Zack De La Rocha(Vocals)


"You can't ignore what some bands have done. I know that from my own experience, from the way my life was changed by "Fuck Armageddon, this is hell" by Bad Religion. I know our record will be in a bin next to Lionel Richie - but so are John Coltrane, KRS-1, and Public Enemy"

Zack was born in Long Beach, California on January 12, 1970. Zack's parents separated when he was only a year old. Beto de La Rocha, his father, was a member of the Chicano art collective named Los Four. After suffering a mental breakdown, Beto and Zack destroyed all of his paintings. Beto became very religious and locked himself out from the outside world for weeks at a time and fasting. He forced Zack to do the same while he visited. As Zack became older, he distanced himself from his father but they still have a good relationship. Zack has revealed that now his father has started to paint his political paintings and write again, now that he knows what his son is doing. Because of his father Zack was alienated from the Chicano community and was brought up by his mother Olivia in Irvine. It was a hard-life being a Chicano (mixed heritage) in maybe one of the whitest communities in Southern L.A where the common belief was that he had "a mop or broom in your hand or a hammer, or filled baskets of strawberries.". All of these factors gave Zack a real culture shock and identity crisis. In University High-school, which he attended, he was friends with bassist Tim Commerford. Zack found he could express his feelings best through music. He was into the punk and hardcore scene during his high school years, and played guitar and did vocals for a straight-edge band called "Hardstance". He was interested in the Sex Pistols, Bad Religion when he was younger, and evolved into appreciating Minor Threat, Bad Brains, and Teen Idles.

 

Zack's other band before Rage was called 'Inside Out', they became very popular in the local area . He said that he "channeled all my pain through that band...and not bowing down to a system that sees you as just another pebble on the beach." The name 'Rage Against the Machine' was taken from Inside Out's Second unreleased album. Zack, up to this stage has written all the lyrics for all three of rage against the machine's releases. He's very active member in the movement for democracy in Mexico, he also visited Chaipas several times which is where the EZLN (Zapatista army of national liberation) headquarters is.

Behind all the rage and anger he is a really intelligent person who wants to try to change the state of the world. He has used the band's worldwide fame to educate the public about the political issues that concern him - through his music and lyrics, to his actions on a grassroots level.He is described often as the lead shouter and drives the fans wild with his anger onstage when they play live. He is involved in all sorts of different political issues and does a lot of work with the band to help various causes! He continues to teach kids around the world, and learn from people he meets. His political, social, and musical contributes are quickly elevating him as a Bob Marley figure.

Quotes for Zack de la Rocha:

"Zack de la Rocha (sings) militantly anti-American, anti-corperate, anti-everything-nasty rap. He's wonderfully whiny, fantastically nasal and it all adds to the effects of a pubescent kid joy-riding a tractor through a mall. Only this kid's screaming something vaguely anarcho-syndicalist and firing his old-man's nickel-plated magnum at every sybol of Republicanism he can see...Rocha assails the cross-burning segments of our society while the other players thrash their asses off"

-Dimitri Ehrlich, for Pulse!

 

"Understand that Rage Against The Machine - led by the militant poetry, oratory and singing of Zack de la Rocha - are in a mighty powerful postion."