Guitar World recently caught up with Canadian metal legend and Annihilator mastermind Jeff Waters and sat him down for a Q&A session. An excerpt is available below.

Q: What influenced you to pick up a guitar?

Waters: "My mother told me we would walk by this shopping mall where we lived in Ontario, Canada, and there was a guy playing guitar all the time out in the street. I sorta had little temper tantrums when I wanted to stop and listen and she would pull me away. So she picked up really quickly that, out of the piano, which she played, and other instruments, nothing sort of got my attention (like the guitar). I was a real ADHD kid. It just seemed like guitar was something I could focus on. I was a zombie, staring right at it. So she got me into lessons when I was probably seven, eight, nine years old."

Q: What do you recall about your first time playing live?

Waters: "It was in our high school auditorium. But of course I got caught the day before in rehearsals smokin’ weed with one of the other guys, so they kicked us off and we never got to play the show. The next one was at another high school. I think we were doing 'Black Magic' by Slayer. We did a Venom song. I think we even did an Anvil song."

Q: Do you have any advice for young players?

Waters: "I’d probably say the same thing to somebody who’s trying to do this long term or as a hobby. You’ve just gotta have fun with it. And it would be really cool to learn different styles if you’re trying to do it as a serious living. This is the toughest time in the last 20–30 years to have an actual career—and to last. You have to learn everything you can about not only your instrument, but other instruments, and how to write. Even if you’re not great at everything, you’ve gotta multitask. Learn how to record stuff at home. If your bass player doesn’t show up, grab a bass and learn how to play it. And you’ve got to keep your brain clear. You can’t do that if you’re partying all the time."

Read the complete Q&A here.

A regular visitor to the annual Musikmesse trade fair in Frankfurt, Germany, Annihilator frontman / founder Jeff Waters will take part in this year's Guitar Camp. A note from the Musikmesse, which runs from April 11th - 14th:

"At the Guitar Camp, you can experience the energy-charged performances of world-famous artists at first hand. The heart of the camp is the Blood, Sweat and Tears Box in the intimate atmosphere of the sound-proof cabin, you can get closer to top musicians than at any concert. Stars of the guitar scene are on their original instruments and setups every day of the fair. After their performance, the guitarists are available to answer questions about their sets and techniques, as well as they were available for photos and autographs."

More details will be revealed soon. Go to this location for information and registration access.