Jeff Scott Soto opened up about his time fronting Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force, explaining why the experience, while formative, ultimately stunted his growth as an artist.
Asked what it was like entering a project with such a clear driving force and vision compared to the projects he would later have more ownership over, Soto reflected on his early admiration for Malmsteen.
“Well, back then I’ve always had a very wide versatile genre of influence oriented idea of what wanted as a musician, as an artist, but uh obviously with Yngwie, especially back then, I was all in. I loved what he did, his work with Steeler, even though he’s not really a fan of it,” Soto said.
“You know, that wasn’t really his that wouldn’t have been his first choice for introduction to Yngwie Malmsteen into the US. But without it, it wouldn’t have led to all the things that eventually, you know, that I did with him. But I was into that. I was into Alcatraz, both the studio and the live album. And so, even just meeting Yngwie for me was a big deal if I didn’t get the gig, but getting the gig, obviously, that was my first foot in the door.”
“And again, I was all in musically. I loved what he was doing musically, what we were doing musically, but it was unfortunate that I learned early on that it wasn’t really going to help me progress as an artist. It was always going to be the marquee was always going to be on Yngwie’s name and focused on him, which is great. You know, that’s what he deserves. That’s what he is all about.”
“But on my personal level as an artist, I knew I needed to move on to be able to grow and to be able to take in to be taken as an artist, as a serious artist, as a writer, as a producer. All of the things that eventually happened for me would not have happened had I stayed on with Yngwie because just it was there was no real course for growth in that situation. And again, it’s not downplaying the situation. I’m extremely proud. Happy that he brought me on that he saw something in me enough to say you’re going to represent my career. You’re going to be the one, you’re going to be the frontman that’s actually the voice of my music and that was a big deal for me.”
“And to this day, I absolutely praise and treasure that. But I also had much more to say on my own course and that’s exactly what I did. It wasn’t an intentional course of I’m going to join 80 bands at the same time and try to just guide my own direction by misdirecting my career. It was a work in progress of me trying to find my ground.”
Soto’s remarks shed light on a pivotal chapter that launched his career while also pushing him to seek greater creative control elsewhere.
The comments add context to a formative period that began when Soto was still a teenager and moved quickly into one of hard rock’s most visible bands. Soto landed the gig after sending a demo to Malmsteen and sang on two tracks on the 1984 album Rising Force and most of the follow-up, Marching Out.
Soto’s early work with Malmsteen included Rising Force in 1984 and Marching Out in 1985, the records that established him as the voice behind Malmsteen’s first major solo era.
After leaving Malmsteen’s band, Soto built a long career across multiple projects. His credits include Talisman, Soul SirkUS, Journey, W.E.T., Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and Sons of Apollo, among other acts.
That wider résumé is part of why Soto’s reflections carry weight. He was no longer tied to a single guitarist’s vision, and his later work gave him room to develop as a writer, producer, and frontman.
Malmsteen’s side of the story also shaped the dynamic. The project began as a planned instrumental side effort before Malmsteen released it as a solo album, with Soto’s vocals appearing on select tracks.
Malmsteen was already known for a highly technical, neo-classical style and for leading the band under his own name, which made the spotlight stay firmly on him. That structure helped define Rising Force, but it also meant Soto’s role remained secondary to the guitarist’s brand.
For Soto, that made growth elsewhere necessary. His later run through multiple bands and solo work gave him the broader artistic identity he said he could not fully build inside Malmsteen’s orbit.
