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Ben Moody
Benmoody
Birth Name Benjamin Robert Moody II
Date of Birth January 22, 1981
Origin Little Rock, Arkansas
Genre Goth metal, rock, alternative, nu metal

Ben Robert Moody II is the co-founder and former lead guitarist for Evanescence from 1995 to 2003. Ben's father is a prominent photographer in the Little Rock area. His mother is an acting teacher.

Career[]

Evanescence[]

Ben met Amy Lee in 1994 at a youth summer camp in Arkansas. He claimed she was playing Meatloaf's "I Would Do Anything For Love" on the piano,[1] but this was later refuted by Amy in an interview for the magazine Rolling Stone, stating that she was playing pieces by Bach, Beethoven and Mozart on the piano. The two quickly became friends, and began writing and playing music together at local shops. Within the next few years, they sold their EPs at local shows. They released the demo compilation, Origin, in 2000.[2] Wind-up Records signed them in 2001, and released their debut album, Fallen, in 2003.

Solo Career[]

Beginning in 2004, Moody began collaborating with a variety of artists, working in multiple disciplines. That year, he co-wrote the track "Nobody's Home" for Avril Lavigne's second album, Under My Skin, and wrote and recorded the track "The End Has Come" with Jason C. Miller and Jason "Gong" Jones for The Punisher soundtrack. He then wrote with David Hodges, Kelly Clarkson, and others for Clarkson's second album, Breakaway, working on the songs "Because of You" and "Addicted".

In early 2005, Moody played lead guitar for the song "Forever in Our Hearts", the 'song for tsunami relief' made exclusively for iTunes. He collaborated with singer Anastacia on the song "Everything Burns", which is featured on her album Pieces of a Dream and the Fantastic Four soundtrack. Moody then assisted Lindsay Lohan on her album A Little More Personal (Raw) and worked with Bo Bice on the song "My World" (a cover from SR-71) for his debut album The Real Thing.

In April 2006, Moody began working on the debut album of Billings, Montana singer-songwriter Hana Pestle. He co-produced and co-wrote alongside Michael "Fish" Herring, and contributed vocals and instrumentals to the album. He later produced the Godhead album The Shadow Line with Julian Beeston, and played a clown in their music video for the song "Push". He collaborated with David Hodges again on American Idol Chris Daughtry's debut album, Daughtry, for the song "What About Now".

In 2007, Moody worked with Céline Dion on her album Taking Chances, and began work for his solo album.

In December 2008, he released the Mutiny Bootleg E.P. and announced that his solo album would be released on March 3, 2009. This release would be delayed, however, as was hinted at in February 2009, when Moody's official website displayed the release as "available 2009" instead of the March 3 release date. On June 9, 2009, Moody's debut solo album, entitled All for This, was released digitally via Amazon.com, iTunes, and Amie Street through Moody's label, FNR Records. His second album, You Can't Regret What You Don't Remember, was released on November 11, 2011.

We Are the Fallen[]

Shortly after the release of All for This, it was announced that Moody had created and is also currently a member of a new rock band called We Are the Fallen. The members of the band include American Idol 7 finalist Carly Smithson as the lead singer, former Evanescence members Rocky Gray and John LeCompt, and Moody's friend Marty O'Brien. We Are the Fallen made their first public appearance together for a press conference at SIR Studios in Los Angeles, CA, on June 22, 2009. Their debut album, Tear The World Down, was released in May 2010 to generally positive reviews. The band toured for most of the year in support of the album and filmed their first live DVD, Cirque Des Damnés, at the Avalon Theatre. The DVD was scheduled for release in late 2011.

The Halo Method[]

In 2012 Moody teamed up with former Papa Roach drummer Dave Buckner and former Rockstar Supernova frontman Lukas Rossi to form a new project called The Halo Method. Before their debut show on the Shiprocked cruise in November 2012, former In This Moment bassist and multi-talented studio engineer Josh Newell became their permanent bassist. The band has since played a few shows, released an EP, and is had their second Shiprocked show in late January 2014.

Acting[]

Aside from his music endeavors, Moody works with his television and film production company, Makeshift Films. He has also done some film work, such as his cameo as a zombie in Resident Evil: Apocalypse (recognized by Milla Jovovich in her commentary). He can also be seen in the 2007 release of the low-budget, Lionsgate film, Dead and Gone.

Representation[]

Ben Moody is published by BMG Chrysalis Publishing worldwide.

Leaving Evanescence[]

Ben left the band on October 22nd, 2003, after a Berlin concert, after creative differences caused a rift between him and Amy. The two are reported to have been in a relationship sometime in the past, and this relationship is actually what inspired most of the songs in Evanescence's pre-2003 repertoire.[3] In the past, Amy would only say that the songs were about an "abusive relationship" with an unnamed person.

Ben has caught a bad rap from some fans since his departure. In an interview with MTV, he explained his reasons for leaving the band:

He started an independent cinema label, called Makeshift Films, and an independent music label, called FNR records, producing Hana Pestle, an alternative rock/acoustic artist. For this label Ben produced his solo works too: the Mutiny Bootleg EP and All For This.

We Are The Fallen[]

In 2009, it was announced Ben Moody would be joining ex-Evanescence members John LeCompt and Rocky Gray along with former American Idol contestant Carly Smithson (Vocals) and bass player Marty O'Brien to form We Are The Fallen. The group released their debut album "Tear The World Down" on May 11, 2010.

Personal Life[]

Ben needs our help asap - https://gofund.me/bbf5a03f

Trivia[]

  • He's 5' 8½" (1.74 m) tall.
  • Ben Moody's favorite drink is Dr. Pepper.
  • Once he was asked to join Living Sacrifice, but he refused to keep staying in Evanescence.[2]
  • The first song he learned to play on the guitar was "Rape Me" by Nirvana.
  • He first wanted to become a drummer but had to give it up because of wrist pains.
  • He studied the piano, but he never studied the guitar.
  • Once, by mistake, he brought Evanescence to a gay pub.

References[]

  1. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named :3
  2. 2.0 2.1 "True Tunes Magazine Review". 2000. Bigwigenterprises.com.
  3. "Evanescence's Amy Lee Sues Former Manager, Alleges Financial and Sexual Misconduct" (December 8, 2005)
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