King Diamond

Born in Copenhagen as Kim Bendix Petersen, King Diamond is a heavy metal vocalist and musician known for his falsetto voice. Lead singer of Mercyful Fate and his eponymous band King Diamond, he creates hard hitting music with elements of both black metal and progressive metal. After getting his start in a series of hard rock bands, Diamond began incorporating horror themes and theatrics into his band Black Rose during the late 1970s and started developing is Satanic stage persona. He helped form Mercyful Fate in 1980s and has been releasing music with the band in sporadic bursts starting with its 1984 debut, Don't Break the Oath. Following Mercyful Fate's first breakup in 1985, Diamond and his former band mates Andy Larocque, Michael Denner, Timi Hansen and Mikkey Dee decided to join forces for a new band under the King Diamond name. Though the band has had several different incarnations, King Diamond has endured as one of metal's most recognizable figureheads.