Danzig graduated from Lodi High School in June 1973, aspiring to become a comic book creator and professional photographer. He attended the Tisch School of the Arts and later the New York Institute of Photography. Danzig formed an adult-oriented comic book company called Verotik in the mid-1990s.

In the mid-1970s, Danzig started the Misfits, releasing the band’s records through his own label, (originally known as Blank, then later as Plan 9). Danzig had attempted to get the Misfits signed to several record labels, only to be told that he would never have a career in music. The impetus for the band’s name comes from Marilyn Monroe’s last film, combined with Danzig considering himself to be a “social misfit.” In October 1983, after releasing several singles and three albums, and gaining a small underground following, Danzig disbanded the Misfits due to increasing animosity among the band members and his dissatisfaction with their musical abilities. Danzig explained his decision: “It was difficult for me to work with those guys, because they weren’t prepared to put in the hours practicing. I wanted to move things forward, and they didn’t seem to have the same outlook. So it was time for me to move on.”

After the Misfits, he began work on a new band project, Samhain. The origins of Samhain began when Danzig started rehearsing with Eerie Von, formerly of Rosemary’s Babies. Danzig took the name of the band from the ancient Celtic New Year, which influenced the evolution of the modern Halloween. Initially Samhain was conceived as a punk rock “super group”. The band briefly featured members of Minor Threat and Reagan Youth, who contributed to Samhain’s 1984 debut, Initium. The band then settled with a lineup consisting of Eerie Von on bass, Damien on guitar, and Steve Zing on drums (later replaced by London May). In 1985 the Unholy Passion EP was released, followed by November-Coming-Fire in 1986.

In 1987, after two albums and an EP, Samhain was signed to a major label by Rubin and the name of the band was changed to Danzig to allow the band to retain its name in the event of line-up changes. Danzig discussed the reasoning behind the name change: “Rick [Rubin] convinced me it was the way to go, and would also provide me with a lot more artistic freedom. After all, I was now in charge of where we were going musically, so if I didn’t want to do something, it was a lot easier to say so.”

In 1987, Danzig, owing to his association with Rubin, was asked to write a song for Roy Orbison. The result was “Life Fades Away”, featured in the 1987 movie Less than Zero. Danzig also contributed to the film’s soundtrack with “You and Me (Less than Zero)”. Danzig had originally been asked to write the song for a female vocalist, but when Rubin could not find a suitable singer Danzig recorded the vocals himself. The song is credited to “Glenn Danzig and the Power Fury Orchestra”, which featured the same membership as the initial lineup of Danzig, with the exception of Eerie Von. Since Von did not like the way producer Rubin wanted the bass played on the song, George Drakoulias played the bass instead.

In 1988, the newly formed band Danzig released their eponymous debut. Its sound showed a progression from the gothic–deathrock sound of Samhain, to a slower, heavier, more blues-based heavy metal sound.

In 1990, the band’s sophomore effort Danzig II: Lucifuge marked an immediate change in musical direction. The album’s overall bluesier tone and somewhat milder approach were departures from Danzig, featuring a 50s-style ballad (“Blood & Tears”) and a full-on acoustic blues (“I’m the One”.)

Other projects in 1990 included the final Samhain album Final Descent. The album was started under the title Samhain Grim several years prior. The album contained previously unreleased studio recordings, at least some of which had been intended for the Samhain Grim album before it was aborted.

In 1992, Danzig once again changed musical direction, releasing the darker Danzig III: How the Gods Kill. Several songs would feature a more textured, slower sound in between fast, dominant guitar riffs.

Also in 1992, Danzig tried his hand at composing classical music with Black Aria. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard classical music chart.

In January 1992, Danzig became a student of Jerry Poteet, a martial artist in Jeet Kune Do. Danzig has since earned a teaching degree in the discipline. Danzig has also studied Muay Thai.

In 1993, Danzig released Thrall: Demonsweatlive, an EP featuring both studio recordings and live tracks. Danzig broke into the mainstream when the live video of “Mother ’93” became a hit on MTV and earned Buzz Bin rotation, six years after the original song was recorded. During this time the band reached its commercial peak, with both the debut album and Thrall: Demonsweatlive being certified Gold, and “Mother” becoming the band’s highest charting single. Both Danzig and Thrall: Demonsweatlive have since been certified Platinum.

In 1994, the release of Danzig 4 saw the band going further into a darker and more experimental sound. The album also saw further development of his vocal style and range; most notable in songs like “Let It Be Captured” and a more blues based approach on songs like “Going Down to Die”.

Also in 1994, Danzig wrote the song “Thirteen” for Johnny Cash, which appeared on the album American Recordings.

In 1996, the band underwent a complete overhaul. The original lineup had fallen apart, as had Glenn Danzig’s relationship with their record label, American Recordings, with label owner Rick Rubin’s involvement as producer diminishing with each album. Danzig would later engage in a legal battle with Rubin over unpaid royalties and the rights to the band’s unreleased songs. Danzig enlisted new bandmates, most notably Joey Castillo who would continue to be the band’s drummer until 2002.

Danzig had a minor role as a fallen angel in the 1998 film The Prophecy II, starring Christopher Walken.

