Heavy metal rock icon and two-time bestselling author Nikki Sixx tells his origin story: how Frank Carlton Feranna became Nikki Sixx， chronicling his fascinating journey from a difficult and transient upbringing through to the triumphant and revolutionary formation of Mötley Crüe。
Nikki Sixx is unquestionably one of the most respected， recognizable， and entrepreneurial icons in heavy metal。 As the founder of Mötley Crüe， he exudes a punk-rock， Harley-Davidson-riding energy on stage， but is also incredibly passionate about his craft and wonderfully open about his life and death （during his heroin days， he flatlined at least once after overdosing on heroin） as a rock icon。
Born Frank Carlton Serafino Ferrana on December 11， 1958， in San Jose， CA， Ferrana was abandoned by his father at an early age and raised by his mother， who was a singer in Frank Sinatra's band at one point， and dated Richard Pryor at another。 When his mother was on the road， Ferrana spent time living with relatives， and moving around quite a lot。 By his teens， Ferrana became fed up with his troubled home life and resorted to crime， at times living on the streets and selling drugs to get by。 His first instrument was a stolen guitar， which was later exchanged for bass guitar， as he joined a series of bands。 While living in Idaho with his grandparents， Ferrana decided that if he was ever going to make it as a rocker， he would have to move to Los Angeles。

Supporting himself by working numerous dead-end jobs （a carpet cleaning salesman， a liquor store clerk， etc。） and playing in a series of bands， including such forgotten local outfits as Sister and London， Ferrana decided to change his name to Nikki Sixx。 Sixx began focusing on sharpening his songwriting skills， as he wanted to put together the ultimate "theatrical" band for the '80s -- a throwback to early-'70s glam， but with a more metallic edge。 By 1981， Sixx found the right guys: guitarist Mick Mars， drummer Tommy Lee， and singer Vince Neil， forming Mötley Crüe and taking the Sunset Strip by storm。