Paul Joshua "Sonny" Sandoval (born May 16, 1974) is an American singer, rapper, and songwriter. He is best known as co-founder and the lead vocalist of

metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

band

P.O.D. P.O.D., an initialism for Payable on Death, is an American Christian metal band formed in 1992 and based in San Diego, California. The band's line-up consists of drummer and rhythm guitarist Wuv Bernardo, vocalist Sonny Sandoval, bassist Traa ...

Biography

Sandoval was born in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

. to a Chamorro-Hawaiian mother and a Mexican-Italian father. He grew up in the

Otay Mesa Otay Mesa ( ) is a community in the southern section of the city of San Diego, just north of the U.S.–Mexico border. It is bordered by the Otay River Valley and the city of Chula Vista on the north; Interstate 805 and the neighborhoods of Oc ...

neighborhood of South San Diego which was a Chicano barrio. When he was eighteen, Sandoval's mother was diagnosed with

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

. During her illness, Sandoval was greatly influenced by his mother's faith as a devout

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

. He pursued a career as an MC and later joined the band Enoch, a group started by

Wuv Bernardo Noah "Wuv" Bernardo Jr. (born February 24, 1974) is an American musician, most notably the guitarist and drummer for Christian nu metal band P.O.D.. According to a FAQ, Bernardo is Filipino, Italian, German, and Chamorro. He is the first co ...

, Gabe Portillo and

Marcos Curiel Marcos Curiel (born September 9, 1974) is the lead guitarist of rock bands P.O.D., The Accident Experiment and Daylight Division. Curiel was born in San Diego, California, in 1974 and is of Mexican descent. He grew up in the neighboring city of ...

, which, with the addition of Sandoval, later became P.O.D. (initialism for "Payable On Death"). Sandoval states his musical roots as reggae, rock, and rap, all of which are apparent in P.O.D.

Career

P.O.D.

Sandoval is best known as co-founder and the lead vocalist of the metal band P.O.D. Over the course of their career, the band has received three

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nominations, contributed to numerous motion picture soundtracks and toured internationally. They have sold over 12 million records worldwide. With their third studio album, ''

The Fundamental Elements of Southtown ''The Fundamental Elements of Southtown'' is the third studio album and major label debut of Christian metal band P.O.D., released on August 24, 1999. It went on to become the band's first platinum album, peaking at No. 51 on the ''Billboard'' ...

'', P.O.D. achieved their initial mainstream success; the album was certified

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...

by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

in 2000.

The Whosoevers

Since 2008, Sandoval has been part of an outreach group, The Whosoevers, with Ryan Ries,

Lacey Sturm Lacey Nicole Sturm (née Mosley, previously Carder; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer and songwriter born in Homestead, Florida, but raised in Arlington, Texas. She is a co-founder and lead vocalist of the hard rock band Flyleaf. In ...

, formerly of

Flyleaf Flyleaf may refer to: *In book design, a blank leaf in the front or back cover * Flyleaf (band) Flyleaf is an American rock band formed in Belton, Texas, in 2002. The band has charted on mainstream rock, Christian pop, and Christian metal ...

, and

Brian Welch Brian Philip Welch (born June 19, 1970), also known by his stage name Head, is an American musician. He is one of the guitarists and founding member of the nu metal band Korn and his solo project Love and Death, where he also provides vocals. ...

, guitarist for the nu metal band

Korn Korn (stylized as KoЯn, or occasionally KoRn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The band is notable for pioneering the nu metal genre and bringing it into the mainstream. Originally formed in 1993 ...

Other work

Sandoval appeared in

Project 86 Project 86 is an American metal band from Orange County, California, formed in 1996. The band has released ten albums, which have collectively sold nearly 500,000 units worldwide, two EPs, two DVDs, and one live album. In 1998, BEC Recordings ...

's self-titled album in the song "Six Sirens". In 2004, he contributed to two tracks on

Anastacia Anastacia Lyn Newkirk ( ; born September 17, 1968) is an American singer, songwriter and former dancer. Her first two albums '' Not That Kind'' (2000) and '' Freak of Nature'' (2001) were released in quick succession to major success. Spurred o ...

's self titled album, "Seasons Change" and "I Do". He has been named number 63 in ''

Hit Parader ''Hit Parader'' was an American music magazine that operated between 1942 and 2008. A monthly publication, it focused on rock and pop music in general until the 1970s, when its focus began turning to hard rock and heavy metal. By the early 1980s ...

s Top 100 Metal Vocalists of All Time in 2006. In 2009, Sandoval appeared on

Tribal Seeds Tribal Seeds is an American reggae band based in San Diego that was formed in 2005 by the Jacobo brothers, singer Steven Rene and producer Tony-Ray. Biography Formation (2003–2005) From San Diego, California, award-winning reggae group Trib ...

' new album ''The Harvest'', in the song "Warning". In 2010, Sandoval appeared on

War of Ages War of Ages (sometimes abbreviated WoA; formerly known as Point Zero) is an American Christian metal band formed in Erie, Pennsylvania, in 2002. The band's self-titled debut album ''War of Ages'' was released in 2005, and in February 2006, the ...

' fourth album release ''

Eternal Eternal(s) or The Eternal may refer to: * Eternity, an infinite amount of time, or a timeless state * Immortality or eternal life * God, the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith in monotheism Comics, film and television * ...

'', in the song "Eternal". In 2010, Sandoval appeared on

Lecrae Lecrae Devaughn Moore (born October 9, 1979), mononymously known as Lecrae, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record and film producer, record executive, actor, and entrepreneur. He is the president, co-owner and co-founder of the ind ...

