Jake Pitts (lead guitar)

Name: Jake Pitts
Location: Hollywood, California
Occupation: I play guitar for Black Veil Brides.

1. How did you first become interested in guitar? Did you teach yourself?

My dad bought me an acoustic guitar for my 10th birthday and I messed with it for a couple days and put it in my closet. Three years later I started getting into Metallica and I loved how heavy the guitars sounded so I picked it up and started messing with it everyday until my dad saw I was serious about it. That Christmas, my present was guitar lessons. They only lasted 4 months before I decided to go on my own. I told my dad I wanted to save money and buy an electric guitar one day and he kinda laughed. But he is very proud and supportive. My mom is a classically trained pianist and taught me what I know about harmony and theory.

2. Do you have any guitar tips and tricks you would like to share for your fans and other aspiring guitarists?

Practice practice practice is the most important thing. If you want to become a good songwriter, start writing right away. I wrote my first “song” after I had only been playing for 3 months. It wasn’t good, but 11 years later I understand what I’m doing.

3. Do you have any other hidden talents or passions?

I also play drums and wrote all the drums on our album “We Stitch These Wounds.” I’m also into surfing and became pretty decent at it when I lived in Hawaii.

4. Where do you pull your inspiration when writing for Black Veil Brides?

Mainly from my childhood. I didn’t have the easiest time growing up, and built up a lot of anger and frustration so that kind of fuels a lot of it. Also specific things in my life that happened. The song “Carolyn” I wrote 4 years ago, and the album version is the 3rd version of it I wrote.

5. What bands influence you the most? What did you grow up listening to?

I grew up listening to a lot of what my dad listens to. He was always listening to classic rock radio, so it was Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Mötley Crüe, The Scorpions, Van Halen and other bands like that.

6. Give us a list of your favorites: color, books, movies, food, ice cream flavor.

My favorite colors are bright green or black. My favorite book is The Dirt. Movie would be Happy Gilmore. Food – sushi. And my favorite ice cream flavor is Mint Oreo.

7. Black Veil Brides just got on the Grammy consideration list. That’s quite a milestone for you guys, in a short amount of time. What can we expect to see from BVB in the future?

Hopefully winning a Grammy and many more! But mostly more records and touring the world, hopefully selling out arenas and putting on a huge stage show blowing shit up.