Creed was an American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band from

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, Florida, Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In ...

, formed in 1994. For most of its existence, the band consisted of lead vocalist

Scott Stapp Scott Stapp (born Anthony Scott Flippen, August 8, 1973) is an American singer, best known as the lead vocalist and lyricist of the rock band Creed. He has also fronted the band Art of Anarchy and has released three solo albums: '' The Great D ...

, guitarist and vocalist

Mark Tremonti Mark Thomas Tremonti (born April 18, 1974) is an American guitarist and singer, best known for his tenures with the rock bands Creed and Alter Bridge. He is a founding member of both bands, and has also collaborated with many other artists over ...

, bassist

Brian Marshall Brian Aubrey Marshall (born April 24, 1973) is an American musician and songwriter best known as the bassist and co-founder of the rock bands Creed and Alter Bridge. Early life Brian Aubrey Marshall was born April 24, 1973, in Jackson, Missi ...

, and drummer Scott Phillips. Creed released two

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

s, ''

My Own Prison ''My Own Prison'' is the debut studio album by American rock band Creed, released in 1997. The album was released independently by the band's record label Blue Collar Records on June 24, 1997, but then was released by Wind-up Records on August 2 ...

'' in 1997 and ''

Human Clay ''Human Clay'' is the second studio album by American rock band Creed, released on September 28, 1999, through Wind-up Records. Produced by John Kurzweg, it was the band's last album to feature Brian Marshall, who left the band in August 2000, ...

'' in 1999, before Marshall left the band in 2000. The band's third album, ''

Weathered ''Weathered'' is the third studio album by American rock band Creed, released on November 20, 2001. It was the last Creed album to be released until '' Full Circle'' came out in October 2009, with Creed disbanding in June 2004. It is the only Cr ...

'', was released in 2001, with Tremonti on bass guitar. Creed disbanded in 2004; Stapp pursued a solo career while Tremonti, Marshall, and Phillips founded the band

Alter Bridge Alter Bridge is an American rock band from Orlando, Florida. The band was formed in 2004 by vocalist and rhythm guitarist Myles Kennedy, lead guitarist Mark Tremonti, bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips. After their former ba ...

with

Myles Kennedy Myles Richard Bass (born November 27, 1969), known professionally as Myles Kennedy, is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Alter Bridge and the lead vocalist in guitarist S ...

. In 2009, Creed reunited for a fourth album, '' Full Circle'', then toured until 2012. Since then, Creed has been on hiatus while the instrumental members have remained active with

; Stapp has continued his solo career and joined the band

Art of Anarchy Art of Anarchy is an American hard rock supergroup formed in 2011. The band features twin brothers Jon and Vince Votta on guitar and drums, Disturbed bassist John Moyer, former Guns N' Roses guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal as co-guitarist and ...

in 2016. Tremonti also formed his own band, Tremonti, in 2011. Creed is one of the prominent acts of the

post-grunge Post-grunge is a derivative of grunge that has a less abrasive or intense tone than traditional grunge. Originally, the term was used almost pejoratively to label mid-1990s rock bands such as Bush (British band), Bush, Candlebox and Collective So ...

movement that began in the mid-1990s. Becoming popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Creed released three consecutive

multi-platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

albums, with their album ''Human Clay'' being

certified Certification is the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestation or confirmation of certain characteristics of a ...

diamond. Creed has sold over 28 million records in the United States, has sold over 53 million albums worldwide, and was the ninth best-selling artist of the 2000s. However, Creed has been negatively received by some critics and listeners; readers of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine ranked the band the worst artist of the 1990s.

History

Early years (1994–1996)

file:Scott Stapp 2016 (cropped).jpg, upFounding member, vocalist

(pictured in 2016) Creed began in 1994 in

. Founding members vocalist

and guitarist

had been classmates in high school and friends at

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

. Stapp and Tremonti realized that they had a mutual love of writing music and performing. After multiple discussions and times spent writing songs, several of which addressed themes of

Christian theology Christian theology is the theology of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theology, theologian ...

