Sonny Mayo (born July 16, 1971) is an American guitarist.

Career

Mayo began playing in a thrash metal band called Silence in the late 1980s. Silence (John Mayes, Benjamin Gaither, Louie Denslow, Jason Robinson and Sonny), regularly sold out venues in the DC Metro area including the "Bayou" in Georgetown. While with Silence, he released a nine track CD, ''Vision'', and recorded a three song tape with Alex Perialas (producer -Anthrax, Overkill, S.O.D.). One of the songs from the tape, "One Race" was made into a black and white video filmed at the Bayou (note, the director of the video was John Brenkus, who now does Sport Science on ESPN). He then joined M.F. Pitbulls with

Shannon Larkin James Shannon Larkin (born April 24, 1967) is an American musician, best known as the drummer of rock band Godsmack. He replaced the previous drummer Tommy Stewart in June 2002. Prior to Godsmack, he was a member of Amen, Candlebox, Ugly Kid Joe ...

(

Wrathchild America Wrathchild America was an American heavy metal band formed in Martinsburg, West Virginia, in 1978. Before settling on the Wrathchild America name in 1988, the band had performed under the names Atlantis, Tyrant, and Wrathchild. They released t ...

Ugly Kid Joe Ugly Kid Joe is an American hard rock band from Isla Vista, California, formed in 1989. The band's name spoofs the glam metal band Pretty Boy Floyd's name. To date, Ugly Kid Joe have released five full-length albums, two compilation albums and ...

Amen Amen ( he, אָמֵן, ; grc, ἀμήν, ; syc, ܐܡܝܢ, ; ar, آمين, ) is an Abrahamic declaration of affirmation which is first found in the Hebrew Bible, and subsequently found in the New Testament. It is used in Jews, Jewish, Christia ...

, now

Godsmack Godsmack is an American rock band from Lawrence, Massachusetts, formed in 1995. The band is composed of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Sully Erna, bassist Robbie Merrill, lead guitarist Tony Rombola and drummer Shannon Larkin. Since its forma ...

) on vocals, Jamie Miller ( Snot, Bad Religion, The Start) on drums, and John "Tumor" Fahnestock ( Snot,

, Noise Within) on bass. In 1995, Mayo moved to Santa Barbara to join the band Snot. Snot was signed to

Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint. Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and h ...

in 1996 and recorded their only full-length release, ''Get Some'', in May 1997. Mayo then rejoined Shannon Larkin in the band Amen in 1998 and subsequently recorded and released albums on Roadrunner Records (Amen self-titled) and Virgin Records (''We Have Come For Your Parents''). In 1998, Mayo contributed to the

Vanilla Ice Robert Matthew Van Winkle (born October 31, 1967), known professionally as Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, actor, and television host. Born in South Dallas, and raised in Texas and South Florida, Ice released his debut album, ''Hooked'', ...

album ''

Hard to Swallow ''Hard to Swallow'' is the third studio album by American rapper Vanilla Ice. Released by Republic Records in 1998, the album was the first album Vanilla Ice recorded after a four-year hiatus following the 1994 release of '' Mind Blowin''. Vanill ...

''. In 2002, Mayo replaced Chad Benekos in

Hed PE Hed PE (also known as (hed) Planet Earth and stylized as (həd) p.e. or as (Hed)pe or (Hed)PE) or (həd) Planetary Evolution, is an American rock band from Huntington Beach, California. Formed in 1994, the band is known for its eclectic genre-cr ...

. He toured in support of the album '' Blackout''. On January 19, 2005, he got a call from

Morgan Rose Morgan Jay Rose (born December 13, 1968) is an American drummer and a founding member of Atlanta-based rock band Sevendust. He is also responsible for much of the background vocals. He has also played drums for Call Me No One and Methods of Mayh ...

to join Sevendust after

Clint Lowery Clint Lowery (born December 15, 1971) is an American musician, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and backing vocalist of the rock band Sevendust. He has also played in Dark New Day and Still Rain, and served as the tourin ...

left for

Dark New Day Dark New Day was an American hard rock supergroup formed in 2004 featuring Brett Hestla of Virgos Merlot, Clint Lowery of Sevendust, Troy McLawhorn of DoubleDrive, Corey Lowery of Stereomud and Stuck Mojo, and Will Hunt of Skrape. Their debut al ...

. Mayo co-wrote and recorded three full-length releases with Sevendust. ''Next'' – Winedark Records, 2005; ''Alpha'' – Asylum Records, 2007; and ''Chapter 7: Hope & Sorrow'' – Asylum, 2008. In early 2008, Mayo was replaced by the original Sevendust guitarist,

. According to Mayo, he was not pleased with the way he was fired. Shortly after departing Sevendust, Snot reformed with ex-

Divine Heresy Divine Heresy is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California by founder of Fear Factory guitarist Dino Cazares and Devolved drummer John Sankey. Although the band's origins trace back to 2002, Divine Heresy was officially for ...

frontman Tommy Vext on vocals. Snot wrote and recorded new material and toured the U.S. supporting

Mudvayne Mudvayne is an American heavy metal band formed in Peoria, Illinois in 1996. Known for their sonic experimentation, face and body paint, masks and uniforms, the band has sold over six million records worldwide, including nearly three millio ...

in late 2008. Mayo decided not to continue with Snot in May 2009, and enrolled in the Recording Institute Of Technology program at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood, California. After receiving a certificate in audio engineering and Pro Tools certification, Mayo produced and engineered several bands and artists. In 2011, Mayo engineered and co-produced Ugly Kid Joe's '' Stairway to Hell'' album then joined the band in 2012 as touring guitarist, filling in for

Dave Fortman Dave Fortman (born July 11, 1967) is an American record producer and musician. He is the guitarist for rock band Ugly Kid Joe, and has worked with bands such as Superjoint Ritual, Snot, Atomship, Eyehategod, Mudvayne, Otep, Slipknot (on thei ...

. In June 2014, Sonny joined Wes Geer in the non-profit organization, Rock to Recovery, which harnesses the healing power of music by bringing musical instruments and equipment in to treatment facilities to write and record original songs with people recovering from drug/alcohol addiction, PTSD, eating disorders, and other illnesses. In June 2015, Sonny joined Ugly Kid Joe in the studio to write/record ''

Uglier Than They Used ta Be ''Uglier Than They Used ta Be'' is the fourth album by the American rock band Ugly Kid Joe, released in Europe on September 18, 2015, and in North America on October 16. On February 4, 2015, Ugly Kid Joe started a crowdfunding effort through ...

'', which released in late 2015.

References

External links

Official website
(archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Mayo, Sonny Living people American heavy metal guitarists 1971 births Rhythm guitarists Guitarists from Washington, D.C. Alternative metal musicians Amen (American band) members Sevendust members Hed PE members Snot (band) members 21st-century American guitarists