Brian Philip Welch (born June 19, 1970), also known by his stage name Head, is an American musician. He is a guitarist and founding member of the nu metal band Korn and his solo project Love and Death, where he also provides vocals. Along with fellow Korn guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer, Welch helped develop Korn's distinctive sound (a mix of sirenlike shards of dissonant guitar that mimicked a turntablist's various effects and rumbling down-tuned riffing) that defined the nu metal aesthetic beginning in the mid-'90s.
After becoming a Christian, Welch left the band in 2005 to focus on life as a father and to pursue his own solo career. He released his debut Christian album, Save Me from Myself, in 2008. He reunited with Korn on-stage at the Carolina Rebellion in May 2012 for the first time in seven years; Welch officially announced in May 2013 that he was rejoining the band. Welch and Munky were ranked at No. 26 of Guitar Worlds 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists of All Time.
Early life Welch was born on June 19, 1970 at Kaiser Foundation Hospital in the Harbor City neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, though other sources have sited Welch's birthplace as Torrance, California. Welch was raised in Bakersfield. He was different from most kids, and was bullied in school. He liked music, and was a big Ozzy Osbourne fan. Originally, Welch expressed interest in playing the drums, but his father convinced him to play the guitar so he would not have to haul a drum kit around. He began playing the guitar at the age of 10. His first guitar was a Peavey Mystic, which he referred to in his book Save Me from Myself as "maybe the most metal-looking guitar you have ever seen."[Welch, Brian P. Life Beegins in Bako. Save Me from Myself: How I Found God, Quit Korn, Kicked Drugs, and Lived to Tell My Story. New York: HarperOne, 2007. Print.]
Describing how he got his nickname "The Head", Welch stated, "Guys said my head looked like it was too big for my body, and so they started calling me 'Head.' I guess it stuck".
Korn (1993–2005, 2013–present)
Formation Korn formed after the group L.A.P.D. broke up due to singer Richard Morrill's drug addiction. Musicians Reginald Arvizu, James Shaffer, and David Silveria wanted to continue, and they hired Welch to play guitar in their new band named "Creep". In early 1993, the band took notice of vocalist Jonathan Davis after seeing his band Sexart and attempted to recruit him. Davis initially did not want to join the band, but after consulting a psychic he changed his mind and auditioned. After Davis was hired, the group decided to rename themselves. "Jonathan had an immediate idea for a new name. He suggested that we call the band "Korn," and we all liked it. It sounded kinda creepy because it reminded us of that horror movie Children of the Corn".[Welch, Brian P. The Final Piece. Save Me from Myself: How I Found God, Quit Korn, Kicked Drugs, and Lived to Tell My Story. New York: HarperOne, 2007. Print.]
Starting with Korn's self-titled debut album and with subsequent albums Life Is Peachy, Follow The Leader, Issues, Untouchables, and Take A Look in the Mirror, the band gradually became one of the top-selling nu metal groups, earning $25 million in royalty payments and selling out arenas.
Conversion to Christianity and departure from Korn On February 22, 2005, Korn's management announced that after almost 12 years, Welch had left Korn, citing that he had "...chosen the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior, and will be dedicating his musical pursuits to that end."Brian stated that he ended up walking away from a 23 million dollar recording contract which was a very difficult decision for him at the time. NewReleaseTuesday.com Interview with Brian Brian 'Head' Welch Leaves Korn, Citing Moral Objections To Band's Music. mtv.comBrian Welch Explains Why He Walked Away . cbn.com In a 2009 radio interview with The Full Armor of God Broadcast, Welch explained: "I was walking one day, just doing my Rock & Roll thing making millions of bucks, you know success and everything, addicted to drugs and then the next day I had Revelation of Christ and I was like, everything changes right now!" On March 10, 2005, Welch was baptized in the Jordan River with a group of believers from his church in Bakersfield, California.Ex-Korn guitarist baptized in Jordan River. usatoday.com He declared that he rid himself of all drugs in his "own personal rehab" with God, in which he had checked into a hotel room and sat in his bed for hours.
Welch and Davis attacked each other in the media after the former's departure. After Welch said that Davis and the rest of Korn cared only about money, Davis responded in kind, opening a rift between them that has since been resolved. In an interview in which Welch was asked about his book and Korn's reaction to the book and the attacks in the media he made earlier at the band: They heard that I'd written it, and there was rumors going around in Hollywood that I was totally trashing them and that it was a 'tell all' book about everything they did and I did. And so they actually wrote two songs on their new album bashing me about the book. But once I heard that they were concerned about the book, I sent them a copy and put a note in there and said, 'I love you guys. I didn't trash you like people say. Read it yourselves. It is what it is.' And now they're doing interviews, and I've read that they're totally cool with the book, and it's not what they thought it was going to be. So everyone's happy. But, now they've got two songs hating on me on their record. But it's cool. It's all good. I love them, they love me. I think maybe I deserved those songs because of some of the stuff that I said after I quit the band. So it's all good.
