Kings County, out of Orlando, FL., is known for pushing the limits and going way beyond boundaries with their music and videos, but this time it’s way more than expected. They have re-imagined Marilyn Manson’s 1996 single, “The Beautiful People”, dropping May 9, 2025, where the track still resonates in today’s music world.
Kings County is Rob Dexter (Vocals, Bass), Steve Bell (Guitars, Vocals), Joe Lopez (Drums) and Bill Kania (Guitars, Vocals).
Rob says, “We’ve always been fans of shock rock even going back to the days of Alice Cooper and all of his antics. Marilyn Manson was just an extension of this except he rose out of the 1990’s. In the end, it really comes down to the song. “The Beautiful People” has this raw tribal feel to it that was quite infectious. Our whole idea was to throw on some modern ripping guitars and some great screams and there ya go, the making of a great remake.”
The bands main intent was to take an almost 30-year-old proven song, modernize it and bring it to life today, while still keeping the essence and integrity of the original track. Rob says, “This all started with how we initially recorded it with producer Chuck Alkazian. Thunderous drums make for a great foundation to build on the song. After layers of heavy guitars and those signature Marilyn Manson screams, you’re all set up for one bad ass recording. Sonically we surpassed all expectations.”
Kings County knows that it takes a great song to create a great video, which is what they did with, “The Beautiful People”. They were so blown away with how the recording came out that they knew they had to work with music video director Jon Vulpine again, who has created magic with their last four videos.
‘“The Beautiful People”, video idea came together fairly easily. Jon’s location scout found an awesome abandoned building in Rome, GA., which used to be an old mill from the early 1900’s”, says Rob. “Whenever you get a safety briefing before you enter a building you probably should be concerned and that’s exactly what happened here. The building had huge holes in the floor that dropped down 30 feet, broken stairs, glass and a ton of dust, not to mention the asbestos warning. Being in the Atlanta area, Jon was able to put together a veteran crew who were on break from filming, “The Walking Dead”, Netflix “Stranger Things” and “Cobra Kai.”
Besides creating killer songs with incredible videos, there are a few things you may not know about Kings County. Rob and guitarist Bill Kania both played in the band for illusionist Criss Angel. They did it for 3 years, and it was quite the experience for them. Drummer Joe Lopez is the only member that isn’t from New York, where the band originated from. “We met Joe after we made the move to Florida. Joe is also the only member who is bilingual. Another surprising thing people might not be aware of is the band started as a house band for Disneyworld. It’s hard to believe a hard rock band like us would be welcomed by Disney, but we surely were.”
Currently, Kings County have another single coming out following, “The Beautiful People”, and is planning for the future by keeping busy. Rob says, “The last 5 years have flown by in a blur. So many recording sessions, traveling and performing live. We hope to keep writing music and creating more videos that people appreciate and continue to support.”