and spirituality due to Stapp's spiritual background as the stepson of a

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

minister, the duo held auditions that led to the recruitment of bassist

, drummer Scott Phillips, and rhythm guitarist Brian Brasher to complete the quintet. This five-piece line-up lasted through 1994, and Brasher left the band in 1995. Creed decided to remain as a four-piece band. The four musicians had already written and collaborated on four of the songs that would go on to become tracks on Creed's chart-topping debut album, ''

''. The band found local success and started to play shows in bars and small venues throughout Tallahassee. Stapp wrote in 2012 that Creed first performed as "Naked Toddler" at Yianni's in Tallahassee; the name was picked up by Tremonti from a headline in that day's newspaper, but the reaction that night to the name was negative. The group was trying to find inspiration for a better name when Marshall said he had been in a band called Mattox Creed. Stapp latched onto the Creed part, and the band agreed.

''My Own Prison'' and rise to fame (1997–1998)

Wanting "a real show at a club", they managed to persuade the owner of a bar in Tallahassee to book them by claiming that they could guarantee an audience of 200 people. Owner and manager

Jeff Hanson Jeff Hanson (March 3, 1978 – June 5, 2009) was a singer-songwriter, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist,HitQuarters that the band had played mostly cover versions, but two original songs stood out and impressed the manager so much that he promptly signed them to his management and promotions company and set about developing their act. For their first recordings he matched the band up with

John Kurzweg John Kurzweg (born September 5, 1960) is an American record producer and musician who first became known for his work with successful post-grunge bands Creed and Puddle of Mudd in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Other artists he has worked with ...

, a producer and friend of Hanson's who he felt was an appropriate fit. Together they recorded their debut album for $6,000, which was funded by Hanson. The album, titled ''

'', was initially self-released on their own label, Blue Collar Records, selling 6,000 copies throughout the state of Florida. ''My Own Prison'' had been circulating around the music industry for a while when, in May 1997, Diana Meltzer from

Wind-Up Records Wind-up Entertainment was an American independent record label founded by Alan and Diana Meltzer in 1997. It was based in New York City and was distributed by BMG Distribution. Wind-up's best-selling artists worldwide were Creed and Evanesce ...

heard the album for the first time and decided almost immediately that she wanted to sign them to the label, which had creative issues with

Baboon Baboons are primates comprising the genus ''Papio'', one of the 23 genera of Old World monkeys. There are six species of baboon: the hamadryas baboon, the Guinea baboon, the olive baboon, the yellow baboon, the Kinda baboon and the chacma ba ...

over the latter's reluctance to alter their image and sound to suit the label's demands. Meltzer later said that she heard "an arena band". Within the same week, Meltzer, together with Wind-up president Steve Lerner, CEO

Alan Meltzer Alan Meltzer (1944 – October 31, 2011) was an American businessman and poker player who founded Wind-up Records along with his ex-wife Diana Meltzer. Record company Meltzer owned Titus Oaks Records, four record stores in New York and Co ...

, and A&R representative Joel Mark, flew to Tallahassee to see Creed perform live and decide for certain whether to offer them a contract. "Seeing the energy in the room when Scott Stapp stepped up to the mic, and hearing his powerful voice fill the room, alongside Mark Tremonti's now legendary guitar riffs and that big Creed anthemic rock sound, was all I needed," she told HitQuarters. According to Tremonti in his "Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction" video, Creed had been rejected by Arctic and Cherry Universal Records before Wind-Up flew down to sign them. The band has been signed with Wind-Up records ever since. Stapp and Marshall originally signed the contract in blood; causing it to need to be reprinted. upBassist Brian Marshall ''My Own Prison'' was remixed, given a more radio-friendly sound, and re-released by Wind-up Records in 1997. Four singles were released from the album: "

", "Torn", "

What's This Life For "What's This Life For" is a song by American rock band Creed. It is the third single and ninth track off their 1997 debut album, '' My Own Prison''. The song reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in the U.S., ...

", and " One". Each of these songs reached No. 1 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, making Creed the first band to accomplish such a feat with a debut album. With little

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

exposure, media coverage, or label support, ''My Own Prison'' sold extremely well, moving over six million copies and going six times

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...

. Creed continued to top year-end charts and was recognized as the Rock Artist of the Year at the 1998

Billboard Music Award The ''Billboard'' Music Awards are honors given out annually by ''Billboard'', a publication covering the music business and a music popularity chart. The ''Billboard'' Music Awards show has been held annually since 1990, with the exception of t ...

s. ''My Own Prison'' was also the highest-selling heavy music record of 1998 on

Nielsen SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...

