Rob Scallon

• Name — Rob Scallon • Birth Name — Robert Andrew Scallon • Born — 26 August 1990 • Birthplace — Champaign, Illinois, U.S. • Occupation — * Musician • video producer • internet personality • Years Active — 2007–present • Origin — Arlington Heights, Illinois, U.S. • Instrument — * Guitar • drums • bass • ukulele • banjo • cello • vocals • Genre — * Heavy metal • alternative metal • djent • indie rock • experimental • emo • folk • post-rock • Label — DFTBA • Current Member Of — * Hank Green and the Perfect Strangers • First of October

Scallon was born on August 26, 1990, in Champaign, Illinois, and was raised in Arlington Heights, Illinois. As a child, he and his friends would visit their local Guitar Center and play instruments, although would never buy any due to lack of money. He was given his first guitar, a nylon-string classical, as a gift from his friend's father. He used it to write his first solo songs and it was featured in many of his early videos. As a teenager, Scallon played drums in a metal band called Gas Mask Catalogue.

• Illustration — Scallon performing on a Cristal Baschet, 2022 Scallon began uploading to YouTube in February 2007, and began to develop a following in 2008. His popularity launched as he began to cover metal songs with folk and country instruments. Most notable are his renditions of songs on banjo, including "Raining Blood" by Slayer, "Master of Puppets" by Metallica, and "Psychosocial" by Slipknot, the latter featuring a cameo appearance by Corey Taylor. His videos have featured collaborations with Andrew Huang, Boyinaband, Davie504, Doug Walker, Jared Dines, Leo Moracchioli, Mary Spender, Sarah Longfield, Michael Angelo Batio, and Alex Rüdinger. Scallon is also part of two collaborative projects with Andrew Huang. The first is called First of October, a novelty band that records an album within one recording session every October 1. The second is called Sonic Boom, a YouTube music show where the pair take on a variety of musical challenges, often utilizing unusual instruments, time limits for creating full songs, and other factors.

• Illustration — Scallon with the Perfect Strangers in 2016 Scallon has released several solo albums. While most are self-released, his EP Anchor and LP The Scene is Dead are sold through DFTBA Records. His releases have featured instrumentalists such as Jeff Loomis, Rabea Massaad, Ola Englund, and Pete Cottrell. He plays drums in the band Hank Green and the Perfect Strangers, and their debut album Incongruent peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Comedy Albums chart in 2014. Scallon released a signature series of guitars with Chapman Guitars in 2017. Three more guitars were added to his line in 2020. In 2022, Scallon ended his partnership with Chapman and launched a new line of guitars with Schecter. Scallon, in partnership with Sweetwater Sound, received a Guinness World Record for the largest guitar effect pedalboard in 2019. The rig included 319 individual pedals, 34 pedalboards, and over 500 ft of cables. On January 1, 2021, Scallon launched GuitarQuest, a paid online course to teach people how to play guitar. Later that year, he released the song "MudHook" featuring Unearth drummer Nick Pierce. On September 26, 2024, Scallon released Crowded Rooms, an album mixing heavy metal and Midwest emo.

On June 10, 2023, Scallon announced a partnership with Ritual Studios to produce the pixel-art adventure game Fretless – The Wrath of Riffson. The protagonist and setting were inspired by Scallon. The game combines rhythm-based combat with RPG elements. Australian industrial metal band Northlane contributed to the soundtrack. It was released for Windows on July 17, 2025, and received "mixed or average" reviews according to Metacritic.

Scallon's younger brother, John, also played music as a teenager. He left his instruments behind for Rob when leaving for college. Several instruments in Scallon's personal collection are custom made through collaborations with other content creators. Scallon began dating actress, comedian, and YouTuber Tamara Chambers in 2012. They married in November 2020. They have collaborated on various projects, such as a 2012 Good Mythical Morning episode introduction and a 2014 cover of Pharrell's "Happy". In July 2024, Scallon uploaded a video confirming that he has bipolar I disorder, having been diagnosed with it the previous year.