's fourth album release '' Rehab'', in the song "Children of the Light". In 2011, Sandoval appeared on Dominic Balli's single, "American Dream". In 2012, Sandoval appeared on

For Today For Today was an American Christian metalcore band from Sioux City, Iowa, formed in 2005. They released two EPs, ''Your Moment, Your Life, Your Time'' and ''Prevailer'', and six full-length albums: '' Ekklesia'' in, 2008, ''Portraits'' in 2009, ...

's fourth album release ''

Immortal Immortality is the ability to live forever, or eternal life. Immortal or Immortality may also refer to: Film * ''The Immortals'' (1995 film), an American crime film * ''Immortality'', an alternate title for the 1998 British film '' The Wisdom of ...

'', in the song "The Only Name". Also in 2013, Sandoval appeared on the track "Something Better" released on Flyleaf's EP '' Who We Are''. He appeared on

Islander Islander, Islanders, or The Islanders may refer to: People * Islander, referring to Jersey people * Islander, New Zealand-English term usually meaning Pacific Islander Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''The Islander'' (Rylant novel), ...

's album, '' Violence & Destruction'' on the track, "Criminals".

Personal life

Family

He and his wife Shannon married in 1996, and have two daughters, Nevaeh and Marley, and a son, Justice. Sandoval is widely credited with the sudden popularity of the name Nevaeh, which, as he revealed on ''

MTV Cribs ''MTV Cribs'' (also known as ''Cribs'') is an American documentary television show that originated on MTV and features tours of the private homes of celebrities. It originally aired from 2000 to 2010. In 2017, MTV produced short-form episodes o ...

'', is "heaven" spelled backwards.

Appearance

For most of P.O.D.'s career, Sandoval was well known for his

dreadlocks Dreadlocks, also known as locs or dreads, are rope-like strands of hair formed by locking or braiding hair. Origins Some of the earliest depictions of dreadlocks date back as far as 1600–1500 BCE in the Minoan Civilization, one of Europe' ...

(which, by the release of the video for " Going in Blind", had reached the length of his waist), but since the release of P.O.D.'s seventh studio album, '' When Angels & Serpents Dance'', he has cut them off.

Discography

P.O.D.

*''

Snuff the Punk ''Snuff the Punk'' is the debut studio album by Christian nu metal band P.O.D. The album was released on January 25, 1994 on Chula Vista, California-based Rescue Records, which was owned by Noah Bernardo, Sr (band members Sonny Sandoval's uncle ...

'' (1994) *''

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...

'' (1996) *''

'' (1999) *''

Satellite A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...

'' (2001) *''

Payable on Death ''Payable on Death'' is the self-titled fifth album by Christian nu metal band P.O.D. It is the group's first album to feature guitarist Jason Truby following the controversial departure of Marcos Curiel, and their last album produced by Howar ...

'' (2003) *''

Testify In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. Etymology The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness. La ...

'' (2006) *'' When Angels & Serpents Dance'' (2008) *''

Murdered Love ''Murdered Love'' is the eighth studio album by American Christian metal band P.O.D., released on July 10, 2012. It debuted on the Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200 at No. 17 with sales of over 16,000 in its first week in the U.S. ''Murdered Love' ...

'' (2012) *'' SoCal Sessions'' (2014) * '' The Awakening'' (2015) * ''

Circles A circle is a shape consisting of all points in a plane that are at a given distance from a given point, the centre. Equivalently, it is the curve traced out by a point that moves in a plane so that its distance from a given point is const ...

'' (2018)

Guest appearances

* "Six Sirens" by

on the album ''

(1998) * "America" by

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer Boats * Santana 20, an American sailboat design by W. D. Sch ...

(with P.O.D.) on the album ''

Shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...

'' (2002) * "Seasons Change" & "I Do" by

on the album, ''

'' (2004) * "Warning" by

on their album, ''The Harvest'' (2009) * "Eternal" by

on their album, ''

'' (2010) * "Children of the Light" by

on his album, '' Rehab'' (2010) * "The Only Name" by

on their album, ''

'' (2012) * "Something Better"

on their EP, '' Who We Are'' (2013) * "Criminals" by

on their album, '' Violence & Destruction'' (2014) * "Chasing the Horizon" by

Noize MC Ivan Aleksandrovich Alekseyev (russian: link=no, Иван Александрович Алексеев; born 9 March 1985), known professionally as Noize MC, is a Russian rapper, singer, and actor. Biography Birth, early work (1985–2002) Aleks ...

(2019) * "They Don't Like It" by Fire from the Gods (2019) * "Magic Eyes" by Nights Like Thieves (2020) * "All or Nothing" by

Ill Niño Ill Niño (stylized as ill niño) is an American metal band formed in Union City, New Jersey, in 1998 by drummer and percussionist Dave Chavarri. They have released seven studio albums, two EPs and one compilation album, totaling in over 1.3 mi ...

(2021) * "Nemesis" by

Manafest Christopher Scott Greenwood (born July 19, 1979), known by his stage name Manafest, is a Canadian Christian rapper and rock artist from Pickering, Ontario, Canada. He has won multiple awards for the GMA Canada Covenant Awards, GMA Dove Award ...

(2022) * “Lights, Camera, Action” by Islander (2022)

References

External links

The Whosoevers Official Website

Official website

The Warriors Tour Official Site

P.O.D. Promotions Crew: Official Street Team

theSouthtown.com

MTV EXIT Concerts

Tony Hawk's American Wasteland Xbox Live VNR
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandoval, Sonny 1974 births Living people American male singers American heavy metal singers American rappers American performers of Christian music Converts to Christianity Musicians from San Diego American people of Italian descent American rappers of Mexican descent Native Hawaiian people Chamorro people Nu metal singers Chicano rock musicians 21st-century American rappers Rappers from California 21st-century American male musicians P.O.D. members