Insane Clown Posse (ICP) are a horror-core rap group from Detroit. They perform in full evil clown makeup. The two members are called "Violent J" and "Shaggy 2 Dope".
ICP made headines in 1997 when it was discovered that they had been signed onto a record label owned by Disney. Not wanting to promote the band's aggressive image, Disney dropped them shorty before an album release, creating an unusal amount of publicity and a boost to sales when the album was picked up by another, non-Disney-owned label.
Fans of ICP are called Juggalos, or Juggalo family. The Juggalo Family acts as a support network for "scrubs", "thugs", and outcasts in general.
In 1992, ICP released an album which they called a Joker's Card. More specifically, it was the 1st Joker's Card, and the group promised 5 more. They also promised that they would tell a big secret at the end (when the 6th one came out) and their fans would know all there is to know about ICP, the Joker's Cards, and the Dark Carnival. The Dark Carnival is something the band refers to on every album. They claim that it is a powerful force which has spoken with them and is directly opposed to the Devil. They claim that the Dark Carnival told them to dress up like clowns in the first place.
In November, 2002, 10 years after the first Joker's card was released, ICP revealed their big secret. They revealed that all the songs they wrote about hatchets, guns, murder, etc. were masked with subliminal messages that have been pointing to one thing. They said, "Truth is, we follow God, we've always been behind him. The Dark Carnival is God, and may all Juggalos find him." Next, the band said this to their fans, "We're not sorry if we tricked you. We don't care what happens now."
The six Joker Cards in chronological order are as follows: Carnival of Carnage, The Ringmaster, The Riddlebox, The Great Milenko, The Amazing Jeckle Brothers, The Wraith: Shangri-La, The Wraith: Hell's Pit (Schedualed for release in 2004)
ICP has long been involved in professional wrestling; in the past, they have worked matches in the former World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) and World Championship Wrestling. They also run their own independent promotion.
