Kerry King
| Kerry King | |
|---|---|
Kerry King live with Slayer
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kerry Ray King |
| Born |
June 3, 1964 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Genres | Thrash metal |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Labels | Def Jam, American, Metal Blade, Nuclear Blast |
| Associated acts | Slayer, Megadeth, Witchery, Sum 41, Marilyn Manson, Pantera, Beastie Boys, Rob Zombie |
| Notable instruments | |
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B.C. Rich KKV |
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Kerry Ray King (born June 3, 1964) is an American musician, best known as a guitarist for the American thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and has been a member ever since. He became lead songwriter for the band after Hanneman's death. King also played as lead guitarist with Dave Mustaine in 1984 with his band Megadeth.
Kerry Ray King was born in Los Angeles, California. His father was an aircraft parts inspector, and his mother was an employee of a telephone company. King attended Warren High School in Downey, CA and started learning guitar at Calvano's Music in South Gate.
In school, King was a good student who excelled in math. However, his grades slowly declined after he "discovered" girls. He said it worked out in the end because he did not plan to go to college. King confesses that he is an experienced drinker but he has never done drugs in his entire life.
In 1981, King was at a session trying out for the position of guitarist in a band. After the session was over Jeff Hanneman approached him and the two began playing Iron Maiden and Judas Priest songs with the session's drummer. King and Hanneman subsequently decided to start their own band.
King's trademark personal appearance and extensive tattoos were praised to such a degree by Blender Magazine that they once produced a tour of his body ink. King's abbreviation, KFK, was revealed to mean "Kerry Fuckin' King" in the January 2007 Issue of Guitar World. King currently resides in Corona, California.
In addition to appearing on Slayer's albums, he has also made several guest appearances for other artists. While lending production to 1986's Reign in Blood, Rick Rubin was also helping with the production of the Beastie Boys' debut album Licensed to Ill. Rubin felt the track "No Sleep till Brooklyn" needed a guitar solo, so he called in King to lay down the part. King has since commented that his playing ability "certainly wasn't that of a virtuoso". The video for "No Sleep till Brooklyn", whose title was a spoof on Motörhead's 1981 live album No Sleep 'til Hammersmith, was originally intended to feature King being knocked offstage by a gorilla, although King refused. King replied, "If there's gonna be anyone knocking anyone offstage, it'll be me knocking the gorilla", which was what subsequently happened. King has reminisced that he thought the Beastie Boys were cool, although he had never heard any of their music at the time.
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