The tragic cause of death for Crazy Town’s frontman Shifty Shellshock has finally been revealed - three months after the star’s death.
Shifty - whose real name was Seth Binzer - died at the age of 49 on June 24.
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Fans of Crazy Town will remember Binzer for the band’s early 2000s hit ‘Butterfly’, but behind the success, the musician struggled with addiction for years — often in the public eye.
According to the band’s manager, Howie Hubberman, those closest to Shifty tried to help him get clean, but ultimately, the fight proved too difficult.
"Seth Binzer, after struggling with addiction and Crazy Town's rapid success with 'Butterfly,' never was able to reach out on a more successful level to deal with his addictions," Hubberman told PEOPLE shortly after Shifty’s passing. "We all tried, but ultimately we all failed, or Shifty would still be here."
Now, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner has confirmed that Binzer’s addiction issues resulted in his untimely passing, with his death being ruled an accident and down to the effects of fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine.
Binzer’s battle with addiction was no secret. He appeared on VH1’s Celebrity Rehab and its spin-off Sober House in the late 2000s, where viewers saw his struggles with cocaine addiction and his attempts at recovery. Although he committed to sobriety several times over four seasons of the shows, Binzer faced multiple relapses.
Unfortunately, his battles didn’t stop there. In 2012, Shifty was arrested for cocaine possession and sentenced to three years of probation. Despite this, he checked into a highly regarded drug and alcohol treatment center with the intention of turning his life around, according to TMZ. But addiction’s grip proved stronger than anyone could have anticipated.
Sadly, his addiction spiraled again in 2023. Just days after a fan filmed him in a fistfight with Crazy Town bandmate Bobby Reeves, Shifty was arrested on a DUI charge. Following the altercation, the band was kicked off the tour they had been opening for metal band Hed PE. It was one of the final public chapters in Shifty’s turbulent life.
In April of this year, just a few months before his passing, Binzer acknowledged his struggles with addiction in a poignant Instagram post. “I’m a lover than a fighter …but the one I need to love more Instead of fight with is myself," he wrote, followed by the hashtags #Sober, #Alive, and #Grateful.
In the wake of his passing, Crazy Town co-founder Adam Bravin shared a touching tribute on Instagram, writing simply, “Rest Easy Seth”.
Shifty Shellshock’s death is a tragic reminder of the devastating effects of addiction and the difficulty of breaking free.
Our thoughts continue to go out to his family, friends, and fans.
If you or someone you know is battling addiction, please reach out for help and contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA's) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (1-800-662-4357) or go to https://findtreatment.gov/
