Steve Stine is known as the world’s most sought-after guitar instructor. He’s most famous for his ability to make learning guitar fun and easy. He has over 30 years of teaching and playing experience. He’s literally helped millions of guitarists in over 103 countries.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in music education from Minnesota State University at Moorhead and has played lead guitar in bands that have toured throughout the U.S. and U.K.

He’s also a featured instructor at Guitar World Magazine and the former professor of Modern Guitar Studies at North Dakota State University. Steve is considered the world’s top instructor because his students see noticeable improvements in their playing, fast.

He joined GuitarZoom.com as the lead guitar instructor in 2014 and has created hundreds of guitar courses for all interests and skill-levels including soloing, fundamentals, rock, chords, strumming, music theory, blues guitar and more.

You might have noticed his longhair, tattoos, and shredder-style guitar, but there’s nothing he enjoys more than being a family man.

Early Life & Education

Steve grew up in Fargo, North Dakota in the 70’s and 80’s. He became interested in music at an early age, listening to country music with his mom and rock music with his dad. At 10 years old, he had a life-changing experience when his cousin turned him on to KISS. From that time on, he wanted to play guitar like Ace Frehley.

Steve got his first electric guitar on his 13th birthday. He began taking lessons from the “guitar player” in town and practicing for hours at home. People recognized his talent. And by the time he reached high school he was given his own studio to practice in before and after school.

He got his first guitar student when he was 17 years old and discovered his natural teaching ability. He became a very successful teacher because he connected with people and was teaching over 100 private students a week.

After high school, he attended college at the University of Minnesota at Moorhead and earned a bachelor’s degree in music education.

On top of being a world-class guitar instructor, Steve has played in many bands over the years and has collaborated with many notable figures in the music industry.


Performance Career

On top of being a world-class guitar instructor, Steve has played in many bands over the years and has collaborated with many notable figures in the music industry.

Steve has toured with bands such as Dozer, Methuselah, Avian, GrimmStine, and Grim Reaper. He has written music with artists such as Steve Grimmett (Grim Reaper), Brian May (Queen), Benjamin Orr (The Cars), Julian Lennon, Rick Springfield, Sarah Morrau, Penny and Pals, Michael J. Willett, Yan Leviathan (Avian) and many others.


Playing Lead Guitar For Dozer

Steve began his career as a professional guitarist not long after graduation. He started playing and touring in a band called Dozer, with Pat Hewitt and Karl Kreutz.

Steve was a member of Dozer for over 10 years, but during that time he began to branch out as a musician as well as a music teacher. He worked on a few side projects and recording endeavors with local musicians, as well as musicians around the globe. During this time, Steve also worked as a music instructor at the Red River Valley Academy Montessori School.
Playing Lead Guitar For GrimmStine

Steve Stine met Steve Grimmett of Grim Reaper at one of his Dozer shows, and the two developed a friendship. They began writing and collaborating in 2007.

Soon after, Steve married his fiancee Jessica in a castle in Scotland, and Steve Grimmett was Steve’s best man. Stine and Grimmett performed songs together for the first time during the ceremony.

GrimmStine was released in 2008 on Metal Heaven Records, with bonus songs on the Japanese album release.

Grimmett is also the godfather of Stine’s daughter.


Why Steve Stine Joined GuitarZoom

Aside from playing in touring bands, Steve also had a thriving teaching career. He was a professor of Modern Guitar at North Dakota State University, a Montessori instructor, and taught private lessons in town at Schmitt Music. It was a lot of work and Steve was stretched so thin that he didn’t have as much time as he wanted to spend with his family.

At the time, Steve had also begun to post short, instructional videos on YouTube. They were super popular and caught the eye of Dan Denley, the founder of GuitarZoom.com.

Dan decided to give Steve a call and asked him if he was interested in making some videos for him. Steve agreed and would spend hours after working work and touring with his band to create videos. That’s how things got started but it took a while for Steve Stine and GuitarZoom to become what they are today!

From Local Guitar Hero to Worldwide Phenomenon

Believe it or not, Steve’s first course for GuitarZoom was a complete failure. Kids Rock Guitar just didn’t catch on like Dan thought it would, but he saw Steve’s potential in the number of views the preview videos got on YouTube. That’s when things changed.

Steve turned his attention to what he knew best, licks and soloing. He posted several new videos on the GuitarZoom channel on soloing and within no time generated millions of views and countless grateful guitar students all over the world.


Endorsed By Top Brands In The Guitar Playing Industry

With all the attention Steve received, top brands in the guitar industry approached him about endorsements. This lead to brands like Ibanez, Hughes & Kettner, Hawk picks and more creating gear to Steve’s specifications.


What Makes Learning Guitar With Steve Stine And GuitarZoom Different?

Many people ask Steve: “What makes learning guitar with you and GuitarZoom different?” He believes the biggest difference is that he’s the primary teacher and he takes his job very seriously. A lot of other learn guitar online websites use a bunch of different teachers. What the student ends up getting is wildly different approaches to guitar that do NOT work for them, leave them frustrated, and even cause a lot of bad habits.

With Steve, it’s all about the well-being and benefit to the student. When he was doing in-person lessons, he never used books. He catered the lessons to each and every student to keep them motivated to play guitar. The goal was never about turning students into little Steve Stine’s but helping students find their own way so playing guitar is fun and rewarding.

What Steve Recommends for Beginners And People Just Getting Back Into Playing Guitar

Steve believes that people should play whichever type of guitar interests them most. There’s no hard and fast rule that says you have to start learning guitar on acoustic or you have to eventually play electric. Simply think of the music you’d like to play and start there. You don’t get nearly as inspired playing heavy, AC/DC power chord rhythms on acoustic guitar as you do electric guitar. Staying motivated is the real key. When you’re excited to pick up your guitar to play every day, you’ll never have to worry about it collecting dust in the closet.

You don’t have to go to college or spend thousands of dollars on private guitar lessons. You just need to have an established goal of what you want to do and how you want to do it. Then all you have to do is create a fun practice routine. The more you understand your guitar, the better you’ll play. So it pays to always stay curious and learn NEW things that interest you. That’s why becoming a GuitarZoom member can really help you on your guitar journey. You’ll be able to learn new things without getting lost or embarrassed and can fill in the gaps that your guitar playing is missing.