At some point in our lives, the thought of becoming famous has crossed our minds but it’s known that the road to success or fame is more complicated and unfair that the majority of people who try to follow such path, fail and fall by the wayside.
This situation is common since artists have to develop themselves in complicated environments to gain fame, however, there have been artists who apparently refused to endure such a difficult path and have chosen darker alternative: make a pact with the devil.
The thought that comes to mind is that these might be silly theories, although some artists themselves have admitted they had such pact… whether people, believe it or not, it’s their decision.
Niccolo Paganini
The 19th century was filled with magnificent musicians, and among them is Paganini, considered one of the best violinists in history. Since he was a child he showed great talent for the violin, but he did not find success until years later. When Paganini began to write extremely complicated works, during his performances he made sure that a deep dark shadow was behind him, a shadow not of his size but a much bigger one. For these reasons people began to claim that he had made a pact with the Devil.
This rumor was so popular that even after his death the Catholic Church refused to bury him until it finally happened several years later.
Giuseppe Tartini
A century before Paganini, Giuseppe Tartini had already offered his soul to the Devil, for the same reason. It is said that Tartini had always wanted fame as a musician, but he had never achieved it, his works and his performances were never worthy enough. Until one night Tartini had a dream in which he met the Devil, and in exchange for his soul, he was offered fame. The devil showed him music compositions never made before and rumors were spread that this was the reason why his greatest work was named “The Devil’s Trine”.
Tartini’s composition was so complex that, according to his contemporary musicians it was only possible to be performed if you had 6 fingers on each hand, something that was associated with the Devil and that would confirm Tartini’s supposed to dream.
Robert Johnson
Later on, during the 20th century, the rumors about musicians having pacts with the devil increased, the first one being Robert Johnson. An African-American musician who plays the Blues who as a child wanted to become a famous musician, but because of his humble origins it seemed like an impossible dream.
One night Johnson came face to face with the Devil himself, and he offered to show him songs in exchange for his soul, and Robert accepted. It is said that thanks to this pact he was given that exceptional handling of the instrument, as it seemed impossible for someone so young to play so well. This theory was reinforced with some of his songs, with stories about encounters and pacts with the Devil, as if he were telling his own story.
Jimmy Page
A member of the legendary Led Zeppelin band, he is one of those who are said to have made pacts in more modern times. The rumors began because of his strong interest in the occult and his interest in using the Ouija board. It is said that the price of the pact was not paid under his flesh but with that of the other members.
What supports this last theory is that several accidents and deaths have been linked to it, accidents were other people were involved, but never him.
Alice Cooper
Cooper is one of the artists who have openly accepted having a pact, after participating on a spiritual session he decided to change his name to the current Alice Cooper: he had sold his soul to the devil in exchange for fame. He later explained that his new name had been imposed on him in honor of a witch who in ancient times was burned at the stake.
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan himself, the winner of multiple awards and even holder of a Nobel Prize for literature, confirmed on several occasions that all this fame and success was entirely due to a pact he made in his youth with “the big boss”, as he calls him.
The Rolling Stones
The members of the band, one of the longest and most famous in history, have been accused many times of satanic dealings and pacts with which they have achieved such fame. Although they have never confirmed it, their detractors assure it, mainly because of the satanic lyrics in their album “Their Satanic Majestic Request”, which shows clear sympathy for the obscure.
Apart from musicians like The Rolling Stones, it has been said that other artists such as Jimmy Hendrix were able to achieve fame through sinister pacts, because of their inhumane ability for their instruments. One of the most notorious lately has been Justin Bieber, attributing satanic meanings to some of his tattoos.
Have you heard of other musicians that made pacts with the Devil?