Wake Me Up Inside: The True Story of Evanescence's 'Bring Me To Life'

As the ‘90s came to an end, rock music was in a very aggressive state. Bands like Deftones, Korn and Limp Bizkit were reaching the Billboard charts with their loud, angry and often rapped vocals, leading the way for a new breed of heavy music that was referred to as nu-metal. 

But there was one overwhelming observation with this type of music: it was all just a bit too… bro-y. 

With the exception of Canada’s own Kittie, the nu-metal scene was dominated by men in backwards baseball caps, dreadlocks and JNCO jeans. It was time for a change, and in the early 2000s, one band from Little Rock was on the verge of something.

As a teenager, Amy Lee was an aspiring songwriter. Music was in the family. Her dad was in a rock band but gave it up to be a radio disc jockey when Amy was born. Growing up in Chicago, Lee was a happy kid, but then her family moved to Little Rock when she was 13, and things changed. 

Amy described herself as “miserable,” and an outcast who couldn’t fit in because she didn’t want to dress and act like everyone else. She channeled these feelings, using them to write poetry and music - something she would continue to do throughout the years.

That summer in youth camp she met Ben Moody, a fellow teenager who also felt like he didn’t belong. He and Amy hit it off immediately and eventually they were an item. With Amy on piano and Ben on acoustic guitar, the two began writing and recording songs that reflected their feelings of teen angst. Amy would also give him songs and ask Ben to make them sound “cool”. Soon, Evanescence was born.

Evanescence released their first EP, titled Evanescence in 1998, followed by the Sound Asleep EP in 1999. A local radio station began to play some of their music, which helped them earn a modest following and get some gigs in the area. When mastering their demo tape 'Origin' - the band got the attention of label Wind-Up Records, who didn't exactly know what to do with the band.

As months and years went by. Evanescence were blindsided by their label. As the album was coming together, the label threw them a curveball: they wanted a male singer in the band to share vocals with Amy.

This was an immediate no-go for Amy and Ben, and when they refused to cooperate, the label pulled the plug on the album and the record deal. So the two of them headed back to Little Rock. And just like that, the dream was apparently over.

Flash forward a few weeks and Wind-up came back with a new offer: if they hired a rapper to contribute vocals to their chosen first single, “Bring Me To Life,” the label would honour their deal.

The band begrudgingly agreed to this compromise - they wanted their album to see the light of day after all. But the introduction wouldn’t be with the album, it would be through the Marvel Universe.

This is the true story of Evanescence's smash hit - complete with unearthed audio from Amy Lee.