How Axl Rose’s pain shaped his music
Here is how Axl Rose channelled his pain into music.
Axl Rose was born on 6 February 1962.
The popular Guns N' Roses singer is using Axl Rose as a stage name. His real name is William Bruce Rose, Jr.
He grew up in Indiana. The singer and songwriter is Guns N' Roses’ sole constant member since its inception in 1985.
Axl has never been one to shy away from controversy.
He has made headlines for some of the most hectic reasons. For instance, during a concert in St. Louis in 1991, he attacked a fan who held a camera in the audience and later stormed off from the stage due to anger.
"Well, thanks to the lame-a** security, I'm going home" before throwing the microphone on the floor violently.
The singer has dismissed that his music causes anger and rage in people who listen to it.
“I don't think our music promotes that you should feel this way. We're saying you're allowed to feel certain ways,” he told Rolling Stone.
His anger issues go back to when he was a child.
He experienced childhood abuse.
After his parents divorced when he was two years old, his father kidnapped him.
In 1989, he opened up to Rolling Stone about the abuse he suffered in the arms of his father.
"I remember a needle. I remember getting a shot and I remember being sexually abused by this man and watching something horrible happen to my mother when she came to get me."
But not only did he suffer abuse at the hands of his father, he was later subjected to the abuse of his stepfather.
"My mom had a daughter. And my stepfather molested her for about 20 years. And beat us. Beat me consistently. I thought these things were normal,” he told the magazine.
Because of his troubled childhood, he dropped out of school in Grade 11.
At some stage in his life, he was even imprisoned after getting into a physical fight with someone.
Despite all of this, Axl remains one of the most successful artists around the world.
His incredible voice and lyrics have contributed immensely to what Guns N' Roses is today – a band loved by millions around the globe.
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