Insane in the Brain
| "Insane in the Brain" | |
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"Insane in the Brain" is a hit single by the American hip hop group Cypress Hill. It was released in 1993 and in addition to hitting number 1 on the US rap chart, the song also was a surprise crossover hit, reaching number 19 in the Hot 100 chart.
It was highly successful in other countries. The song was released on the group's Black Sunday album. According to B-Real, the song was actually a diss song aimed at Chubb Rock. The group felt Chubb had ridiculed their style on his 1992 album.[1]
The song ends with a sampling of the line "I think I'm going crazy" from the 1967 record "All Over The World (La La)" by The Youngbloods. In 2008, it was ranked number 34 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop.
UK track listing
- Insane in The Brain (Radio Edit)
- Stoned is the Way of the Walk
- Something for the Blunted
- Insane in The Brain (Extended Version)
Cultural references
The hook line from the song, "insane in the membrane," and the song itself have been featured in other media including:
- "Insane in the Mainframe" Futurama episode
- "Insane in the Membrane" Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles episode
- "Insane in the Membrane" Feat of Strength - World of Warcraft - Achievement
- "The Why of Fry" Futurama episode uses the line "insane in the membrane"
- The phrase also appeared in Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation, displayed by Donatello's electronic binoculars.
- "Bulworth" featured the song prominently
- Dick Togo, professional wrestler, used the song as his entrance theme
- Scary Movie 2 soundtrack included "Insane in the Brain"
- The Simpsons episode "Homerpalooza" included the song being briefly played by the London Symphony Orchestra. The band mistakenly believed that they had ordered the orchestra while high. Also, in the episode "Viva Ned Flanders", Ned accidentally mentions the song by saying "This may sound just a teensy bit insane in the ol' membrane...".
- The song is mentioned numerous times in the movie, Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star
- "I Got 5 On It Remix" by The Luniz has someone saying "Insane in the membrane".
- A cover of "Insane" is featured in the video game "Battle of the Bands" for the Wii. Was redone also in "heavy metal", "Latino", "country", and "marching band" styles, as well as the usual "hip-hop" style.
- Keith Olbermann used the song in five McCain in the Membrane segments on Countdown with Keith Olbermann between September 9 and 15th.[2]
- It's the name of an unlock in the game Warhammer Online
- The song is heard in the 2005 film, Fun with Dick & Jane
- The song was used in a show called "Insane In The Brain" which was a modern dance take on the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and was showing at the London's Peacock Theatre from the 27 Feb 2008 – 16 Mar 2008 and was put on by the Bounce Dance Company.
- The song is heard in the 2002 film, 8 Mile
- The video for the song appeared in an episode of Beavis and Butt-head
The famous opening line (“Who you tryin’ to get crazy with, ese? Don’t you know I’m loco?”) is also mentioned in the media:
- The opening line was said differently in a flashback by Captain Hero in disguise as a Hispanic gangbanger in Drawn Together.
- In Zoolander, Hansel says it to Zoolander before their "Walk Off".
- In Everlast's cover of "Folsom Prison Blues", the first line, and samples from the song, are used in the background.
- It reached #85 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s.
- It reached #34 on VH1's 100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs.
- In the song Real Nigga Roll Call, by Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Ice Cube has the line "Because I'm insane in the brain".
- The song is featured in the movie Pineapple Express.
- In Heltah Skeltah's song Insane on their album D.I.R.T, Rock raps a line referencing Cypress Hill and the song in his line "I'm insane in my membrane."