Alan Niven, the former manager for Great White and Guns N' Roses, has penned the following open letter to fans and made available to the media, answering the question: ‬"Great White have just chosen their third singer. As one of the main composers of the band's material do you have any thoughts on the matter?"

Niven's response appears below:

"Replacing singers in an existing band is the most difficult of transitions ... how do you follow a great singer who has indelibly fixed the song in the consciousness of the audience? For example, my heart always went out to Myles Kennedy when he performed with Slash - the audience wanted to hear those Guns n Roses songs, but really, how do you supplant Axl? Can't be done. Myles did his best with patience and grace, but it was an awful position for an artist to be in.

Interestingly, Axl/DC works. Here’s a band that has had three great singers. I have always been a Bon Scott fan, but I also thought Brian Johnson was brilliant on Back In Black and consistently a feisty frontman with attitude. And no one has more 'attitude' than Axl.

Which perhaps illuminates a point. Singers are not just sound, they are also an attitude, a presence. A rock n roll band should embody the free spirit, and a great singer, the point of the sonic spear, must consequently have an unconstrained element to their performance.

As for Great White? Well, Russell is also one of those incredible voices who had 'attitude'. His replacement, Terry Ilous could not replicate that edge, and for me, I found his European vibrato misplaced. I wrote songs directly for Russell's voice and personality so I found it difficult to watch videos of the band performing with Terry. Terry might have been OK as an emergency fill-in, but I never saw him as a suitable replacement lasting for a complacent seven years.

Mitch Malloy? Well, he certainly has hair and teeth, a lovely guy, he's the Fabio of rock n roll, but does he have the personality that is required for the songs? To date he seems constrained, and, ironically, a little too 'white' in his phrasing, as the band happily Pablo Cruises its way into the next casino. The jury is out for me. Is Mitch better suited to Broadway than he is to Sturgis? The Great White way used to be to swim where the Buffalo Chips fell ...

In spite of what might have recently been said by Mr. Kendall and Mr. Desbrow, the events leading to Mr. Ilous' departure unfolded in this manner [apparently honesty is not a Born Again requirement]: at the beginning of last year I had yet another conversation with Michael Lardie in which he again expressed his frustrations with Mr. Ilous' personal and professional manner. Dropping a solo Ilous record on top of a very expensive new Great White recording was the least of it. His stated desire that he wanted to tour solo in 2018 did not help either. At this point I asked why they had still not found a better fit. Michael added that Mrs Kendall, [management], was as frustrated as everyone else. I suggested that, with her consent, I'd quietly, discretely, look around and see who might be available.

Consent given, I looked at a number of people, a couple of which I had record on both old and new material. One, in particular, I thought well worth auditioning. Terry Glaze was the original singer for Pantera. I saw him in Dallas. He rocked - a powerful and present singer. Terry was not a mimic, not a seller of nostalgia, but an 'in yer face' presence. He had 'attitude'. I would sacrifice the perfection of nostalgic mimicry for conviction, presence, any time. Authentic front men are rare. Glaze is one such. Personality? He's cool - married to a legitimate rocket scientist. He's no space cadet.

I sent Mr and Mrs Kendall, Mr Desbrow, Mr Sullivan Bigg [agent] and Michael recordings. Glaze's take on Big Time, a new song, put it in a good place, better than that of the original recording. The prospect of contemporary excitement was there. I thought he had the potential of adding a decade to the band's future prospects.

The plan, between Mrs Kendall, Michael and myself was to have Glaze ready to take over in September - before the 2018 fair shows went up for sale.
Apparently Mark and Audie refused to listen. Glaze did not get an audition.

So. I can only suppose Mr. Kendall thinks big hair and even bigger teeth suit best.

There was no acknowledgement of the considerable time I put into the search.

There’s the truth."

Great White recently announced that Mitch Malloy is now its lead singer. Malloy, a celebrated songwriter and artist now based in Nashville, takes the reigns as only the third lead vocalist in Great White’s 36-year history.

