Joshua Karickhoff is not your average 15 year old. The guitarist/vocalist for the band Bluefire, Karickhoff is the oldest of three boys, and is an A student who has been home schooled since the first grade. In 1998, Karickhoff picked up his first guitar, and immediately had the desire to tear it up with monster shredding, amazing solos, and unheard-of techniques. He asked the names of the best guitarists in the world, and began to study players such as Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, John Petrucci, Yngwie Malmsteem, and Jeff Beck. In 1999, at just eight years old, he began taking lessons. It didn’t go well. After one month, the instructor stated that Karickhoff didn't have what it took to be a guitarist. Undaunted, he started lessons again a few months later with Preston Lindey. Although Lindey taught children, he was reluctant about working with Karickhoff because he never had a student that young. However, he agreed to give Karickhoff a shot if he saw potential. Seven years later, Karickhoff and Lindey are still working together. In 2004, Karickhoff won the store championships of the Guitar Center Guitarmageddon contest, beating out 30 competitors. The day before the GH06 competition, Karickhoff and his band were opening for Bad Company in Buffalo, New York. And tonight, he is playing in front of a major influence—Joe Satriani. This will most definitely be the highlight of his young career.