CLASSLESS ACT
RELEASES SPECIAL NEW VERSION OF SONG
“STORM BEFORE THE CALM”
FEATURING DMC OF RUN DMC CONTRIBUTING ORIGINAL VERSE,
PLUS NEW MUSIC VIDEO – SEE IT HERE
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COLLABORATION CELEBRATES ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF
CLASSLESS ACT’S BREAKTHROUGH DEBUT ALBUM
WELCOME TO THE SHOW
5-PIECE L.A. BAND IS BUSY AT WORK ON NEW MATERIAL
Darryl “DMC” McDaniels (DMC of Run DMC) & Derek Day (Classless Act);
Photo Credit: Ross Halfin
“I was a little intimated about being invited to collaborate with a new young rock band – my first initial response, I was very curious to see what was going on. But then when I heard them, the presentation, the presence, the production, the performance … it was very mature … I wondered can I fit into this type of energy? … And then I was inspired to deliver something a little more unique.”
— Darryl “DMC” McDaniels
LOS ANGELES, CA – Friday, June 23, 2023 – Hip-hop legend Run DMC’s Darryl McDaniels is featured on a brand-new version of Classless Act’s single “Storm Before the Calm,” including an original verse he wrote just for the track, released today alongside a new music video. See it HERE.
“It was a beautiful collaboration that shows the powerful potential of music – like when Steven Tyler took the mic stand in ‘Walk This Way’ and knocked down the wall that separated us. Even to this day, people talk about it. … I think this song too is going to be very motivating and inspiring to all generations,” says DMC about the collaboration, which is in celebration of the one-year anniversary of Classless Act’s debut album Welcome To The Show, released June 24, 2022 via Better Noise Music and kicked off a huge breakthrough year for the Los Angeles-based five-piece.
Since the Spring of 2022, Classless Act racked up millions of streams and logged 100 live shows, including opening for Dorothy, playing the summer blockbuster Stadium Tour opening for Motley Crue and Def Leppard, as well as an appearance at the Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concert at L.A.’s Kia Forum on Sept. 27 where Classless Act frontman Derek Day joined Dave Grohl and members of the Foo Fighters. All of it gained critical acclaim for the band, with press hailing Classless Act as “the next big thing in music” (Next Mosh) and “very reminiscent of when rock reigned supreme” (Loudwire).
It was on the road when the collaboration of DMC and Classless Act – frontman Derek Day, guitarists Dane Pieper and Griffin Tucker, bassist Franco Gravante and drummer Chuck McKissock – first went public. The rapper was a surprise guest during Classless Act’s Stadium Tour set at L.A.’s SOFI Stadium.
“The beauty of making this song with them was the whole intention of us doing it, which was performing together,” DMC adds, saying the track – combining one of the buzziest new rock bands with hip-hop’s godfathers – “breaks down generational walls.”
“That was really the intent behind the songwriting of ‘Storm Before The Calm,’” explains Classless Act frontman Derek Day. “We’re this new band, but we’ve been playing music our whole lives. We want to be this thunder when we make our presence. But we’ve been trying our whole lives to break through. We’ve gone, we suffered, ‘we’ve crawled into the void, laid down and tasted the noise.’ No matter what, we’re going to come in and punch through and be the thunder.”
As far as DMC sees it, that fire and spark is what is crucial in today’s rock scene. “That spirit is missing right now in music, that rebellion,” he says, adding that Classless Act is a great example of rock’s potential. “Punk had one finger up, hip-hop came along and had two fingers up and now Classless Act is going to make us put up four fingers.”
Stay tuned to more releases from this special cameo, including live footage released from the SOFI Stadium guest appearance.
Classless Act is currently in the studio working on new material that will follow up Welcome To The Show, with more details to be announced soon.
L-R: Chuck McKissock, Franco Gravante, Derek Day, DMC, Dane Pieper Griffin Tucker
ABOUT CLASSLESS ACT:
It’s not often that a band comes around like Classless Act who have tempted a new generation of fans and given rock’s faithful a reason to keep believing. Influenced by Queen, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles and Bowie, the L.A.-based five-piece bring a fresh, young take on a golden age of music. They’ve been applauded by bands like Jane’s Addiction, given nods from execs with Live Nation and MTV, and are already finding their footing in major international markets barely a year after releasing their first single “Give It To Me” in 2021.
With the release of their anticipated debut Welcome To The Show via Better Noise Music on June 24, the band immediately racked up 2 million streams and got the attention of rock bibles like Loudwire, SPIN, Metal Hammer, and Blabbermouth, the latter who said Classless Act “stands ready to carve out a legacy of its own.”
While the music tells its own story, so do the members of the band themselves, hailing from all over the globe, including Hawaii, Los Angeles, Argentina, and Dallas. The band, featuring Derek Day (vocals), Dane Pieper (guitar), Griffin Tucker (guitar), Franco Gravante (bass), and Chuck McKissock (drums), first formed in 2018 when the five former strangers met through friends via social media. Their chemistry quickly came to light, the members fusing together anthemic rhythms, shreddy guitars, soaring vocals and clever arrangements that, as one writer astutely said, have “…enough energy to power a city.”
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ABOUT DARRYL “DMC” MCDANIELS:
Darryl “DMC” McDaniels is co-founder of the legendary group Run DMC: selling over 40 million albums and changing American music history. It would be hard to overstate his influence on popular culture. He is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. He has co-authored 2 top selling autobiographies, is the founder of the comic book company Darryl Makes Comics and has launched an independent music career with King of Rock Entertainment. He has a new album entitled AMERICA coming November 2023.
DMC is the co-founder of the nonprofit Felix Organization, working over the past 15 years to help enrich the lives of children in the foster care system. He is an advisory board member for Hip-Hop Public Health, serves on the Board of Directors of The Garden of Dreams Foundation, and has worked with the Kennedy Forum on Mental Health initiatives to name a few. https://thekingdmc.com /
ABOUT BETTER NOISE MUSIC
BETTER NOISE MUSIC is the premiere independent music label under BETTER NOISE ENTERTAINMENT, a content creation and marketing company that produces music, books, films, documentaries, TV shows, theatrical productions, and tours. Better Noise Music (formerly Eleven Seven Music), founded in 2006 by music industry veteran and independent pioneer Allen Kovac, focuses on artist development and has grown into a music industry independent powerhouse, with a roster including Five Finger Death Punch, Asking Alexandria, Bad Wolves, Dirty Heads, Nothing More, The HU, AWOLNATION, All Good Things, From Ashes To New, Cory Marks, and Fire From The Gods. Partnering with FUGA, AMPED and Membran, the company operates a global marketing and distribution platform with offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Paris, Toronto and Sydney.
In 2021, Better Noise Music dominated Billboard’s Year End charts in the rock space, landing at #1 on the Mainstream Rock Imprint, Hard Rock Songs Imprint, Hard Rock Songs Label charts and ranked as one of the top Mainstream Rock Label for the year.
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