An American vocalist and musician,
Mark Slaughter is best known as the frontman and namesake of the popular early-'90s glam metal outfit Slaughter. Born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada,
Mark Slaughter started his career in music as the lead singer of a hard rock unit called Xcursion. From there he joined up with former
Kiss guitarist
Vinnie Vincent as the frontman for
Vinnie Vincent Invasion, scoring a hit with "Love Kills," which appeared on the soundtrack to the 1988 horror film Nightmare on Elm Street 4. Later that year Slaughter founded his own band alongside
Vinnie Vincent bassist
Dana Strum. Signed to Chrysalis Records, Slaughter morphed into a four-piece the following year with the additions of drummer Blas Elias and lead guitarist
Tim Kelly. The band hit it big in 1990 with its debut album,
Stick It to Ya, which sold over two million copies on the strength of the hits "Up All Night" and "Fly to the Angels." Released in 1992,
The Wild Life was certified gold, but the band's popularity -- like most hard rock/glam metal acts of the era -- was being swallowed up by the burgeoning alternative rock and grunge scene.
Dropped by Chrysalis when the label was absorbed by
EMI Records, the band endured a series of professional and personal hardships, but managed to release its third album,
Fear No Evil, in 1995 via CMC International. Tragedy struck shortly after the release of 1997's
Revolution, when guitarist
Tim Kelly succumbed to injuries sustained from an automobile accident in the Arizona desert, but the band reconvened in 1999 with new guitar player Jeff Blando for a fifth LP,
Back to Reality.
Mark spent the ensuing years performing live with Slaughter, as well as becoming a sought-after voice actor and composer for television, movies, and sports outlets. In 2014 he released his first solo single, "Never Givin Up," which saw a portion of its sales go to help the Red Circle Foundation -- Slaughter does charity work for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital -- and in 2015 he released his debut solo album, Reflections in a Rear View Mirror.
Halfway There, his sophomore long-player, was released in 2017 via
Megadeth bassist
Dave Ellefson's EMP Label Group. ~ James Christopher Monger