UNBELIEVABLE: 2 - Caught on Camera

“I walked into a Guitar Center one day and took it off the wall. It launched 1,000 ships of people chasing that sound”: The guitar that changed Billy Corgan’s life

It soundtracked two of the biggest alt-rock albums of all time, but as the Smashing Pumpkins leader remembers, the guitar itself was far from expensive

Guitar World · Feb 2

“He said the first guitar was an accident of God. By the fifth one he said, ‘OK, you’re a guitar maker’”: Carlos Santana was one of Paul Reed Smith’s earliest champions – but he thought his first guitars were too good to be true

Smith looks back on his early partnership with Santana in Guitar Center CEO's new 'Inside the Noise with Gabe Dalporto' podcast

Guitar World · Jan 6

“I showed up on the first day of shooting, saying, ‘This is a guitar I bought at Guitar Center. I want to use my guitar in the movie’”: Jack Black reveals he still owns the Gibson SG that characterized School of Rock

The off-the-shelf guitar became a piece of cinematic history in 2003 when it was featured in the once-in-a-generation movie

Guitar World · Jan 2

“No, that doesn’t sound right”: Robert Trujillo gatecrashes group Enter Sandman lesson at Guitar Center

He then joined in with Dave Kushner, Senior Director of Music Education at Guitar Center, and Guitar Center CEO Gabe Dalporto to play the riff with the students

Guitar World · Nov 5, 2025

“It’s like, which kid do you love more? It’s really hard to say”: Guitar Center CEO reveals his favorite guitars he owns

Gabe Dalporto is a keen collector and player, as well as the CEO of the retail giant – and he’s got quite the collection

Guitar World · Oct 29, 2025

"This is every last plugin we've ever made": Purafied Audio puts $473 plugin bundle up for $2.38 in response to Guitar Center pricing error

That's a 99% discount

MusicRadar · Sep 2, 2025

“Paul Reed Smith sent me two amazing guitars because I lost all but one of my PRSs. That’s been one of the upsides”: Larry LaLonde lost his home in the LA wildfires, but Primus' new drummer, and two new PRSs, are keeping him focused

As a player who always wanted to be weird, LaLonde is in the right band. Recent adventures include saving the guitar Alex Lifeson gave him from a wildfire, dealing with 7,000 drummer applications, and raiding a Guitar Center when Primus' gear got stuck in snow

Guitar World · Aug 22, 2025

“We read all the complaints. We’re far from perfect, but we’re moving very quickly to get a lot better”: Guitar Center CEO Gabe Dalporto is on a mission to win back guitar players’ trust

These are uncertain times for brick-and-mortar guitar stores, but Dalporto is leading the fight back against unprecedented competition for guitar stores – and he thinks he’s found a winning formula

Guitar World · Aug 4, 2025

“I went to Guitar Center and saw this Iceman sitting there and I was like, ‘You know, that’s a guitar that not too many people use’”: How the Ibanez Iceman became System of a Down’s Daron Malakian’s go-to guitar – and why he initially didn’t play it live

The System of a Down guitarist even got his own limited-edition signature version in 2004

Guitar World · Jul 31, 2025

“I’m sure I’m not the only one they scammed. They’re hunting people like this”: Fake Guitar Center websites set up to scam players are on the rise – here’s what you need to look out for

A player was recently scammed out of $1,000 after falling prey to a scam website – and the retailer’s CEO has shared the red flags you need to be mindful of

Guitar World · Jul 29, 2025