The Band This Florida-based band went from zero to sixty, (or, more accurately, from zero to selling more than twenty million albums) by virtue of a combination of finger-on-the-pulse songs and powerful live performances. Their debut album, My Own Prison, has sold over six million albums to date. Released in August 1998, Creed's debut album, My Own Prison, quickly made an impact on the US Billboard charts, after initially being released independently six months earlier. The band was formed by Scott Stapp (vocals), Mark Tremonti (guitar, vocals), Brian Marshall (bass) and Scott Phillips (drums). Creed's sophomore effort, Human Clay, debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts and has gone on to sell more than 10 Million copies. The band's third release, Weathered, also debuted at #1, selling more copies in its first week than any other rock release in 2001, and tying the record for the longest run at the top following a #1 debut. Their final album, Creed: Greatest Hist, was released right as the band went different directions, with Scott Stapp beginning a solo career and the remaining members joining with Myles Kennedy to form a new band, Alter Bridge. "With My Own Prison, I knew we had the talent to get a record deal and I knew we had songs good enough to get played on the radio, but I never had any expectations of reaching this many people," says Creed's frontman Scott Stapp. Stapp had dropped out of Florida State University, where he was studying to be a lawyer, to pursue his musical interests. He became estranged from his religious parents, and most of the lyrics for Creed's debut were written while he slept in his car. Despite his parental troubles, My Own Prison contained an unmistakably spiritual edge. Creed was the first band in history to have four #1 Rock Radio singles from a debut album. On the strength of their singles, including the crushing title track and the more pensive "What's This Life For," Creed topped countless year-end charts and was recognized as the Rock Artist of the Year at Billboard's 1998 Music Awards. Their debut album was also the #1-selling Hard Music album of 1998 on SoundScan's Hard Music chart. With the release of their second album, Human Clay, Creed upped the ante yet again. "Higher," the first single from their 10-times platinum sophomore release, broke the Active and Mainstream Rock airplay records for the most consecutive weeks at #1, holding the coveted spot for eighteen weeks. Furthermore, Creed was recognized once again as the Rock Artist of the Year at Billboard's 1999 and 2000 Music Awards. Human Clay's first three singles ("Higher," "What If" and "With Arms Wide Open") again achieved #1 status, setting a record with a total of seven consecutive #1 Rock Radio singles. For Weathered, Creed once again turned to longtime friend and producer John Kurzweg to ensure that they captured the anthemic guitars, dramatic vocals and bold lyrics that have made the band's brawny-yet-intimate sound a radio staple for several years. The band also decided to invite Kirk Kelsey, their longtime live sound engineer, to co-produce the new material. Together with Kurzweg and Kelsey, Creed recorded the new album in a home studio just outside of Orlando. Guitarist Mark Tremonti performed all of the bass guitar tracks on Weathered and a few special guests made passionate contributions to the album. On "Don't Stop Dancing," the band was joined by the Tallahassee Boys' Choir and Amie Stapp, Scott's sister. On "Who's Got My Back?," vocalist Bo Taylor, an archivist at The Museum of the Cherokee Indian, makes a special appearance on the invitation of Creed. Taylor mentioned, "I really like Creed's music because they are asking questions that all human beings should ask as they look outside of themselves. Music touches people and Scott contacted me to celebrate where he originally came from and to reconnect with his ancestry. It speaks volumes about his character that he reached back and made this statement and it means a lot to me personally that he did this." In 2000, Creed's presence on television and their impact on end-of-year award shows were undeniable. The band released their VH1 Behind The Music special, taped and released VH1's Storytellers with The Doors and garnered numerous awards. In November, Creed earned two awards at the Radio Music Awards and the fans bestowed four awards on the band at the My VH1 Awards. They also received the award for Rock Artist of the Year, for the third year in a row, at the Billboard Awards in December. The writing team of Mark Tremonti / Scott Stapp kicked off 2001 by winning a Grammy Award for the band's composition, "With Arms Wide Open," a deeply personal song that was inspired when Stapp learned he was going to become a father. Marshall left the band in August 2000, shortly before the comparatively gentle "With Arms Wide Open" completed its long haul up the Hot 100 to the number one position. The track helped raised funds for the charity of the same name. In 2004, after nearly a decade together and just before the release of their final album, Creed: Greatest hits, Creed decided to disband. Creed achieved countless Rock & Roll milestones and sold over 30 million albums worldwide. With their unprecedented success at radio and their captivating live shows, Creed became one of the most successful acts to rule the charts over the past ten years. Creed songwriter / singer Scott Stapp had been busy in the studio writing and recording. His first post-Creed recording was featured on an album pooling together superstar talent individually offering compositions inspired by the film The Passion of the Christ. Creed songwriter/ guitarist Mark Tremonti joined forces with Creed drummer Scott Phillips, original Creed bassist Brian Marshall and former Mayfield Four singer/ songwriter Myles Kennedy to form Alter Bridge. Tremonti has said, "We'll always be proud of the music we made with Creed, but Alter Bridge gives me the opportunity to start over with a different perspective and a more evolved direction." Phillips continues, "Creed was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but I'm really excited to be starting over as well. The most significant things that we are taking from the Creed experience are the lessons that we learned. We truly believe that the decisions we've made for our future are the right ones. After writing and rehearsing the new material, we are confident that we've made the right choices." Stapp shared, "Creed was one of the most amazing journeys through music and friendship I am blessed to say I was a part of. I made memories I can never replace! I just want to thank the fans who supported us and became a part of the Creed experience. We could not have accomplished anything without you!(fans)."