Joel Hoekstra is an American guitarist currently in the band Whitesnake. The son of classical musicians, he started out playing cello and piano at a young age, but it was hearing Angus Young that inspired him to start guitar. He was raised in Chicago and he has lived in New York City for over 13 years. When not touring with Night Ranger, he performs as a guitarist in the Broadway musical, Rock of Ages. He also made a cameo appearance alongside Sebastian Bach, Nuno Bettencourt, Kevin Cronin and Debbie Gibson in the big screen movie adaptation. Hoekstra also plays with Trans-Siberian Orchestra on their Winter tours. Joel has played on stage and in studio with Foreigner, Dee Snider, Jeff Scott Soto, Jim Peterik, The Turtles, Big Brother & the Holding Company and many more. Joel appeared as guest guitarist on That Metal Show on VH1 Classic on 1/25/14. In August 2014 David Coverdale announced that Joel Hoekstra is replacing Doug Aldrich in Whitesnake.