Corey Taylor Talks Being A Fan Of Slipknot Before Becoming A Member

José Goulão from Lisbon, Portugal, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Published on:

Many Maggots already know this, but Corey Taylor is not the original frontman or singer for Slipknot. Prior to Taylor joining the band, Slipknot had Anders Colsefni taking on the role of singer; Corey would end up joining the band in 1997 (just in time to appear on their 1999 studio album debut).

Recently, Corey talked to that of Zane Lowe of Apple Music 1 about a variety of subjects; among those subjects; the Slipknot frontman talked about growing up in the Des Moines, Iowa scene and what it was like watching the band perform (as a fan, but not a member). He speaks to witnessing their energy and drive, and how he hoped to one day join them. Here is what Corey had to say (the following was transcribed by Ultimate Guitar):

“It all comes down to the scene we were a part of. I mean, we were kind of the driven, hungry, angry psychos in the Des Moines scene. We were all in our individual bands trying to make it, but we all recognized each other in those bands, realizing that the keys were there. And this is coming from somebody who was recruited afterwards; I even knew it. Watching the band from the outside, I was just like, ‘That band is going to make it.’ And it’s, like, ‘I would love to do it with this band. I don’t know if it’s going to happen, but I’m going to do everything I can to get where I need to go.’

“That was before I even was asked to join Slipknot. So, they recognized that in me. The hunger, and the burning desire to show the world… that there’s real merit and creativity in a barren wasteland like Des Moines, Iowa.”

Could you imagine a version of Slipknot where Corey Taylor was not the frontman? You can check out the full video interview featuring Corey below.