Scott Weiland

Scott Weiland (born October 27, 1967 in Santa Cruz, California) is an American musician, lyricist and vocalist. He was the lead singer of the popular grunge rock band Stone Temple Pilots throughout the 1990s and is currently the lead singer of Velvet Revolver.

Weiland was born Scott Kent but his name was changed when his stepfather, David Weiland, adopted him. Though born in Santa Cruz, he moved to Ohio by age 5, and lived there until he was 15, at which point he returned to California.

Weiland met bassist Robert DeLeo at a Black Flag concert, and shortly thereafter formed the band Mighty Joe Young with DeLeo's brother Dean on guitar and Eric Kretz on drums. The band's name was changed to Stone Temple Pilots when it was discovered shortly after signing with Atlantic Records that Mighty Joe Young was already taken. The name itself has no significance other than forming the acronym "STP" which Weiland remember having a sticker of on his bike as a child.

Weiland composed the band's lyrics and sang lead vocals. In 1992, they released their first album, Core, and their first hit, "Sex Type Thing" enshrined them as one of the bands at the forefront of the grunge movement, the music genre that was spawned out of Seattle in the late eighties and became rock's central movement of the early-mid 1990s.

In 1994, Weiland married Janina Castenada and STP released their second album, Purple. The year prior, STP toured with the Butthole Surfers, where it is widely believed Weiland picked up his heroin addiction, a habit that would checker most of the rest of his career.

In 1995, Weiland was caught and convicted of buying rock cocaine. He was sentenced to one year's probation. Issues with drug use did not clear up after his sentence, and STP was forced to cancel most of their 1996-1997 tour in support of their third release, Tiny Music... Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop.

With Weiland's status in the band uncertain and unpredictable, STP went on hiatus. Robert, Dean and Eric created the group Talk Show with lead singer Dave Coutts, and Weiland released a solo album in 1998 called Twelve Bar Blues. Weiland composed as well wrote the lyrics for most songs on the album, and collaborated with several artists, notably Daniel Lanois and Sheryl Crow. The album was not a commercial hit, and Weiland was eventually caught in Manhattan buying heroin, ending his brief tour. A previous conviction in Los Angeles, coupled with numerous probation violations got Weiland sentenced to jail time.

The constant relapses were too much for his marriage, and Castenada filed for divorce. His period in jail had apparently helped to wean him from his habit, and once released, he rejoined the Stone Temple Pilots, and married again, to model Mary Forsberg, with whom he has two children, Noah and Lucy.

In late 2001, Weiland's battles with the law continued. We was arrested on domestic violence charges in Las Vegas, apparently for pushing Forsberg. While the charges were eventually deferred upon the couple agreeing to counselling, Forsberg eventually filed for divorce. Weiland's career also took a hit, with an altercation between Weiland and guitarist Dean DeLeo on the final gig of STP's Shangri-La Dee Da tour leading to the band's demise.

Weiland was eventually asked to join a band started by former Guns n Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum, along with guitarist Dave Kushner, with the working title "The Project", and later becoming "Velvet Revolver". The band became a critical and commercial hit.

Weiland was most recently arrested on October 27, 2003, in Hollywood, California, after a traffic collision. He was charged with driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

Official Velvet Revolver Web Site (http://www.velvetrevolver.com)

Official Stone Temple Pilots Web Site (http://www.stonetemplepilots.com)