Marty Friedman recalls missing out on joining Kiss because of his height

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.

Marty Friedman recently revealed he was turned away from a KISS audition for being “too short”. At 5’7, the former Megadeth guitarist didn't meet the band's visual and height requirements.

In a recent interview with Sam Ash [via NME], Friedman was asked which KISS song he would have liked to play guitar on. He replied, “I would’ve wanted to be on any KISS song. I’ll give you a quick story about that. When they were changing guitar players a long time ago, I got a call from KISS’ people.

“They say, ‘Do you think you’d be interested in auditioning for KISS?’ I’m like ‘Tell me when and where.’ They came back and were like, ‘We’ve got a couple of questions for you. You don’t have any facial hair, do you?’ No.

“‘You got long hair right?’ Right. ‘You’re skinny right?’ Right. ‘And you’re over 6 feet tall?’ and I’m like, ‘What? I’m 5’7 but I’ll have an operation, I’ll do something.’ And they were like “‘I’m sorry, it’s not going to work out.’ I was so bummed.”

Almost all of the original KISS members, bar Peter Criss, are taller than six feet. Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, and Paul Stanley were typically outfitted in platform boots for their live shows, which made them appear even taller.

This isn’t the first time KISS turned away a promising member due to their strict aesthetic demands. Yngwie Malmsteen missed out on a spot because he mistakenly gave his height in centimeters, the metric system used in Europe, rather than in the U.S.-preferred feet and inches.

Conversely, White Lion's Vito Bratta was rejected because his name was deemed “too ethnic” by the KISS team, who also suggested that he change his name.

In other Marty Friedman news, last year, the ex-Megadeth lead guitarist revealed he also took part in an ill-fated Ozzy Osbourne audition.