There are millions of people out there who love to play poker online, but what you might not know is that some of those people are also Heavy Metal musicians. You might not think that the two would fit together, but we have some inside info that will prove that theory wrong!
Heavy Metal stars who love poker
Lemmy Kilmister from Motörhead
Anyone who knows this Motörhead knows that he is renowned for liking to party and have a good time. But what you might not know is that he also loves to play poker when he’s not rocking out on stage. He’s been known to many regulars at the Rainbow Bar & Grill on Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard as this is apparently one of his favourite places to play. He loved playing the online version of poker and fans would even come back here to pay their respects to him after he died back in 2016. 
The bar owner came to know Lemmy very well, so well that he decided to give Lemmy the machine that he loved playing so much. This was surprising given that it meant he would lose his best customer! Since Lemmy’s death, the machine has been put back in the bar, right next to Lemmy’s favourite seat so it’s ready for him to come back to.
Scott Ian from Anthrax
Another big fan of a poker game is Anthrax’s Scott Ian. He took part in the VH1 Rock ‘n’ Roll Celebrity Tournament way back in 2006, so you know he’s one to take his poker gaming seriously. He even caught the eye of a professional poker player who wanted to train him up to be the next biggest poker player out there. This resulted in a sponsorship deal from a huge company. We’re not sure if Scott took the professional up on the offer, but it certainly sounds like he had the potential to take his career in a whole new direction.
Steve Albini from Shellac
Steve Albini might be best known for his work as a sound engineer and musician, but he’s also very well known on the poker tables. He takes it seriously too, having finished in a respectable 12th place in the World Series of Poker Championship back in 2013 and then again in 2022. These weren’t one off wins though, he’s been known to compete many other times over the years.
He learned how to play through his great grandmother in an attempt to ensure she always had someone to play poker with. This sweet gesture turned into a passion, and then into a new career choice after he had blown the world away with his musical prowess.
Sadly, Steve is no longer with us, but he lives on through his musical legacy as well as being one of the best poker players in the world.
Jerry Cantrell from Alice in Chains
Jerry Cantrell is best known for being part of the world-renowned band Alice In Chains, but what he isn’t as well known for is playing poker. However, he was part of a show that was dedicated to musicians who are also poker players called Rock Royalty. This was a show on CBS Sports where lots of musicians got together to play poker. He played alongside Scott Ian of Anthrax who we mentioned earlier on. All of these celebrities played against each other in a huge game of high stakes poker.
And that’s not all they’ve done together. They also opened a bar together which is called Dead Man’s Hand. The backstory behind the name goes back to a five-card stud hand which was held by “Wild Bill” Hickok as he was shot in the back of the head by Jack McCall way back in 1876. The logo of the bar is also reflected in this story as it shows a skeleton’s hand holding the dead man’s poker hand all situated above a flaming ace of spades. It doesn’t get much more Metal than that!
Sully Erna from Godsmack
Sully Erna is best known for being a front man, but just like all of our other rockers, he’s also a huge fan of poker. He even pressed pause on his rock and roll career to dip his toe into the poker pool, competing in poker tournaments while the band were on a break back in 2013.
Just like some of our other musicians on this list, Sully also entered the World Series of Poker championships and ended up coming away with $17,730 worth of winnings back in 2006 and $45,422 in 2007. And the winnings didn’t stop there either. He entered the 2007 Five-Diamond World Poker Classic and ended up winning a massive $307,325. Sadly, he quit abruptly after this, but it’s always best to quit while you’re ahead!
Can you think of any other musicians who have won poker tournaments?
