(Below is part of my latest GameFile column about the rap song in "Call of Duty 4." For the full thing, check out MTVNews.com.)
It's a big week for "Call of Duty 4." And it's a big week for songs that play when video game credits roll.
So shouldn't it be a big week for Mark Grigsby?
Don't know him? You might be more familiar with him than you realize. Grigsby was the lead animator on "Call of Duty 4," a game that sold 7 million copies in 2007, according to publisher Activision. One of its characters, Staff Sergeant Griggs, is voiced by Grigsby. And the song that plays when the credits roll ... Grigsby rapped that.
Yes, it's a big week for "Call of Duty 4." The game was a sales blockbuster and a critical hit and is being re-released in a "Game of the Year" special edition. And this week is historic for end-of-game songs because the list of downloadable bonus tracks for MTV's music game, "Rock Band," is being fattened by the addition of the end-credits hit from last year's "Portal": Jonathan Coulton's "Still Alive." That's right: A video game song was so compelling that it's being released as a song for people to perform together with drums, guitar and mic. "Still Alive," a cultural phenomenon since it was first heard, is just that big with gamers.
Despite all this, there hasn't been much discussion about Grigsby's "Call of Duty 4" rap. Surely millions of people have heard his song. But what's the story behind it?
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