In a recent interview with Metal Hammer, Amy Lee explained why one particular aspect of Evanescence’s classic song “Bring Me To Life” affected her so much.
A tiny American rock group named Evanescence released their first single, “Bring Me to Life,” on April 7, 2003, to unexpectedly high global recognition. Amy Lee, the lead vocalist, scales a dystopian city block in the accompanying music video, which has since received over one billion views on YouTube and secured its position in nu-metal history.
Although it’s always energizing to watch all of your hard work pay off, it wasn’t without some rather significant sacrifices. And once Evanescence did, they had to do it with a member they weren’t as fond of to reach the top of the metal world.
You probably recall the rapping section of “Bring Me To Life” that was recorded by special guest vocalist Paul McCoy of the 12 Stones. It would appear that neither Amy nor Evanescence had the original idea to include a rap segment in the song. Their record label opted to proceed with it because they believed it would add a new depth to the sound and since nu-metal was well-liked by audiences.
Lee recounted how they used to hardly ever play the portion live because they didn’t want to emphasize it. On the rare times when they would perform the part live, they would alternate between different musicians on stage and wouldn’t pass up the chance to ask McCoy to join them anytime he was in town for a throwback performance.
But, the singer made it clear that rap wasn’t her style, and she took some time to get used to the notion before it disturbed her. She also mentioned how, despite all of her worries, the song was a success because of the dominant rock sound that helped make it a popular song and give it cult status.
The rocker’s comments on include the rapping in live performances and her initial reservations about the segment:
“I stopped performing it a long time ago. We never really did perform it. When we’re on tour, and we have somebody that fits into that spot, they jump up on the song. We were on tour with P.O.D., and we had Sonny [Sandoval, vocalist] get up a few times.
And obviously, if we’re ever in the same town as Paul [McCoy], who originally did the part, we will have him come up because it’s fun and it’s cool and nostalgic. But that part, that sound, that’s not my style. That’s why it was such a difficult pill to swallow, even on one song. But we won because we didn’t have to change our whole sound.”
Although adding a rapping portion wasn’t what Lee had in mind for her favorite song, she caved into the label’s request, and fortunately, the addition enhanced the song. In the end, everything worked out well even though she and her bandmates seldom played the part during live performances and always called McCoy if he was in town for a trip down memory lane.
