Did You Know...

Audioslave created a smash hit single, 'Cochise' shortly after joining together in the fall of 2002; it was followed by their self-titled album containing that song and 'Like A Stone,' which propelled the album to slots 7 and 6 on the Billboard Top 200 and top Canadian Albums, respectively, that same year. In 2005, Out of Exile shot even higher, reaching the Number 1 spot on both those charts and on top Internet Albums.

Rage Against the Machine consisted of Zack de la Rocha on vocals, Tom Morello on guitar, Timmy C. on bass, and Brad Wilk on drums. Rocha, the son of the political artist Beto, surfaced from the bands Headstance, Farside and Inside Out. Romello, related to the first Kenyan president, first started out in the band Lock Up. Wilk used to play with Eddie Vedder, the leader of Pearl Jam, and Tim Bob, also known as Tim C., was a friend of Rocha. The band started out in Los Angeles in 1991, playing for their friends. Just two years later, they were signed by Epic. Their success has been accredited to their gripping live shows, and to a self-titled cassette they recorded, which sold over 5,000 copies. The release also created the hit singles 'Bullet in the Head,' 'Killing in the Name,' and 'Bombtrack,' which steered them to tour with Lollapalooza.

RATM wasn't the first to incorporate rap and rock into their music, but what made them stand out were their political lyrics focused on corporate America, cultural imperialism, and government oppression. They supported organizations such as Rock for Choice, the Leonard Peltier Defense Fund, United Farm Workers, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, Refuse and Resist, and the campaign to release Mumia Abu-Jamal.