Ronnie Radke returned to the music scene as soon as he got out of prison in December 2010. The singer formed Falling In Reverse and released his first album with them the following year, which he talked about in a chat with Las Vegas Weekly.
While Radke wrote some of his first songs with the band during the two and a half years behind bars, he didn’t have a smooth experience there, as he shared:
“Some would treat me better, and some would treat me worse. Like, some of the guards really liked me, and they asked me to sign some stuff for ’em, for the kids. And some of the guards fricking hated me. They just hated me more than the other inmates. Some of them would treat me really bad. I think it was a little bit of a jealousy thing.”
Although he saw support from his fans, Radke’s relationships with friends outside of prison also didn’t go well during his time inside.
Why Was The Frontman Arrested?
Fronting the band Escape The Fate in the early 2000s, Radke fell into drug addiction and got involved in a dispute with singer Marcel Colquitt. During the two’s fight near Shadow Ridge High School in 2006, someone in the frontman’s group (Chase Rader) shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Allen Cook.
Charged for his involvement in the incident, Radke pleaded guilty to battery with substantial bodily harm during the trial in January 2008, while Colquitt killed himself before that. The court sentenced the singer to five years of probation, ordered him to check in rehab, and required him to pay $92,372 for the medical bills of his late rival’s brother, who was injured during the fight.
In that period, the Escape The Fate vocalist failed to report to his probation officer, leading to a four-year sentence in High Desert State Prison. Shortly after his arrest, the band replaced him with Craig Mabbitt.
Radke’s Relationship With His Former Bandmates Got Tense
Escape The Fate’s decision to dismiss Radke on the eve of releasing their second studio album, ‘This War Is Ours,’ received criticism from fans and caused tension between the two parties.
As the band continued to make music and play live in the following years, they made insulting remarks about the former singer. Radke responded to these remarks through social media at the time, but things kept getting worse when Mabbitt started dating his ex-girlfriend.
The dispute between Escape The Fate and Radke continued for years and even reflected on their relationship after the singer’s release from prison. Sharing whether he talked to any of his former bandmates after leaving High Desert State Prison, he explained:
“All of a sudden, they want to be friends. ‘Let’s wave some white flags, peace’—that’s what they want. ‘Are you doing a record right now? Ohhh. Let’s be friends.’ No, no, no, no, no. Let’s be friends after this record comes out. They make a whole album called ‘This War Is Ours,’ and then they try to say, ‘We didn’t name that album after you, dude.’ Which, in fact, they did …”
The feud ended when Escape The Fate and Falling In Reverse made peace in 2014 by co-headlining the ‘Bury The Hatchet’ tour.
