Slash

There are few people in the world who are known by a single name -- Slash is one of them. The legendary guitarist helped shape the hard rock music of the 1980s and 90s, and has remained a powerful musician to this day. It's no surprise that he found his path early in his life.

Slash was born in England with the name Saul Hudson, and at eleven years old his family moved to Los Angeles. There, a family friend gave him his enduring nickname, Slash. His music teacher in school was an avid guitarist, and Slash took an interest. It didn't take long for him to discover a strong passion -- he knew it so well, he even dropped out of school to pursue music full-time.

His first attempt at a band named Road Crew was short lived, but while touring, he crossed paths with another musician named Axl Rose, who invited Slash to join the newly formed band Guns 'N Roses. They released their debut album, "Appetite for Destruction" in 1987, which has since sold over 28 million albums and is the highest-grossing debut album. In the following years, the band released several more albums, selling over 100 million total, and became one of the top forces in hard rock music.

Eventually, the band changed, and Slash left -- after deciding not to follow Axl Rose's decision to push the band into industrial and electronica music. Slash began work on a side project called Snakepit, while also performing on individual songs with major artists -- including Michael Jackson, Alice Cooper, Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder. In 2004, he teamed up with old friends to create the group Velvet Revolver, releasing two albums and winning a Grammy Award.