In July 2005, Welch appeared on CNN's feature-format program "People in the News", where he admitted to having been addicted to alcohol, methamphetamine, Xanax, and sleeping pillsPaula Zahn Now: Guitarist Finds God . transcripts.cnn.com before being introduced to the Christian faith. In a podcast with Headbanger's Blog, on May 30, 2008, Korn vocalist Jonathan Davis expressed interest in playing with Welch on the band's upcoming album, but stated that it is not likely. In September 2009, Korn guitarist Munky, in an interview with Altitude TV, alleged that the band had denied a request by Welch to rejoin the outfit. In the interview, Munky claimed:
Brian actually contacted us recently and wanted to come back to the band. And it was not the right time... for us. We're doing well, and it's kind of like... It's kind of like if you divorced your wife and she went on and she stayed successful and her career flourished, and you go back and [say], 'My gosh, she's still hot. Baby, can we get back together?' 'Wait a minute... All the stuff's been divided, and it's like...' I don't see it happening right now. Shortly after, Welch responded to the statement via his Myspace and official website, denying the claims:
I recently learned of an interview that Munky gave where he said that I came to Korn and asked to be taken back in the band. That's definitely not a complete and accurate picture. The full truth is that for about a year... Korn's managers have been requesting my manager to work on getting me back into Korn. The calls were initiated by Korn's managers, not my manager. I shut the door on their requests many, many times over the last several months.
As far as Munky's comment that 'everything has been divided already' that is also not accurate. In fact, from January 2005 when I left, and for the next 4 years, Korn failed to pay to me royalties that were due me on records that I did with them. However, I don't believe this was done intentionally. We are trying to be patient and work with their management to get the financial issues resolved so that 'everything can be divided as we agreed long ago in our contracts.'
Welch told Alternative Press magazine that it was at this time that he had essentially become broke because of bad business deals, mismanagement, and philanthropy. Welch stated there was a time that he was unable to pay his bills and resorted to finding loose change around his rental home to cover essentials. A royalty cheque was released to him not long after, allowing him some stability.
In an interview with Loudwire in November 2011, Head confirmed that he and the other members of Korn were still on good terms.
Reunion with Korn
On May 5, 2012, at the Carolina Rebellion in Rockingham, NC, Welch was there originally as a special guest for a performance by P.O.D. Later that evening, Korn was performing on the main stage and Jonathan Davis brought out Welch as a special guest to close their act, marking the first time Welch had performed with Korn since his departure in 2005.
Welch performed with the band at Rock on the Range in May 2013, as well as Rock Am Ring and Rock Im Park in June 2013 in Germany, as well as Download Festival in England. After much speculation and further touring announcements with the band, Welch officially rejoined Korn on May 2, 2013, and recorded his first album with the band in ten years, The Paradigm Shift.
Solo career (2005–present)
Save Me from Myself As early as a week following his departure from Korn,Corey Moss. Brian 'Head' Welch Talks God To 10,000 in California Church, reported by MTV News February 2005. Retrieved July 9, 2007 Welch claimed through press that a solo record was close to being completed, although there was no release date given, nor had he yet signed on with a label to distribute the record.James Montgomery. Brian 'Head' Welch Aims To Save 50 Cent, reported by MTV News March 2005. Retrieved July 9, 2007.
A number of demos from these early sessions surfaced on peer-to-peer networks, among them "A Cheap Name", a song directed at rapper 50 Cent. He also recorded several other songs, including "Dream" and "A Letter to Dimebag", the latter being an instrumental tribute to "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, guitarist for heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan. In his autobiography, Welch mentions the songs "Washed by Blood," "Save Me from Myself," and "Rebel", which all have made the final track listing for the album.
In an interview with MTV News, Welch clarified a few things. Primarily, he was concerned that it was reported that his new songs wouldn't be "Christian music".James Montgomery. Brian 'Head' Welch Hopes Solo Music Will Fund Skate Parks, reported by MTV News March 2005. Retrieved July 9, 2007.
During his stay in Israel with members of the Valley Bible Fellowship of Bakersfield, California, Welch continued to write songs for his solo effort, confident that the music would speak for itself. "I want to make music that will help people. I want to use every dime of the money I make off the songs to build skate parks for kids," he said. "My life now is about helping kids." Originally, Welch contacted Fieldy of Korn to produce the album, but Fieldy made no response.James Montgomery. Brian 'Head' Welch Explains Why He Left Korn, reported by MTV News February 2005. Retrieved July 9, 2007.
On March 15, 2008, Welch announced he had founded a record company with Mark Nawara and Greg Shanabeger called Driven Music Group. The company's artists are distributed by Warner Music Group and Rykodisc. Welch also announced that he had re-dubbed his album Save Me from Myself, after his autobiography of the same name. Following this, his official MySpace profile went online, and the domain name for his official website was moved from www.headtochrist.com to www.brianheadwelch.net. Welch also revealed that a tour was expected to follow the release of Save Me from Myself.