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Birth Name: Seth Brooks Binzer
Date of Birth: August 23, 1974
Place of Birth: Los Angeles, California, United States
Date of Death: June 24, 2024
Place of Death: Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Ethnicity: Ashkenazi Jewish (paternal grandfather), English, German, Irish, Scottish, distant Dutch
Shifty Shellshock was an American music artist, rapper, singer, and songwriter. He co-founded, and was the front man of, rap rock band Crazy Town; they were known for their song “Butterfly.” He also had a solo career.
He was the son of Rollin Binzer, an artist and documentary filmmaker, and Leslie Brooks, a model and script proofreader. His father was from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was partly raised in Marblehead, Massachusetts. Shifty had a son with his former wife Melissa Clark; a son with his former partner Tracy; and a son with his former fiancée, British model and actress Jasmine Lennard.
Shifty’s paternal grandfather was Harry V. Binzer (the son of Solomon Binzer and Dora Traugott). Harry was born in Indiana, to Jewish emigrants from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Solomon was born in Drohobycz, Galicia, the son of Ignaz Binzer and Itla Hanna Horowitz, who was from Krakow, Poland. Shifty’s great-grandmother Dora was descended from a rabbi. She was the daughter of J. Traugott and Fradel Israela.
Shifty’s paternal grandmother was Elsa/Elsie Jane Conner (the daughter of Benjamin Franklin “Frank” Conner and Laura Alice Phillips). Elsa was born in Illinois, and had English, Irish, German, and distant Dutch, ancestry. Laura was the daughter of Cornelius A. Phillips and Elsie J. Moore.
Shifty’s maternal grandfather was Howard Wendell Brooks (the son of Frank Melvin Brooks and Maude Adele Clement). Howard was born in Columbus, Ohio. Frank was the son of Marcellius George Brooks and Arrolyn Muretto Small. Maude was the daughter of Henry L. Clement and Amelia Roe, who was from Ontario, Canada.
Shifty’s maternal grandmother was Mary Fahrney (the daughter of William Hoffman Fahrney and Mary H. Thissen). Shifty’s grandmother Mary was born in Columbus. William was the son of William Henry Fahrney and Ida Florance Rowe. Shifty’s great-grandmother Mary was the daughter of Johann Thissen, who was born in Hommersum, Kleve, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany; and of Gertrude Rose.
Sources: Shifty’s father on the 1940 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Obituary of Shifty’s father – https://www.oconnormortuary.com
Shifty’s paternal grandfather, Harry V. Binzer, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org