Shawn Priest started playing drums in sixth grade concert band but really didn't take it seriously until he was fifteen and saw Pete Sandoval with Morbid Angel live.



In 2002 Shawn joined his first serious band called Datura, which broke up in 2005. He then joined The Deep the next year. After two US tours with them, Shawn Priest got a chance to play for Virginia based thrash band Arsis.



Shawn Priest completed four US and Canadian tours with Aris, including one tour in 2008 where he also filled in on drums for Winds of Plague on a few dates.



Between tours Shawn Priest was briefly involved in a death metal project called Cast Into Finality: he released a 6 song EP in early 2009 with them. Later that year Shawn started a grind/doom project with former Gaza guitarist Luke Sorenson, which is currently on hiatus.



In early 2010 Shawn Priest reunited with The Deep and they completed their self-titled 6 song EP.



In April 2012 Shawn teamed up with Arsis again, this time taking the position of full-time drummer after Mike Van Dyne had parted ways with the group for the second time.



Shawn Priest names Thomas Lang, Igor Cavalara, Adam Jarvis, Nick Barker, and Jean-Francois Richard as his favorite drummers.