Tom Araya

He was ranked 58th by Hit Parader on their list of the 100 Greatest Metal Vocalists of All Time.

Araya, along with Kerry King, are the only members who stayed in the band since its inception.

Tomás Enrique Araya Díaz (born June 6, 1961) is a Chilean-American musician, best known as the vocalist and bassist of thrash metal band Slayer.

Araya was employed as a respiratory therapist in the early 1980s and used his earnings to finance Slayer's debut album Show No Mercy (1983).

In the early 1980s, Araya's eldest sister suggested he enroll in a program to become certified as a respiratory therapist.

Araya's father insisted he either find a job or enroll in the course.

Araya enrolled in a two-year technical course, learning about air mixture ratios, drawing blood, and how to intubate.

In 1981, Araya was approached by Kerry King, who asked Araya to join his band, Slayer.

Along with King, Araya is one of the two original members to remain in Slayer for the entire length of the band's career, having been in the band since 1981.

Araya accepted, using his earnings as a respiratory therapist to finance the band's 1983 debut album Show No Mercy.

Araya requested time off of work from his employer, the Brotman Medical Center, for Slayer's first European tour in 1984 and was denied; We need you to come in today.' They'd call me at 5:00 in the morning and wake me, 'Someone's not coming in, we need you to come in to work.

After a month of sporadic attendance, his employers threatened termination; Araya replied "Well, I guess I'm fired."

Much of Araya's lyrical content is about serial killers, a subject he finds interesting; his first credited lyrical contribution was the vampire-themed track "At Dawn They Sleep" from 1985's Hell Awaits.

Tomás Enrique Araya Diaz was born in Viña del Mar, Chile, but his family moved to the U.S. when he was five.

He grew up in Los Angeles.

His older brother, Cisco, played guitar.

This inspired Araya to pick up bass at age eight.

The two played Beatles and Rolling Stones songs, which he would later cite as an influence on his own music.

In 2006, Araya underwent gallbladder surgery, which disrupted The Unholy Alliance tour.

Originally set to launch on June 6, the tour was postponed to June 13.

Araya was also unable to finish the vocals for a song entitled "Final Six", which was to be included on Slayer's 2006 album Christ Illusion; later released on the special edition of the album.

Araya brought his children on the tour stating "it's kind of cool to expose them at such a young age. My first concert, I was, like, 17."

"We [Slayer] have been fortunate- fortunate enough to have lasted as long as we have because a lot of bands don't last that long."

Araya is known for his aggressive headbanging and began experiencing back problems while the band was on tour in Australia/New Zealand/Japan in October 2009.

He had an anterior cervical discectomy and fusion.

"The surgeon opened up my throat from the front", he explained.

"Apparently it's easier that way. They pushed my oesophagus over to one side and did the repair work. It seems to have done the trick but I can't headbang anymore."

As a result of his surgery, Araya has significantly tempered his once aggressive on-stage movement and headbanging; now remaining relatively still during performances.

On January 7, 2010, Slayer announced on its official website that back surgery had been scheduled for Araya and that the planned tour would be canceled through April of that year.

The site assured fans, "Slayer camp working hard to reschedule dates for later this year."

On March 12, 2010, Metal Hammer magazine published an interview with Slayer's Dave Lombardo about Araya's recovery.

Lombardo stated, "He's recovering extremely quickly and really well. He is just moving forward and doing all the treatments and post operation stuff that he has to go through. He's doing good."

On May 20, 2010, Slayer confirmed that they would play two songs on TV for Jimmy Kimmel Live!

On June 3, 2011, Araya received the keys to the city of his birth, Viña del Mar.

In 2014, Araya made a cameo in the heavy metal horror film Hairmetal Shotgun Zombie Massacre: The Movie, directed by Joshua Allan Vargas.

From May 2018 to November 2019, with the last show being in their hometown Los Angeles, Slayer embarked on what they called their final world tour and eventually dissolved.

Following the conclusion of Slayer's farewell tour, Araya remained out of the public eye for several years.

In February of 2024, just weeks after Kerry King stated that he had not spoken to Araya since the conclusion of Slayer's farewell tour, Slayer announced that they would be reuniting for two reunion shows in the fall of that year.

Araya stated, "Nothing compares to the 90 minutes when we're onstage playing live, sharing that intense energy with our fans."

Araya's interest in serial killers serves as inspiration for many of his lyrics, including the songs titled "213" about Jeffrey Dahmer and "Dead Skin Mask" about Ed Gein.