Jonathan Davis — born in Bakersfield, California, on 18 January 1971 — is Korn's singer and co-founder, and the author of the change of subject that defined nu metal. Before the band he worked as an assistant in a coroner's office, dealing daily with the bodies of accident and crime victims. That experience appears indirectly in the work: Korn's lyrics deal with trauma, childhood abuse, shame and dissociation, written in the first person and without poetic distance. "Daddy", from the first album, ends with Davis audibly weeping on the recording — the band chose not to edit it. That was a rupture. The metal of the 1980s dealt with war, fantasy, death and excess; Korn brought personal suffering to the centre of the genre, and that change of register is what a whole generation of bands would follow in the years after. His vocal technique matches the subject: he alternates whisper, melodic singing, screaming and stretches of inarticulate, almost childlike delivery that produce deliberate discomfort. He also plays bagpipes on some tracks, an inheritance of his schooling, and uses a microphone stand designed especially for him by the Swiss artist H. R. Giger.
Metalicks is a community-run informational and cultural portal. The information on this page — texts, images, logos, cover art and other materials — is credited to their respective authors, artists, bands, labels and rights holders. Metalicks does not claim ownership over any of the works portrayed here, and all rights remain with their rightful owners. Content is gathered from public sources and community contributions; any inaccuracies can be corrected using the button below. Rights holders who wish to request a correction or removal of any content may do so at any time.
