K. K. Downing

Kenneth Downing Jr. (born 27 October 1951) is an English guitarist and a founding member of the heavy metal bands Judas Priest and KK's Priest.

Downing was born in West Bromwich, West Midlands.

In the late 1960s, he developed a passion for rock music and the guitar, which led to his being kicked out of his home at age 15 and dropping out of school soon afterwards.

He is a mostly self-taught guitarist.

He was heavily influenced by Jimi Hendrix, whom Downing said he was "very quick to recognize" as the future.

He was also influenced by John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and Eric Clapton.

Downing started his first band, a pop band called Stagecoach, between the age of 17 and 18 with his second cousin Brian Badhams on bass guitar (now with The Elkie Brooks Band) and drummer Martin Phillips.

The trio "mainly jammed a few Cream songs and a few 12-bar blues".

Downing played guitar with the band after winning a coin toss with Badhams "in his bedroom to see who would play guitar or bass".

K. K. Downing attended catering college and worked as trainee chef at the Lyttelton Arms in Hagley.

Downing is the cousin of football coach Keith Downing.

Downing has an aggressive, rock-influenced guitar style featuring solos and dual leads with fellow Judas Priest guitarist Glenn Tipton.

Downing recalled the conflicts that occurred in the winter of 2010, and would then reconsider his departure a few months later, which is not mentioned in his autobiography.

After speaking to bassist Ian Hill about the change, he received the setlist for the dubbed farewell tour, only to find out that his announcement to retire from the band was made public the next day, prompting him to send in his angry second letter.

Downing felt that he never left Judas Priest and was orchestrated for him to not be there.

Downing stated that he never retired from the music industry, detailing about being encouraged to perform on the farewell tour by a friend and being ridiculed by the fans about his announcement.

After guitarist Glenn Tipton's dismissal from touring, Downing expected an opening for him to return, but was never notified.

He said essentially the band is performing his songs and that if they can call themselves "Priest", he felt the need to be a Priest as well and be able to perform his songs.

Downing recalled being frustrated and having a breakdown at the end of 2010, leading him to quit the band.

He said that he wasn't ready to perform on the farewell tour due to his issues that occurred during the Metal Masters Tour, saying that the band wasn't tight and felt that they weren't the same band as they were in their prime.

He regretted sending in the retirement letter and not believing anything he wrote.

He cited the second letter, telling the band to ignore everything written and explaining the reasons why he left, but the band preferred to tell the content of the first letter instead, in which he told the band to ignore what he wrote as misinformation.

When speaking about the difference on working with Tipton in Judas Priest to working with guitarist A.J. Mills in his band KK's Priest, Downing said that he felt that he didn't have his fair share in lead work in Judas Priest as he should have.

Downing's relationship with Judas Priest is not "overly sweet at the moment. Nothing lasts forever. I started in the late '60s, so certainly guys from that time, we're not going to be around forever. Obviously, we're losing a lot of good friends along the way. It is the way it is."

An opportunity existed for him to return to the band, "and that has passed on."

He expressed uncertainty if there would ever be another opportunity for him to rejoin, but did not dismiss it in the future.

Downing explained that if he didn't rejoin Judas Priest, "then maybe it's best to just leave it there, really", feeling that there would be a different occupation for him, "Exactly what I don't know, really."

Downing officially left Judas Priest on 20 April 2011, citing "an on-going breakdown in working relationships between myself, elements of the band and management for some time."

He stated that there were at least "21 reasons" why he left, but refused to go into specific detail; however, he did express disappointment in the band's live performance and thought it could have been better.

Judas Priest had since continued with Richie Faulkner as his replacement.

Soon after Glenn Tipton announced his Parkinson's disease diagnosis and his self-imposed retirement from touring in February 2018, Downing said that he was "shocked and stunned" that he wasn't approached to rejoin Judas Priest and was "officially and legally still a member of Judas Priest", despite not being present in the band.

He felt that he made the right choice to leave when he did and that his time in the band and value in terms of crafting their legacy "was and is unappreciated by more than one member".

He said that the decision of not being approached "was not a financial one".

Faulkner and Halford spoke in regards to his statement.

Bassist Ian Hill explained why he wasn't contacted to rejoin Judas Priest and the potential conflicts that would occur if he was brought back in the band.

Downing spoke negatively towards Hill's comments.

Downing explained why he left Judas Priest, expressed his concerns towards his former bandmates, and his feelings about Faulkner.

Faulkner spoke in regards to Downing's comments, with former Judas Priest vocalist Tim "Ripper" Owens speaking in Downing's defense.

In the limelight of Downing's comments, Hill said that Downing and the band have "parted company" musically, explaining that he had not been in contact with him "for the last couple of years because we've been so busy. But I think, musically, we've parted ways, really. Probably the less said, the better."

Halford said that Downing spoke for himself and said that he wanted to retire and wished him well on his future endeavours.