's Hard Music chart. The band's hit song "My Own Prison" was also featured as a live performance on the charity album ''

Live in the X Lounge Live in the X Lounge is a series of albums released by Birmingham, Alabama's former alternative rock radio station, WRAX. Though the station can no longer be found on the air, this series of live performances was produced while the station wa ...

'' in 1998. The band covered

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...

's song "

I'm Eighteen "I'm Eighteen" is a song by rock band Alice Cooper, first released as a single in November 1970 backed with "Is It My Body". It was the band's first top-forty success—peaking at number 21—and convinced Warner Bros. that Alice Cooper had the c ...

" for ''

The Faculty ''The Faculty'' is a 1998 American science fiction horror film directed by Robert Rodriguez and written by Kevin Williamson. It stars Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Laura Harris, Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Famke Janssen, Piper Laurie, B ...

'' soundtrack in 1998. Critical reception toward ''My Own Prison'' was mostly favorable.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave it four out of five stars and said that Creed "work well within their chicken tender dinner" despite "basically

alling Alling () is a municipality in the district of Fürstenfeldbruck, Bavaria, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia ...

into the category of post-Seattle bands who temper their grunge with a dose of

Live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music *Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of albums ...

earnestness." The album lyrically deals with themes of questioning and struggling with faith and

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

''Human Clay'' and Marshall's departure (1999–2000)

With money made from ''My Own Prison'', the band started to write for their second album, ''

''. The album's first single, " Higher", spent a record-breaking 17 weeks on the top of the rock radio charts. In 2009, "Higher" was ranked as the 95th greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1. The album was released in 1999, when ''My Own Prison'' was still doing reasonably well. However, ''Human Clay'' was an instant and overwhelming success debuting at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and selling over ten million copies over the next two years, allowing it to become one of the few rock albums to be certified diamond by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. The album was the band's first to hit No. 1 in the U.S., where it debuted with first week sales of 315,000, and stayed on top for two weeks. After the album's release, three follow-up singles were released in 2000: "

What If What If may refer to: Film * ''What If'', a 2006 TV film starring Niall Buggy * ''What If...'' (2010 film), an American film * ''What If...'' (2012 film), a Greek film * ''What If'' (2013 film) or ''The F Word'', a Canadian-Irish film Telev ...

", "

With Arms Wide Open "With Arms Wide Open" is a song by American rock band Creed. It was released on April 18, 2000, as the third single from their second studio album, ''Human Clay''. The song reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in November 2000, b ...

", and "Are You Ready?". The first three of those topped radio charts, giving Creed a total of seven chart-topping singles. The band would later go on to win their first, and to date only,

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

for "With Arms Wide Open" for

Best Rock Song The Grammy Award for Best Rock Song is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality songs in the rock music genre. Honors in several ...

in 2001. Reviews for ''Human Clay'' were largely positive. Stephen Thomas Erlewine from

said that the record "does make it clear that there is an audience for post-grunge hard rock, as long as it's delivered without pretension and as long as it meets the audience's desire for straight-ahead, hard-hitting music." The lyrical content of ''Human Clay'' is a slight departure from that of ''My Own Prison'', touching on subjects such as fatherhood ("With Arms Wide Open") and

lucid dream A lucid dream is a type of dream in which the dreamer becomes aware that they are dreaming while dreaming. During a lucid dream, the dreamer may gain some amount of control over the dream characters, narrative, or environment; however, this is ...

ing ("Higher"), as well as darker, more violent themes such as

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

("Wash Away Those Years") and

hostility Hostility is seen as form of emotionally charged aggressive behavior. In everyday speech it is more commonly used as a synonym for anger and aggression. It appears in several psychological theories. For instance it is a facet of neuroticism in ...

