New York rock vets KILLCODE aren’t the first band you’d expect to tap a hip-hop architect for a remix, but that’s exactly why this one hits.
On “RIDE (DJ Johnny Juice High Roller Remix)”, the NYC five-piece link with DJ Johnny Juice, the longtime turntable tactician behind Public Enemy, and the result feels less like a novelty crossover and more like a culture clash done right.
KILLCODE built their name on Southern-leaning hard rock grit, big hooks, bigger riffs, and frontman Tom Morrissey’s gravel-edged, arena-ready vocals. They’ve shared stages with Godsmack and Sevendust, and their self-titled project pushed all the way to No. 2 on Billboard’s Mid-Atlantic Heatseekers chart. But on this remix, the band strips the gloss and lets the groove do the heavy lifting.
Juice, whose ear for raw rhythm has always leaned street-first, reimagines “Ride” with a skeletal, boom-bap backbone. The guitars don’t disappear; they grind. The drums knock with a hip-hop spine. Morrissey’s vocal doesn’t soften for the format, it soars over it, turning the hook into something that feels part biker-bar anthem, part cipher-ready declaration.
Juice himself described the original as “mean Southern Rock with a dope groove,” and that groove becomes the centerpiece here. Instead of sanding down KILLCODE’s edges, the remix sharpens them. There’s dust in the drums. Space in the mix. Air around the aggression. It feels deliberate, like two genres stepping into the ring and realizing they’re swinging in the same direction.
Originally rooted in themes of momentum and betting on yourself, “RIDE” takes on new weight in this version. With Juice’s presence attached, the track feels less like a rock single and more like a statement. No compromise. No lane-switching for streams. Just volume, conviction, and a reminder that hip-hop and hard rock have always shared DNA, attitude, rebellion, and rhythm.
With placements in major film soundtracks and renewed live momentum heading into 2026, KILLCODE aren’t chasing trends, they’re forcing conversations. “RIDE (High Roller Remix)” doesn’t water anything down. It doubles down.
And in a climate where cross-genre records often feel engineered for algorithm appeal, this one feels organic. Loud. Unapologetic. New York to the core.
