Marty Friedman

Born in Washington, D.C. in 1962, Marty Friedman made a name for himself in the American metal scene in the 1980s with Hawaii and especially Cacophony, a duo formed with Jason Becker, where he developed a highly melodic guitar style blending speed metal, neoclassical metal, and phrasing inspired by Eastern music. His career takes on another dimension when he joins Megadeth in 1990, participating in five of the band's major albums, from Rust in Peace (1990) to Risk (1999), with a style identifiable by his serpentine solos, sense of phrasing, and a thrash metal approach less front-facing than singing. In parallel, Marty Friedman released several solo albums, including Dragon’s Kiss (1988), Scenes (1992), Introduction (1994), True Obsessions (1996), followed by Music for Speeding (2003). Based in Tokyo since 2003, Friedman reorients part of his activity toward Japan, where he pursues a variety of projects spanning instrumental hard rock, interpretations of Japanese repertoire, and collaborations with the local pop and metal scene. This period notably includes Loudspeaker (2006), Tokyo Jukebox (2009), Inferno (2014), Wall of Sound (2017), Tokyo Jukebox 3 (2021) and Drama (2024). Present on stage, in the studio, and in Japanese media, Marty Friedman occupies a singular place between metal, instrumental rock, and Japanese pop culture, with regular incursions into anime, television, and various collaborative projects.