Rich Ward (aka The Duke) Signs Worldwide Deal With Spitfire Records

NEW YORK (Spitfire Records) Spitfire Records is pleased to welcome Rich Ward (aka The Duke) to its growing roster and are readying themselves for the spring release of "My Kung-Fu Is Good", the debut release from The Duke. Rich carved a name for himself as guitarist, songwriter and founding member of Stuck Mojo, a band that to date has released seven critically acclaimed albums, pioneered the fusion of reggae, rap and metal that would open the doors for what would become nu-metal and toured the world a dozen times.

As well as Stuck Mojo, Rich is also the guitarist and founding member of the band Fozzy which features WWE superstar Chris Jericho. Originally labelled as the world's greatest metal covers band, the buzz surrounding them grew so rapidly that before they knew it a deal was in place, fanbase was swelling rapidly and they were working on their next album. Four years and three albums later, Fozzy is still going strong.

The Duke sees Ward take a slightly different direction. Whereas Stuck Mojo and Fozzy are instantly recognizable by Ward's brutal riffage, The Duke takes a more melodic approach and focuss on the songwriting. Tracks like Used To Be, Running and The Way show the maturity of Ward as a song writer. "My Kung-Fu Is Good" also sees Rich take up vocal duty to what will surely establish him as not only a guitar hero but also a brilliant singer and songwriter.

The Duke-My Kung-Fu Is Good, to be released Spring 2005 on Spitfire Records.