Pictured above: Rattle Candy

Ben Leonard may not have been an appropriate age to truly appreciate Guns 'n Roses during their hay-day.

He didn't have to.

The 22-year-old singer lived a Guns ‘n Roses-esque life for a good two years, giving him all the cred he needed to front a band that wields an eerily similar sound and stage presence.

"People seem a little surprised that we know that kind of music," said Leonard, who goes by the stage name Kit Leona. "But for the most part, people are excited and refreshed by it. It's not something you can get everywhere around here."

That fact is so true that Leonard's band, Rattle Candy, has had one heck of a past year, taking the foursome from a log cabin in Middleville to the Orbit Room stage, where the band is set to perform on both March 12 and 13.

Rattle Candy will appear on the Shamrock and Shenanigans Ball on the 12th and compete in the Next Big Thing battle of the bands on the 13th.

"It seems like every show we play, the stakes seem to get a little bit higher," said Drummer Nate Hodges.

The band consists of Leonard, Hodges, 18-year old guitar prodigy Ian Dodge and Josh Cross on bass.

Some could say Rattle Candy's straight rock ‘n' roll roots stem all the way to Hollywood, where the Kit Leona persona was born.

During the summer of 2007, Leonard packed up his life in West Michigan and high-tailed it to Hollywood for no better reason than have a new, exciting experience.

Plopped down in Skid Row, Leonard eventually garnered the nickname ‘Kit' from cohorts in the neighborhood. He dropped the ‘rd' off his last name to create a stage name that could seemingly rival that of Nikki Sixx and CC DeVille.

According to Leonard, his life was pretty simple and plenty fast out in California.

"Out there, I played in more bands than anyone should and basically lived the rock star life," Leonard said. "It was just a ridiculous, decadent lifestyle."

That's also where Leonard mastered Rattle Candy's genre, referred to in LA as street punk. In April 2009, Leonard found it best to return to the Grand Rapids area where he said things felt like they were moving in slow motion.

"It was so weird after living this fast, jet-set life," Leonard said. "I used to hop a jet and go to Vegas for the weekend. It's still taking some adjustment."

Bringing a little Hollywood to Grand Rapids, Leonard recruited his band off CraigsList, where he made an obnoxious post contrary to most that are in search of professional, no-ego musicians. Dodge spotted the post, rife with arrogance and ego, and with a chuckle, set up a practice at the band's practice space in Middleville.

"He comes rolling down a dirt road, wearing all black, just murdered out on his motorcycle with all the leather," said Hodges, recalling the band's first glimpse of Leonard. "We were just like ‘Whoa, this guy looks for real'."

From there, Rattle Candy rose to the upper echelon of the Grand Rapids local music scene, playing plenty of packed shows at nearly every reputable venue. In the near future, the band hopes to record an album at Mackinaw Harvest and branch out regionally.