In My Defense: The Insane Clown Posse

Welcome to a new segment here at Sophisticating Sandwiches! "In My Defense" is a series of articles in which our writers will be taking on something they love that the general public has decided is horrible, and defending it to the best of their abilities. I drew the short straw and I will be going first. This week I will be defending a rap group that I love, a group the world seems to hate, a group that I am probably not suited to defend... the Insane Clown Posse.

For those who don't know, the Insane Clown Posse is a horror themed rap duo that individually go by the names Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope. They got started making music in the late 80's/early 90's, and over the years they have found that their strange themes, clown like face paint, and over the top stage shows have gained them a loyal cult following of rabid fans. These much maligned (often unfairly so)fans are known as Juggalos. These fans paint their faces, chant loudly outside of every show, get sprayed in the face with diet root beer through the entire concert, and love every second of it. So why are these two men so despised by a majority of the world, and why do I love them so much? Let's find out.

Why do people think it sucks?

Let's get the ugly stuff out of the way. Even as a fan of the group, I can definitely see why they're not everybody's cup of tea. They're loud, obnoxious, ugly, and to be honest that's a big part of what we as fans love about them. Their themes of violence, insanity, and occasionally the Wizard of Oz cause many to see them as annoying and offensive. Most fans of rap music will tell you that they're not very talented as far as rappers go, and they would honestly be correct. They have an old school, disjointed style that doesn't seem to have much of an audience anymore. They're loud, violent, angry, and they don't care if you like it or not. For those reasons, I can definitely understand why people don't like them.

So how can you defend them?

Easy. All the things most people hate about these two musical misfits are all the things we love about them. There's nothing we love more than being screamed at by a man in clown paint about going out to hunt down and behead racist rednecks, while having two liters of cheap soda poured on us. Aside from that, there is plenty about this group that mainstream fans should still be able to appreciate. First and foremost, their marketing genius. They may not be on any list in Forbes magazine, but ICP's dedicated fan base was built slowly over time, and is so dedicated that we'll buy pretty much anything they put out just to support this band we love so much. They knew they weren't the best rappers, or the prettiest. They knew they were never going to open for Usher, and they embraced it. They made themselves stand out, so even if you didn't like them  you couldn't help but notice them. That slowly grew their loyal fan base, and made the duo enough money to live quite comfortably in their Michigan homes. Not only that, it has allowed them to start a record label, wrestling company, and to a put together a yearly festival that loses them an estimated 10,000 dollars a year. Why? Because they can, and their fans love it.

People often point to their violent themes as evidence of them being bad for society, but let's delve a little deeper shall we? Yes, there are needlessly violent songs with no theme and no point just for the hell of it. I won't deny those exist. However, if you look at most of their music, there is a bigger message. "Halls of Illusions" isn't just about an evil carnival ride that kills people, it's about a carnival ride that takes evil people, bigots, wife beaters, pedophiles, etc., and shows them how happy their family would be without them... and then kills them. They're loud and violent and brash, but behind it they're telling their fans to accept everyone, be kind to their fellow man, and try their best to find everyday miracles in their own way. It may seem hard to find to the casual listener, but it's all there.

Another thing that should be pointed out to those who don't understand ICP is their ability and willingness to experiment. They don't get bogged down with what they think their fans want them to sound like, and nowhere is that more prevalent than Violent J's 2003 solo album, Wizard of the Hood, a Wizard of Oz themed concept album that everyone, even haters should check out. It's a lot of fun and shows off the group's inventiveness. Aside from that, they have a running series of concept albums called the joker cards, each one having a different theme having to do with life and death, spirituality, and morality. Behind the silly clown facade, there is a lot of intelligence going to work for the two painted pariahs of rap.

One last thing I should mention is that much like Roger Corman, they will live on in infamy not from their own work, but through the careers they have launched. The cult popularity of ICP has granted a platform to much more beloved acts such as Twiztid, Kottonmouth Kings, and biggest of all, Tech N9ne. All of these groups can thank the Insane Clown Posse's help early on for the success they've gained, and will continue to gain.

Conclusions?

Ok, I know I'm probably not going to convert any haters with this article, but I do think that ICP gets trashed more than they deserve. They've had a wide influence on rap as a genre, they're marketing geniuses, and they don't seem to be stopping any time soon. Whether you love them or hate them or have never heard of them, I hope this at least gets you to give them a second look. There's a lot more good in them than most people realize.

Thanks for reading, and please feel free to drop comments in the comments section if you disagree with me or even if you agree with me, but feel I left something out. Happy New Year, and Whoop Whoop to us all.