Everyday Heroes

Marco Tikkanen (born 1969) is a guitar player and a sales, business and technology professional. He has spent 18 years in the IT/Software industry in various management positions and is also an entrepreneur. He started his first company in Nice, South of France back in 1994 and has been a shareholder and owner of 3 other companies since. In the music field, he has been playing in a few metal bands in the 80’s, mainly as a lead/rhythm guitarist back...in the days when bands such as Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax were setting their mark in the US and Europe. In the 90’s, he focused more on his IT career working for early start-ups such as White Pine Software (CU-SeeMe videoconferencing) and a leading player in the financial industry and also followed some Blues Masterclasses, merely playing for his own enjoyment. In 2001, he founded London-based publishing company Rock Hard Publishing together with Herman Rarebell (legendary drummer of the Scorpions), Andy McCoy (Hanoi Rocks), and Alex Colin-Tocquaine (Agressor). Planning to return to the South of France in 2009, his return was unfortunately short-lived as his technology consulting firm in Monaco and himself suffered the death and deep loss of his long-time friend and business partner who died from brain cancer. This is his story about business, drugs, alcohol, wins and losses and friends and family above all.