The 11-Year-Old Local Metal Guitarist Who Took the Stage with Metallica

When 11-year-old metal guitarist Russell Watson starts holding bandmate auditions, there are going to be some ground rules. “I don’t want an old teenager with a beard who is just trying to get a job,” he says. “I’m a single dude who does single music. I don’t have a band yet, but I really want to find one.”

For the past five years, Watson has lived and breathed metal. He rattles off facts about bands and artists decades before his time with the same familiarity kids his age usually reserve for Pokémon cards—though he likes those, too.

January 13, 2025

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In his music room, axolotl and fox plushies sit next to professional-grade mics and Boss electric guitar amps. Signed posters and framed set lists hang beside VIP passes and festival 152 posters featuring headliners like Guns N’ Roses and Iron Maiden.

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But long before Watson could call Randy Blythe from Lamb of God “inspiring,” it was his dad, Tim, who made the biggest impact on him and his music taste. At age 6, Watson started playing guitar after his dad began learning. “I just thought he was so cool; I really wanted to be like him,” he recalls.

A year later, following an 18-month journey with stomach cancer, Watson’s dad passed away. “When he passed, I tried to play guitar to help heal [me],” Watson shares. “If I had a rough day, I would go home and play guitar and let out my feelings.”

Today, Watson’s ode to his father has garnered the attention of more than 14K followers on Instagram. Last August, at a Metallica show in Chicago, drummer Lars Ulrich invited Watson onstage to sit at his drum kit while the band played “The Unforgiven.” It was a full-circle experience for the preteen whose love of his dad’s favorite band led him to metal—and now to sharing a stage with his musical muses.

“I feel like there was something that was very meaningful in that moment,” he says. “I bet [my dad’s] happy up there.” And, if you’re wondering, Watson’s still looking for his bandmates—middle-aged teenagers need not apply.

*Editor’s Note: Following this interview, Watson was welcomed into the Gibson Guitars family on July 17, 2025 as an official Gibson artist.