Just five years after wandering the halls of his Long Island high school with Quiet Riot‘s 1983 cassette Metal Health playing on his Walkman, John Torra made his debut as the group’s new frontman during an explosive show at the Cherokee Casino in West Siloam Springs, Oklahoma. Check out fan-shot video where he summons the spirit of original lead singer Kevin DuBrow on the band’s twin 1983 hits “Cum On Feel the Noize” and “Metal Health (Bang Your Head),” stunning even his bandmates. (If this story feels familiar, it’s basically a real-life version of the 2001 Mark Wahlberg movie Rock Star, which was a heavily fictionalized, to the point of absurdity, take on Judas Priest replacement singer Tim “Ripper” Owens’ saga.) As Torra told Rolling Stone earlier this week, his life forever changed when his father played him Van Halen’s “Mean Streets” at age 14. That’s when I became obsessed and developed a passion for this genre and this lifestyle.” Within a few years, Torra was playing in metal bands across Long Island, belting out songs by Skid Row, Cinderella, Ratt, and yes, Quiet Riot, with incredible power and force.
He auditioned for Skid Row this year, but didn’t hear anything back, and then tried again with Quiet Riot, creating an Instagram video that quickly went viral. Within days, Quiet Riot manager Regina Banali – widow of original Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali – called him up. Charles, Missouri, and dated are booked through a South American run in April 2027.
It’s going to be a lot of work for Torra, who is just 23, but he says he’s ready for it. And I think the guys in the band are definitely going to take care of me and help me out, and they’ll guide me and tell me because they have a lot more years of experience on me, so they’ve seen it all.”
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