Alissa White-Gluz has spent two decades known for one of the most punishing extreme vocal deliveries in metal. Singing with DragonForce, she says, gives her a reason to work on something else entirely.
The vocalist spoke with Paolo Phoenix of “Magenta TV” at Wacken Open Air about the three projects occupying her, her solo album Alissa, her band Blue Medusa, and her role as DragonForce‘s co-vocalist.
“Blue Medusa is really — it’s me. That is the music I love. That is who I am. That’s what I wanna be doing. That’s how I wanna sound. It’s what I wanna say. And DragonForce is so high energy, and that’s super important to me as a performer. I like to perform really high-energy music. And energy could be the mood, the tempo, the pitch — it could be all sorts of different things. And so DragonForce‘s energy on stage is so high that it’s so much fun to perform with them. And, actually, almost by coincidence, their songs are written really in a very comfortable range for me, really in my Goldilocks zone, so it’s a lot of fun to sing their songs. And I feel like I’m able to express a side of my voice that I’ve been wanting to express for a while. For example, I’m a huge fan of musical theater, and so when I’m singing with DragonForce, I almost feel like I’m flexing my musical theater voice a little bit, because it’s obviously very epic, and it’s very challenging vocally, just in the pace and getting the breathing, but it’s something that I really want to improve at, and I want to be able to practice. And now I have a reason to,” she said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).
Asked how she keeps three things running at once, White-Gluz was direct about the hierarchy.
She replied: “Yeah, so I think for a lot of artists, we have a creative force in us that we need to get out, and it’s fun to do it across multiple things. And so for solo project-wise, I’m just me. So everything I’m doing, I guess, is just something that I feel like is fun for me to do or fulfilling artistically, and that’s why I do all sorts of collaborations. And then Blue Medusa is my main passion and my main focus. That’s where I’m putting all of my energy and all of my attention into every detail, and it’s really the band that I’ve just always wanted to have. And then getting to sing with DragonForce, who are just amazing legends and super-nice people, super-great musicians, great songs, that’s obviously an honor also, and I’m very happy to be doing that. But my main passion and the bulk of my focus is on Blue Medusa.”
White-Gluz joined DragonForce in May as co-lead vocalist alongside Marc Hudson, who has fronted the band since 2011 and appears on five of its albums. She is the band’s third singer and its first woman.
The move was tied to the 20th anniversary of Inhuman Rampage.
“Alissa joining the band is an expansion of everything we’ve done up to this point,” said DragonForce co-founder and lead guitarist Herman Li. “Twenty years is a long time to do anything, let alone survive the music industry and still be so inspired to continue doing what we love. Together we will honor what made Inhuman Rampage matter, while showing people exactly where we’re going next. Having Alissa in the room changes everything. She doesn’t just sing, she makes all aspects of our music better. And she sounds incredible live! I can’t wait for the fans to see her and hear what we have been working on.”
Her live debut at Welcome To Rockville in Daytona Beach on May 9 did not go as planned. Hudson missed the show entirely because of ongoing hearing problems, leaving White-Gluz to front the band alone in her first appearance, with live guitarist Billy Wilkins covering supporting vocals. A set at Sonic Temple followed on May 17.
The two parties had worked together before. White-Gluz sang co-lead on an alternative version of “Burning Heart” from Warp Speed Warriors, released in 2025.
DragonForce now comprises White-Gluz and Hudson on vocals, Li and Sam Totman on guitars, Alicia Vigil on bass and Gee Anzalone on drums.
The band is built around White-Gluz with guitarists Alyssa Day of Mindscar and Absentia and Dani Sophia, formerly with Till Lindemann, as permanent members. Vigil, who also plays in DragonForce and Vigil Of War, and drummer Delaney Jaster of Stitched Up Heart handle live duties.
Two singles have appeared, “Checkmate” on March 20 and “Flying Monkey” on May 15, both with videos directed by Vicente Cordero and White-Gluz.
Alissa is a separate proposition from Blue Medusa, and has been in progress for years. White-Gluz told Metal Hammer the concept came from wanting to return favours.
“The solo project, Alissa, my goal with that is to give back to all the people I have collaborated with over the years,” she said at the time. “I’ve done something like over 50 collaborations over the years, so many! So for a long time it was like, ‘Man, I am appearing on a lot of people’s albums. What if they appeared on my album?’”
Guests are reported to include Jeff Loomis, Oliver Palotai of Kamelot and Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein of the Misfits, her partner. Palotai co-wrote and played guitar on “The Room Where She Died“, the first single, released the same day her departure from Arch Enemy was announced in November 2025.
White-Gluz fronted The Agonist before joining Arch Enemy in 2014, replacing Angela Gossow. Her final show with the band was November 15, 2025 in Düsseldorf, closing their European “Blood Dynasty” tour with Amorphis, Eluveitie and Gatecreeper.
Arch Enemy named Lauren Hart, previously of Once Human, as her successor in February. Her first song with the band was “To The Last Breath“.