("What If"). During the summer of 2000, bassist Brian Marshall began a spiral into alcoholism. The band had a meeting with management to discuss Marshall's future. Stapp and Tremonti supported the idea of Marshall going to rehab and attempted to talk Marshall into going, but he refused. Initially, the public thought Marshall was let go because he criticized Pearl Jam frontman

Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and one of four guitarists of the rock band Pearl Jam. He also appeared as a guest vocalist i ...

in a radio interview with

KNDD KNDD (107.7 FM, "107-7 The End") is a commercial radio station in Seattle, Washington. It is owned by Audacy, Inc. and airs an alternative rock radio format. Its studios are located on Fifth Avenue in Downtown Seattle. The station broadcast ...

in June 2000, claiming that Scott Stapp is a better songwriter, and criticized Pearl Jam's recent albums for "having songs without hooks." Stapp later distanced the rest of the band from Marshall's comments and stated, "Yes, we get tired of the PJ question, but there is no excuse for the arrogance and stupidity f Marshall I ask you all not to judge Creed as a band, because the statements made were not the band's feelings, they were Brian's. I'm sorry if Brian offended anyone, and he has already apologized for his comments." Although it was reported that Marshall left Creed "on friendly terms", he did not. Tremonti and Stapp were concerned for Marshall and their collective friendships, but soon after the controversy, Marshall formed a new band called Grand Luxx with his old Mattox Creed bandmates. Stapp stated that Marshall's leaving was his choice and was unrelated to the Pearl Jam comments. Brett Hestla, from the band

Virgos Merlot Virgos Merlot was an American hard rock band formed in 1998. Prior to the formation of Virgos Merlot, many of the band members were in the group The Devine, which later disbanded. After formation, their first album, '' Signs of a Vacant Soul'', ...

, replaced Marshall.

''Weathered'' and break-up (2001–2004)

Creed worked on their third album for most of 2001, with Tremonti choosing to play bass on the record to "

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

the band's initial core," although Hestla remained in Creed's touring lineup. ''

'' was released on November 20, 2001. Six singles were released from the album: "

My Sacrifice "My Sacrifice" is a song by American rock band Creed. It was released on October 16, 2001, as the lead single from their third studio album, '' Weathered''. The song peaked at number four on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart for the week of Fe ...

" (which earned the band a nomination for a

Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal The Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1980 and 2011. The award was discontinued after the 2011 award season in a major overhaul of Grammy categories. Beginning in 2012, all solo or duo/group ...

in 2003), " Bullets", " One Last Breath", " Hide", "

Don't Stop Dancing "Don't Stop Dancing" is a song by Creed featured on the band's third album, ''Weathered,'' in 2001. The song features Scott Stapp's sister Aimee Stapp on backup vocals and the Tallahassee Boys' Choir singing a background chorus. Music video Th ...

", and "

". The album was a commercial bestseller and was certified platinum six times over and debuted at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Top 200. It remained at that spot for eight weeks, a record which Creed notably shares with

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

. The tour to promote ''Weathered'' was met with considerable controversy; it was delayed in April 2002 when Stapp suffered a concussion and vertebrae damage after being involved in a car crash. As a result, in addition to his growing addiction to alcohol, he became addicted to pain medication. This, along with other events, led to a considerably controversial concert on December 29, 2002, at the

Allstate Arena Allstate Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Rosemont, Illinois, United States. It is located near the intersection of Mannheim Road and Interstate 90, adjacent to the city limits of Chicago and O'Hare International Airport. The facility opene ...

Rosemont, Illinois Rosemont is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located immediately northwest of Chicago, as of the 2010 census it had a population of 4,202. The village was incorporated in 1956, though it had been settled long before that. Whi ...

, which ultimately led to the band's disunion. Four disappointed concertgoers filed a lawsuit against the band, claiming that Scott Stapp "was so intoxicated and/or medicated that he was unable to sing the lyrics of a single Creed song." Creed later issued an apology on Stapp's behalf, although Stapp would later deny the claims. Ultimately, the case was dismissed. Stapp later confirmed that he was intoxicated during the concert, but asserted that he was not incoherent. After remaining inactive for over a year, it was announced in June 2004 that Creed had disbanded. Tremonti cited tensions between Stapp and the rest of the band as the reasoning. He said that the relationship with Stapp had become so strained that the creative juices were no longer flowing. The reality was that Stapp was in Maui battling his addiction to alcohol and drugs. Almost simultaneous with the announcement of Creed's break-up, Stapp opted for a solo career. On November 22, 2004, Wind-up Records released Creed's ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' album. Stapp released his debut solo album '' The Great Divide'' in 2005. Tremonti and Phillips reunited with Marshall to form a new band,

, in 2004 with singer

, formerly of American rock band The Mayfield Four.

