Tom Araya
| Tom Araya | |
|---|---|
Tom Araya live with Slayer
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Tomás Enrique Araya Díaz |
| Also known as | Tom Araya |
| Born |
June 6, 1961 Viña del Mar, Chile |
| Genres | Thrash metal |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter, bassist |
| Instruments | Bass, vocals |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Labels | American, Def Jam, Metal Blade, Nuclear Blast |
| Associated acts | Slayer |
| Website | http://www.slayer.net |
| Notable instruments | |
| ESP Tom Araya Signature Model | |
Tomás Enrique "Tom" Araya Díaz (born June 6, 1961) is a Chilean American musician, best known as the bass guitarist and lead singer of the American thrash metal band Slayer. Araya is ranked fifty-eighth by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Metal Vocalists of All Time.
Araya was employed as a respiratory therapist in the early 1980s and used his earnings to finance Slayer's debut album Show No Mercy. Much of Araya's lyrical content is about serial killers, a subject he finds interesting; his first credited lyrical contribution was the vampire-themed track "At Dawn They Sleep" from 1985's Hell Awaits.
Tomas Enrique Araya Diaz was born in Viña del Mar, Chile, but his family moved to the US when he was five. He grew up in Maywood, California, in what he described as "a bad neighborhood that was pretty gang-oriented." His older brother, Cisco, played the guitar. This inspired Araya to pick up the bass at age eight. The two played Beatles and Rolling Stones songs, which he would later cite as an influence on his own music.
In the early 1980s, Araya's eldest sister suggested he enroll in a program to become certified as a respiratory therapist. Araya's father insisted he either find a job or enroll in the course. Araya enrolled in a two-year technical course, learning about air mixture ratios, drawing blood, and how to intubate.
In 1981, Araya was approached by Kerry King, who asked Araya to join his band, Slayer. Araya accepted, using his earnings as a respiratory therapist to finance the band's 1983 debut album Show No Mercy. Araya requested time off of work at the Brotman Medical Center that employed him for Slayer's first European tour in 1984 and was denied; "'We need you to come in today.' They'd call me at 5:00 in the morning and wake me, 'Someone's not coming in, we need you to come in to work.'" After a month of sporadic attendance, his employers threatened termination; Araya replied "Well, I guess I'm fired."
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Wikipedia