“Mitch is an incredible singer, artist, songwriter and engineer,” lead guitarist, Mark Kendall said. “We’re beyond excited to stretch our musical muscles with a fresh, new take on Great White’s catalog of hits. Terry Ilous has been released to join his other projects. We wish him the best of luck and thank him for his run with Great White.”

Malloy, who originally hails from Dickinson, N.D., charted his first solo single, “Anything At All” in 1992. His subsequent hits “Nobody Wins In This War” and “Our Love Will Never Die” also made Billboard’s Top 100. Most recently he’s been cranking out penned hits and producing clients for his Malloy Master Tracks studio. These clients include Taylor Swift, Boys Like Girls, Kenny Loggins, Craig Morgan, Johnny Gates and many more.

Malloy has been in this is this situation before. In 1996 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductee, Van Halen, asked Malloy to take the reigns as its singer. Although Malloy didn’t take the gig, he further established his reputation as a universally- respected frontman. He’s thrilled to be a part of Great White. He’s not trying to be a “clone” of previous singers Jack Russell and Ilous.

“I have to represent this music honourably,” Malloy said. “I respect what has come before me, and have to remind fans of where they were when they first heard these songs. I also have to be myself at the same time. When I first heard my own voice with Great White’s music, I knew something special was going on.”

Guitarist and keyboardist, Michael Lardie, praised Malloy for his musical chops and reputation. “We had an immediate rapport with Mitch,” Lardie said. “I’m positive the fans will embrace Mitch and continue to support Great White. This music is bigger than any one person.”

“We’re ready to rock with Mitch,” drummer Audie Desbrow added. “2018 and beyond still has a lot in store for Great White. Don’t ever count us down and out. It feels like we’re just getting started.”

Best known for their Grammy nominated Best Hard Rock Performance hit, “Once Bitten, Twice Shy,” Great White has sold over 10 million albums worldwide, has six Top 100 Billboard hits, nine Top 200 Billboard albums, two platinum albums and clocked the top of MTV four times.

To experience their hits live in concert - “Rock Me,” “Mista Bone,” “Save Your Love,” “House of Broken Love,” and “Lady Red Light” - is to ride an emotional wave of sultry connections, arousing lyrics, and an all-out marathon of hard-hitting orchestrations.

Great White continues to tour worldwide and in the last four years logged nearly 400 dates in several states and countries. The band celebrated numerous milestones that included several sold-out performances, a return to the Zurich, Switzerland’s Rock Im Tal Festival, the 10th anniversary of M3 Rock Festival and a handful of intimate, acoustic performances.

They returned to the classic rock radio charts with “Complicated” off of 2012’s Elation. The band’s 12th studio album, Elation, garnered high marks from numerous rock journalists behind the pesky “Something For You,” the cheeky “Shotgun Willie’s,” and the emotional, Top 10 classic rock radio entry, “Hard To Say Goodbye.”

In June 2017, Great White reunited with its original producer, Michael Wagener on the thrilling Full Circle. The nine-track album spawned the balls-to-the wall single “Big Time.” And for the first time in its career, Great White gave a peak behind the curtain to its fans with the accompanying DVD The Making Of Full Circle.

Great White is focused on its newest journey with Malloy. They plan on returning to the studio and will update fans as soon as they can.

Tour dates:

August

15 - Iowa State Fair - Des Moines, IA
17 - Turning Stone Resort & Casino - Verona, NY
18 - Kentucky State Fair - Louisville, KY
19 - The Foundation Performing Arts Center - Spindale, NC
25 - Idaho Rock Fest Melaleca Field - Idaho Falls, ID

September
1 - Shenandoah County Fair - Woodstock, VA
2 - Jergel’s Rhythm Grille - Warrendale, PA
8 - Grand Falls Casino - Larchwood, IA
15 - Rockefella’s Music Festival II - Banning, CA
22 - Southwind Casino - Newkirk, OK
28 - Private Event - Detroit, MI
29 - BMI Speedway - Versailles, OH

October
6 - Pearl River Casino & Resort - Philadelphia, PA

November
2 - Sycuan Casino - El Cajon, CA
16 - Golden Nugget Casino - Las Vegas, NV