Joey Belladonna was born on October 13, 1960, in Oswego, New York. As Anthrax’s lead vocalist, he placed a melodic, high-register voice at the center of the band’s fast, aggressive metal. His first full-length with the group, 1985’s Spreading the Disease, included “Madhouse,” an early example of that combination.
His musical interests had developed well outside thrash. Speaking with Icon vs. Icon in 2011, Belladonna traced his initial fascination to the Beatles’ songs and harmonies, followed by bands such as Yes, Kansas and Led Zeppelin. He played drums as well as sang, and the enjoyment of performing kept him pursuing music. By the time Anthrax heard him, he had experience in a cover band but little familiarity with the group he was being asked to join.
Producer Carl Canedy made the connection. In a 1985 Metal Forces interview, guitarist Dan Spitz recalled that Canedy knew Belladonna through his cover-band work and recommended him. The audition revealed how different their musical backgrounds were: Belladonna told The Metal Voice in 2023 that he knew almost nothing about Anthrax’s music. With the microphone being set up, he sang fragments of Journey material. He was unsure whether Anthrax would suit him, but the band heard possibilities in his voice. Spitz called him “the Steve Perry of aggressive metal,” praising both his range and his ability to reproduce his recorded singing onstage.
Belladonna appeared on the Armed and Dangerous EP before Spreading the Disease, and his arrival also helped settle a small recording disagreement. Anthrax had wanted to cover the Sex Pistols’ “God Save the Queen,” but former singer Neil Turbin had opposed it. Belladonna liked the song, and the band recorded it for the EP.
His first stretch with Anthrax continued through Among the Living in 1987 and Persistence of Time in 1990. After his 1992 departure and a later reunion for shows, Belladonna returned again in 2010 for the first Big Four concerts. Recording new music became the next step, with Worship Music already substantially developed during the band’s time with singer Dan Nelson.
Belladonna and producer Jay Ruston began their vocal sessions with “Crawl.” Ruston told Metal Insider that they spent roughly six hours talking about music and getting comfortable before Belladonna entered the booth. Once he started singing, the track came together in about an hour. Ruston emailed the result to the band around midnight or 1 a.m.; excited calls continued until around 3 a.m. The next morning, he showed Belladonna the messages.
The rest of the work gave Belladonna space to make decisions without an audience in the control room. He told Live Metal that he and Ruston recorded over 12 or 13 days spread across a couple of months, working through the songs individually. The arrangements and lyrics were largely established, so his contribution centered on phrasing, melodic choices and finding a comfortable approach within each song’s key. He could adjust an awkward lyric slightly, but he generally worked with the material as supplied.
Belladonna compared that process to making Spreading the Disease: entering the studio, learning the material and finding his way into it as a singer. Released in 2011, Worship Music became his first Anthrax studio album since Persistence of Time, ending a 21-year gap between new full-length recordings with the band.
