Long before she became the Smashing Pumpkins’ latest guitarist and started trading riffs with Billy Corgan, Kiki Wong began her musical journey as a pianist – until a guitar from Costco piqued her interest and completely changed her musical trajectory.
“I started playing piano. I was about six years old,” she says in a new masterclass with Guitar Center, hosted by Guitar World's Paul Riario.
“My dad played the guitar, but I didn't know much about guitar [as I] was very, very piano-driven. And one day, my mom went to Costco, and she's like, ‘Oh, they've got these guitars on sale.’ A Yamaha Eterna, it was called, and [my mum was] like, ‘Let's get it for your dad.’ I was maybe 12 years old.
“My dad played a little bit, and then it went in the closet. [Later], I was like, ‘What is this mysterious thing in the box? Somebody unlock this for me!’” Wong went on to ask her dad for guitar lessons, but he could only teach her so much.
“He's like, ‘Okay, I've got three chords for you, and then you're on your own,’ because that's about as much as he really knew about the guitar,” Wong persevered. “I was like, ‘Well, can I take lessons?’ And they're like, ‘You're already doing piano, so that's it.’ I was like, ‘Shoot, I got to figure it out.’”
What she deems the “biggest inspiration” – and one that completely redefined her music taste and cemented her playing style – is discovering Metallica and going down the metal rabbit hole.
“I went from just like basic rock, and then [my brother] was like, 'Here's Metallica.' I was like, ‘What the f is this?’ And he's like, ‘Here's Master of Puppets.’ I was like, ‘I have to learn this. That didn't go so well.
“But eventually I got there, and I just became completely, utterly obsessed with metal. It kind of made me a one-trick pony for a long time, but I have this undying love for disgusting tones and metal in general, but I'll never forget Masters of Puppets,” she divulges.
“The first time I heard it and saw the album cover, I was like, ‘Holy crap. This is a level that I couldn't have ever imagined.’ It was like diving into a movie that you couldn't even imagine could have been created. So that feeling still lives on.”
In more recent news, Kiki Wong gave Guitarist the lowdown on her Smashing Pumpkins live rig and how a humble Line 6 amp made her the player she is today.
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