Reunion, ''Full Circle'' and 2012 tour (2009–2012)

While Tremonti referred to Creed as "officially in our past" in 2006, years later, on April 27, 2009, Creed's website announced that the band had reunited for a new tour and plans for a new album. According to Tremonti, "We're all very excited to reconnect with our fans and each other after seven long years."The Official Website of Creed
Creed.com. Retrieved on July 9, 2011. He later added that being in Creed again was "the last thing eexpected." Phillips also stated: "Our career as Creed came to a very abrupt and unforeseen ending. After reflecting on some of the greatest personal and professional moments of our lives, we've come to realize that we are still very capable of continuing that career and our friendship on a grander scale than ever before." In an interview for ''

People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

'' magazine, Stapp elaborated on the reunion, saying, "We never felt like we weren't together. We're not looking at this as a reunion. It's more of a rebirth." In June 2009, Creed performed with Marshall on bass for the first time in eight years on

Sessions@AOL AOL (stylized as Aol., formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City. It is a brand marketed by the current incarnation of Yahoo! Inc. ...

, showing the band playing four of their hits. In addition, the band performed live on ''

Fox & Friends ''Fox & Friends'' is an American daily morning news and talk program that airs on Fox News. It premiered on February 1, 1998, and is currently hosted by Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt and Brian Kilmeade on weekdays. Will Cain, Rachel Campos-Du ...

'' on June 26, 2009. Creed's reunion tour, with touring guitarist

Eric Friedman Eric Charles "Erock" Friedman (born June 28, 1984) is an American musician, best known as the current guitarist for Tremonti and former touring guitarist and backing vocalist for Creed. He played with the band on their 2009 United States reun ...

, kicked off on August 6, 2009, and concluded on October 20. '' Full Circle'', Creed's first album in eight years, came out on October 27, 2009. Stapp elaborated on the title, which is also the name of a track to appear on the album: "It really defines and articulates, melody-wise and lyrically, what's happened with us. We've come full circle and it's a great place to be." The first single from ''Full Circle'', " Overcome", was posted on the band's official website on August 18, 2009, the same day the radio premiere started along with its release as a digital download on August 25. The second single, "

Rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...

", was released to radio stations on September 23 and became available on October 6, 2009, as another digital download. The third single, " A Thousand Faces", was released in 2010. On September 25, 2009, Creed performed a concert in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas that was recorded, broadcast via a live internet stream, and released on December 8, 2010, as a concert film titled '' Creed Live'', the band's first live recording.http://www.digtriad.com/life/entertainment/article.aspx?storyid=130341&catid=204 The performance broke four world records, including the world record for the most cameras used at a live music event (239). The previous holder of this record was

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...

. The performance also featured the first usage of the "

big freeze The heat death of the universe (also known as the Big Chill or Big Freeze) is a hypothesis on the ultimate fate of the universe, which suggests the universe will evolve to a state of no thermodynamic free energy, and will therefore be unabl ...

" technology, popularized by the 1999 film ''

The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...

'', in a concert environment. Drummer Scott Phillips also confirmed that ''Full Circle'' will not be the band's final album. The same announcement confirmed that Creed was to go on a world tour in support of ''Full Circle'' between April and September 2010, starting with an Australia/New Zealand tour, followed by South America, Europe, and North America. The tour was called The 20-10 Tour. Tickets for the tour were ten and twenty dollars to stand up against rising concert ticket prices. The first 2,010 tickets purchased for every concert did not include any service fees. Despite these efforts, not every show sold out, and critical reviews were mostly mixed.

Skillet A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab ha ...

joined the tour as main support. Creed live in Las Vegas (5-11-2012)

Creed reconvened in late 2011 and early 2012 to begin work on a potential fifth studio album. A tour was also announced in which the band would perform their first two albums, ''My Own Prison'' and ''Human Clay'', from front to back over the course of two nights, with selected tracks from ''Weathered'' and ''Full Circle'' also featured. This tour kicked off with two shows on April 12 and 13, 2012, at the

Chicago Theatre The Chicago Theatre, originally known as the Balaban and Katz Chicago Theatre, is a landmark theater located on North State Street in the Loop area of Chicago, Illinois. Built in 1921, the Chicago Theatre was the flagship for the Balaban a ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, Illinois, with the band performing ''My Own Prison'' the first night and ''Human Clay'' the second. They also toured in South America and Indonesia.

