Hiding in plain sight for more than twenty years, the closeted lead singer of Judas Priest modeled his look on the gay leather scene which became a heavy metal mainstay. From 1974 to 1992, Rob Halford fronted the band, wowing fans with his pseudo-operatic style of singing and impressing critics with his four octave vocal range. Offstage, he struggled with alcohol dependency and violent relationships, the worst moment coming after a bad fight: When Halford got a taxi, his boyfriend shot himself and died. After that, Halford improved his life. In 1997, he played gigs with Pansy Division at gay pride parties and the next year he came out on MTV. In 2003, he reunited with Judas Priest. In 2008 the band released their second post-reunion album, Nostradamus, which was their sixteenth studio album, and they played on the Masters of Metal Tour. Since then they've released two live albums.
Halford lives in Phoenix, San Diego, Amsterdam, and his native Walsall, England, hometown also to Boy George. Since coming out, Halford says the support of the metal community has been "tremendous."
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