10 Year Overnight Success

[Axefiend]

Basically a thread about bands or artists who worked and toiled in relative obscurity for a fuck of a long time, and then to have it finally pay off in the end.

How about Lemmy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrJ9oeuN_9o

Yep, before Hawkwind (nevermind Motorhead), Ol' Lemmy was singing and slinging guitar in a band called Sam Gopal.

....and before that, he played guitar in "The Rockin' Vickers":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9vaB0s8j_M

[Axefiend]

Or how about Rodriguez:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywBE3wf55bM

Sixto Diaz Rodriguez, known professionally as Rodriguez (born July 10, 1942), is an American singer-songwriter from Detroit, Michigan. His career initially proved short lived in the United States, but unknown to Rodriguez his albums became extremely successful and influential in South Africa, where sales of his records outnumbered those of Elvis Presley. Because of scarce information about Rodriguez, it was incorrectly rumored there that he had committed suicide shortly after releasing his first album.
In the 1990s, determined South African fans managed to find and contact Rodriguez, which led to an unexpected revival of his musical career.