Hiatus (2013–present)

The band has been on hiatus since 2013. In October 2013, Stapp noted in an interview that extensive work was done on a fifth album throughout 2011 and 2012. However, the project was subsequently abandoned. Stapp has maintained that Creed is "still a band." He also said that he's open to continuing to work with Creed when the time is right. In June 2015, while promoting his second solo album ''

Cauterize Cauterization (or cauterisation, or cautery) is a medical practice or technique of burning a part of a body to remove or close off a part of it. It destroys some tissue in an attempt to mitigate bleeding and damage, remove an undesired growth, o ...

'', Mark Tremonti claimed in an interview with ''Kerrang'' that he " asn'tbeen a close friend of Scott's in 9 years". The other members did not speak to Stapp throughout the South American Tour in 2012 and plans for their fifth studio album were shelved, and they continued to work with Myles Kennedy in Alter Bridge. In September 2015, Stapp appeared on the ''

Dr. Oz Show ''The Dr. Oz Show'' (or simply ''Oz'') is an American syndicated daytime television talk show, hosted by Mehmet Oz, that aired between September 14, 2009, and January 14, 2022. Each episode features segments on health, wellness, and medical infor ...

''. When asked about a Creed reunion, Stapp replied: "I can tell you what, I sure hope so. I love the guys with all my heart and if they're watching, 'Come on guys, let's make a record.'" He later doubled down on the statements by stating that Creed would "definitely" reunite and that he expected new material from the band within "the next two years." When asked about Stapp's statements, Tremonti clarified that he was still busy promoting his solo albums and that Alter Bridge would record and tour in 2016, making it unlikely for him to return to Creed within Stapp's proposed timeline. In September 2015, Stapp announced that Creed would be releasing a new "retrospective" album that November. It would be three discs, one with hits, one with rarities, and the last with acoustic versions of hits. The album--'' With Arms Wide Open: A Retrospective''—was released as a

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...

-exclusive. In 2016, Stapp joined

. His first album with the band was released in March 2017, and is titled '' The Madness''. Alter Bridge continues to tour and record, while Mark Tremonti released, with his solo metal band Tremonti, his third album ''

Dust Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...

'' in April 2016, and his fourth album, ''

A Dying Machine ''A Dying Machine'' is the fourth studio album and first concept album by American heavy metal band Tremonti. It was released on June 8, 2018 via Napalm Records. The record was produced by Michael "Elvis" Baskette, who produced Tremonti's past ...

,'' in April 2018. Scott Phillips has drummed in the supergroup project

Projected Projected is an American rock supergroup consisting of Sevendust members John Connolly and Vinnie Hornsby, Alter Bridge and Creed drummer Scott Phillips, and former Submersed and current Tremonti guitarist Eric Friedman. The band released t ...

, releasing the first album ''

Human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

'' (2012) and the second effort the double album '' Ignite My Insanity'' (2017). Due to the different members' band projects, touring so far is put aside, focusing more on releasing original music. Scott Stapp has since bridged away from

, having released his third solo album, ''

The Space Between the Shadows ''The Space Between the Shadows'' is the third studio album from American musician Scott Stapp, released by Napalm Records on July 19, 2019. "Purpose for Pain" serves as the lead single. Track listing Adapted from iTunes. Personnel Musicians * ...

'', on July 19, 2019. In November 2020, drummer Scott Phillips announced that a reunion was a possibility.

Musical style and influences

Creed has been primarily described as

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With r ...

, and

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

. Creed also has been categorized, but less frequently, as

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu met ...

Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus, typically performed by self-proclaimed Christian individuals. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Ch ...

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...

and heavy metal. Stapp's influences include

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

, Donny Hathaway,

Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1976 in Sheffield. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drums, backing vocals), Phil Collen (guitar, backing vocals), ...

, U2,

The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...

