiction throughout his career.
Two months before he died he shared an image with the caption: “To the ones who stay even when I try my hardest to scare the away”.
The picture showed a person in a black mask staring at the camera surrounded by people in white masks looking straight on, with the message “Real is rare, fake is everywhere”.
Tributes have flowed in for the dad-of-three underneath his cryptic final post.
One friend wrote: “Rest in peace man, I hope you’re finally at peace. Thank you for the music and all our chats over the years! I’ll miss you man!”
Several people said they missed the singer, while another simply wrote: “Icon”.
Binzer and Mazur initially started a band called Brimstone Sluggers in 1995 before forming Crazy Town in 1999.
Butterfly became their most successful and notable single after reaching the Billboard Hot 100 and staying there for two weeks.
With the band’s single hitting number one in several countries, their debut album The Gift of Game sold over 1.5 million copies, though this success was short-lived.
The band broke up in 2003 after their second album Darkhorse failed to make waves upon its release in 2002.
During this time, Binzer also worked on his solo career by working with Paul Oakenfold, a British musician and producer.
Binzer provided vocals for Oakenfold’s 2002 song Starry Eyed Surprise hitting the top 10 in the UK and the top 50 in the US.
A year after Crazy Town disbanded, Binzer released his first solo album Happy Love Sick under his stage name Shifty.
Crazy Town reformed in 2007 before becoming Crazy Town X in 2017 after Mazur and other members left.
Around the same time of his post about “fake” friends, Binzer made another on Instagram where he discussed his battle with sobriety.
The rapper posted a picture of a graffiti-covered sidewalk with a love heart and some flowers.
“I’m a lover than a fighter…but the one I need to love more instead of fight with is myself,” he wrote in the caption.
“Mr Shifty true love #Sober alive and grateful.”
Several of his friends in the business referenced his struggles with addiction as they paid tribute to him.
Friend and actress Alice McMunn wrote on Instagram: “RIP. Honestly, I have been witness to his struggle over the past 10 yrs and it was one of the hardest I have ever seen.”
While producer Nikki Minton added underneath his last social media post: “I have no words for how sad this is.
“My friend for more than half my life. I’m going to miss him. Sorry to everyone who lost him.”
Binzer was featured on the reality television series Celebrity Rehab 1 and 2 as well as Sober House 1 and 2.