You probably have heard of Zakk Wylde. Musician, singer, and songwriter. Guitarist for Ozzy Ozbourne. Actor. (Remember Zakk in Rock Star?).
But what you might not know, is that Zakk didn't start out wanting to become a rock and roll legend. He had a completely different career in mind. We talked with Zakk Wylde on our podcast Fueled By Death Cast and he revealed his aspirations to play football.
Did you always want to play the guitar?
Zakk Wylde:
I wasn't really, you know, I wasn't interested in it at all until I was ... then I was playing football and everything around that circled around baseball and football. I was playing sports. Then when I got to high school, and I couldn't ... obviously, Pop Warner, there was a weight limit and everything like that. When you get to high school, obviously per freshman year and everything like that, I was just like ... what I wanted to do, I loved Randy White and I loved Jack Lambert and everything like that. For me, I was a linebacker when I played Pop Warner. That was my goal was ... I had everything mapped out. I was going to go to Maryland University where Randy White went.
And then become a professional football player. Then eventually become a broadcaster and the whole nine yards. Once I couldn't make the weight limit then, I was just like ... I mean, I was a bummer because I was like if I wasn't going to be a linebacker because of my weight, maybe they're going to put me at cornerback or safety or anything like that. But I had been going over the coaches house and he was talking to me into continuing to play at football. He was ... he had a Les Paul sitting in the living room at the time, and my mother had asked him, "Hey, Mr Wright." Just because he was my football coach. She said, "Do you play the guitar?" And he was like, "Well, I kind of noodle around. I play country songs on there. My son, Leroy, is the one that plays."
Leroy comes out and this is the first time I ever saw a dude with long hair.
Looked like a rock star. He came out and he started shredding on the guitar playing all types like Hendrix. He was playing Van Halen and everything. Then at the time, Sabbath he was playing, some Zeppelin, all right. Then after that, he started playing like Crazy Train because it had just come out.
Sounds like the coolest dude in the world.
Zakk Wylde: Without a doubt. So that's why I was ... and when I'm just watching, physically seeing somebody do it in front of you, I was like, "This is the coolest thing on the planet." It just looked so interesting to me. I was right there in that. I was like that's what I want to do with my life. The whole thing is I started taking lessons from Leroy. And he was awesome.
He would teach me everything from all my favorite bands or all the guys I want to learn from. But he would also teach you the theory and everything like that and how it works. You're looking a car engine and it's just like, "Well, what`s this part? Well, the reason why this is on here is it's for this." You know what I mean? You would just break it down for you so that you could understand it.
Click here to listen to the full interview with Zakk Wylde - only on Fueled By Death Cast.
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