GUNS N' ROSES Guitarist D.J. ASHBA To Perform National Anthem At 'AMA Supercross'

GUNS N' ROSES guitarist D.J. Ashba will perform the national anthem at this Saturday's (January 8) Monster Energy AMA Supercross (an FIM World Championship) at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.

Saturday's Monster Energy AMA Supercross is one of the most anticipated events in extreme sports and showcases a talented group of riders all vying for championship spots, including numerous athletes from Monster Energy's own dominating stable of Supercross riders. The event will air live on Speed from Anaheim, California on Saturday, January 8 at 7:00 p.m. PST. The qualifying rounds begin at 12:30 p.m. PST, with the main event taking place at 7 p.m. PST. Tickets for the AMA Supercross range from $20.00 to $75.00 and are available through Ticketmaster at (800)745-3000 or at www.ticketmaster.com, as well as at the Angel Stadium box office (2000 Gene Autry Way, Anaheim, CA 92806).

D.J. Ashba performed the national anthem during the Arizona Cardinals at Kansas City Chiefs NFL football game on November 21 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Watch video footage of the performance below.

Although it took more than a decade — 13 years, to be exact — for GUNS N' ROSES to release its "Chinese Democracy" album in 2008, the follow-up to that effort may come sooner than anyone thinks. Ashba said in an interview at last November's launch party for the "Call Of Duty: Black Ops" video game that the band is "talking about that right now. We've been throwing around a bunch of ideas and it should be good, man. We've got a lot of good stuff on the plate coming out. It won't take as long, I promise." Ashba added, "I'm excited to get this next one rolling . . . Axl [Rose, lead singer] has a lot of good shit up his sleeve, so I'm really excited about it."

In addition to Ashba and sole original member Rose, the current lineup of GUNS N' ROSES includes guitarists Ron Thal and Richard Fortus, bassist Tommy Stinson, keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman and drummer Frank Ferrer.

Ashba joined GUNS N' ROSES in March 2009 following the departure of Robin Finck. Rose stated about D.J.'s addition to the group at the time, "D.J.'s a gifted, energetic guitarist that GUNS N' ROSES is proud to have on board!! We're very excited to have the opportunity to work together. GUNS' radar has silently been aware of D.J.'s presence for quite some time. He brings a fresh approach to our particular brand of mayhem expanding the tapestry of GUNS N' ROSES live. Once D.J.'s name was in the hat, the hat disappeared!!"