, and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

. Guitarist Mark Tremonti's influences include

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

bands like Slayer,

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

, and Forbidden. According to a 1999 piece in ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'':

The biblical imagery of singer Scott Stapp's lyrics got Creed typed as Christian rock by early listeners, and the band's denial of any religious objective has unsettled some of its more fervent fans. "We are not a Christian band," Stapp insists on the band's web site. "A Christian band has an agenda to lead others to believe in their specific religious beliefs. We have no agenda!"

Bassist Brian Marshall, who named the band, has noted that Stapp uses spiritual imagery as a metaphor in his lyrics.

Legacy and reception

Creed was one of the most commercially successful rock bands of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Their first three studio albums, ''My Own Prison'', ''Human Clay'', and ''Weathered'', have all gone

in the United States, selling six million, 11 million, and six million copies respectively. The band also won a

for Best Rock Song for the song "

" in 2001. However, Creed has been negatively received by some professional critics, such as

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

. Jonah Weiner of ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

'' has tried to make the case that the band was "seriously underrated"; Joe Coscarelli of

Mediaite Mediaite is a news website focusing on politics and the media.Howard PolskinHow the Washington Examiner became a traffic monster ''Columbia Journalism Review'' (May 15, 2020). Founded by Dan Abrams, it is part of the Abrams Media Network. Conte ...

countered that "most people hate Creed's combination of overwrought power-balladry and Christian-infused testosterone." In 2011, ''

'' ranked Creed as the 18th-best artist of the 2000s. In 2013, readers of ''

'' magazine voted Creed the worst band of the 1990s.

Band members

Last known line-up *

– lead vocals (1994–2004; 2009–2012) *

– lead guitar, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals (1994–2004; 2009–2012), bass on ''

'' * Scott Phillips – drums, percussion (1994–2004; 2009–2012), keyboards on ''Weathered'' *

– bass (1994–2000; 2009–2012) Former members * Brian Brasher – rhythm guitar (1994–1995) Touring musicians * Brett Hestla – bass, backing vocals (2000–2004) *

– rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2009–2012) Timeline

Discography

;Studio albums * ''

'' (1997) * ''

'' (1999) * ''

'' (2001) * '' Full Circle'' (2009)

Awards and nominations

;Grammy Awards The

s are awarded annually by the

National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous f ...

of the United States. Creed has won one award out of three nominations. ;American Music Awards Created by

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...

in 1973, the

American Music Award The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show, generally held in the fall, created by Dick Clark in 1973 for ABC when the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired, and currently produced by Dick Clark Produ ...

s is an annual music awards ceremony and one of several major annual American music awards shows. Creed has received four American Music Award from seven nominations. ;MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards are presented annually by

and honor accomplishments in the music video medium. Creed has received two nominations. ;MTV Video Music Brazil Established in 1995, the

MTV Video Music Brazil The MTV Video Music Brazil awards (originally Video Music Awards Brazil), more commonly known as VMB, were MTV Brasil's annual award ceremony, established in 1995. MTV viewers picked the winners for most categories since 2001. Unlike in the MTV ...

awards, commonly known as VMB, are

MTV Brasil MTV Brasil was a Brazilian over-the-air television network owned by Grupo Abril focused on the youth. The network was launched on 20 October 1990, as the first specialty television network to broadcast over-the-air, becoming the local version ...

's annual award ceremony. Many award winners are chosen by MTV viewers. {, class="wikitable" , - !Year !Nominated work !Award !Result !Ref. , - , align=center, 2002 , "

" , rowspan=2, Best International Video , , , - , align=center, 2003 , "

" , , http://mtv.uol.com.br/programas/programadovmb/arquivovmb/vmb-2003

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Creed 1994 establishments in Florida 2004 disestablishments in Florida 2009 establishments in Florida 2012 disestablishments in Florida Heavy metal musical groups from Florida American alternative metal musical groups Alternative rock groups from Florida Attic Records (Canada) artists American post-grunge musical groups Grammy Award winners Hard rock musical groups from Florida Musical groups disestablished in 2012 Musical groups established in 1994 Musical groups disestablished in 2004 Musical groups from Tallahassee, Florida Musical groups reestablished in 2009 Musical quartets