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New York|A Long Career in Black Rock Music Comes to a Tragic End in the Bronx
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/19/nyregion/peter-forrest-24-7-spyz-death-legacy.html
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Peter Forrest was the charismatic lead singer of 24-7 Spyz, which did shows with Jane’s Addiction. Last week, Mr. Forrest, 64, was found beaten to death in the ambulette he drove for a living.
Jan. 19, 2025, 3:00 a.m. ET
In the song “Grandma Dynamite,” by the band 24-7 Spyz, the singer known as P. Fluid tells a story of growing up in the rough-and-tumble South Bronx in the 1980s.
As bullets fly, the grandmother in the song tells the singer that becoming a musician can “get you out the ghetto” and off the streets.
The success of 24-7 Spyz did just that, lifting P. Fluid, born Peter Forrest, out of his neighborhood and onto stages across the United States and Europe. He was the pioneering Black rock act’s captivating frontman as the band appeared on MTV and did shows with Nirvana, Lenny Kravitz, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Alice Cooper.
Despite the group’s success, Mr. Forrest left 24-7 Spyz for good in the mid-90s. While his old bandmates continued to perform under the same name, he settled into an anonymous life as an ambulette driver in New York City, transporting older and disabled passengers.
On Jan. 13, some 30 years after he walked away from the band, Mr. Forrest’s remarkable life story came to a shocking end. Mr. Forrest, 64, was found beaten to death inside his ambulette at the end of Castle Hill Avenue in the Bronx, just a couple of miles from where he grew up.
Those who knew Mr. Forrest were left stunned and confounded.
“Nobody should be taken away this way,” said Jimi Hazel, the longtime guitarist for 24-7 Spyz.