In September 1999, Danzig signed his band to E-Magine Records, becoming the first artist on the label. The deal also led to the release of a Samhain box set and the re-release of Blackacidevil.

In 1999, during the U.S. touring for the album 6:66 Satan’s Child Danzig reunited Samhain along with drummers Steve Zing and London May. Then-Danzig guitarist Todd Youth was invited by Glenn Danzig to fill in the guitar position for the Samhain reunion tour, replacing Samhain’s original guitarist, Pete “Damien” Marshall, who had opted out in order to tour with Iggy Pop. Eerie Von was not invited to rejoin Samhain due to personal issues within the band. Both Zing and May handled bass duties, switching from drums to bass in between the “Blood Show”.

In 2003, Danzig founded the Blackest of the Black tour to provide a platform for dark and extreme bands of his choosing from around the world. Bands featured on the tour have included Dimmu Borgir, Superjoint Ritual, Nile, Opeth, Lacuna Coil, Behemoth, Skeletonwitch, Mortiis and Marduk.

In 2005, Danzig’s tours to support the Circle of Snakes album and the Blackest of the Black Tour were highlighted by the special guest appearance of Misfits guitarist Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein. Doyle joined Danzig on stage for a 20-minute set of classic Misfits songs: “To do this right, I invited Doyle to join Danzig on stage at ‘Blackest of the Black’ for a special guest set. This is the first time we will be performing on stage together in 20 years. It’s the closest thing to a Misfits reunion anyone is ever going to see.”

On October 17, 2006, he released his second solo album Black Aria II. The album reached the top ten on the Billboard classical music chart.

In November 2006, Danzig toured the west coast with former Samhain drummer Steve Zing on bass. They played three Samhain songs including “All Murder All Guts All Fun”. In Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Doyle joined the band onstage for the encore and played two Misfits songs, “Skulls” and “Astro Zombies”.

In 2007 Danzig produced the debut album by ex-Misfits guitarist Doyle’s metal-influenced band, Gorgeous Frankenstein.

In July 2007, Danzig released The Lost Tracks of Danzig, a compilation of previously unreleased songs. The project took nine months to complete with Glenn Danzig having to add extra vocal and instrument tracks to songs that had been unfinished. The album included the controversial “White Devil Rise”, recorded during the sessions for Danzig 4 in response to inflammatory comments by Louis Farrakhan and his use of the term “The White Devil”. The song is Danzig’s conjecture as to what would happen if Farrakhan incited the passive white race to rise up and start a race war: “No one wants to see a race war. It would be terrible, so the song’s saying, ‘Be careful what you wish for.'” Danzig himself has bluntly denied any accusations of racism: “As far as me being an Aryan or a racist, anyone who knows me knows that’s bullshit.”

In October and November 2007, Danzig toured the western United States, along with Gorgeous Frankenstein, Horrorpops, and Suicide City. This “3 Weeks of Halloween” tour was in support of his most recent album, The Lost Tracks of Danzig, as well as the newest graphic novel release from Verotik, Drukija: Countessa of Blood. On October 23, 2007, Danzig was performing the song “How the Gods Kill” in Baltimore and fell off the stage, injuring his left arm. He did not perform the Misfits set that night, but he continued the tour and played classic Misfits tunes with Doyle onstage as an encore with a sling on his left arm after the injury.

In 2008, Danzig confirmed he had recorded the first duet of his career, with Melissa Auf der Maur. The song, titled “Father’s Grave”, features Danzig singing from the perspective of a gravedigger and appears on Auf der Maur’s 2010 album Out of Our Minds. Auf der Maur has spoken highly about the experience of meeting and working with Danzig.

Danzig’s ninth album, Deth Red Sabaoth, was released on June 22, 2010.

In 2014, Danzig filed a lawsuit against Misfits bassist Jerry Only claiming Only registered trademarks for everything Misfits-related in 2000 behind Danzig’s back, misappropriating exclusive ownership over the trademarks for himself, including the band’s iconic “Fiend Skull” logo, violating a 1994 contract the two had. Danzig claims that after registering the trademarks, Only secretly entered into deals with various merchandisers and cut him out of any potential profits in the process. On August 6, 2014, a U.S. district judge in California dismissed Danzig’s lawsuit.

On October 21, 2015 during an interview with Loudwire, Danzig stated his current tour with Superjoint could be his last.

On May 12, 2016 Danzig, Only, and Frankenstein announced they would perform together as the Misfits for the first time in 33 years in two headlining shows at the September 2016 Riot Fest in Chicago and Denver. He later noted that he would be “open to possibly doing some more shows”. The reunited Misfits did more shows and Danzig enforced a “no cell phone” policy at the reunion shows. Danzig returned to Riot Fest in 2017 with his band, Danzig.

In February 2016, Danzig appeared in the Portlandia episode “Weirdo Beach”.

The newest Danzig album Black Laden Crown was released on May 26, 2017.

In 2019, Danzig made his feature film directorial debut with Verotika, an anthology horror film that premiered at Chicago’s Cinepocalypse Film Festival that year. The film was directed, written and scored by Danzig.

In September 2019, at the Los Angeles red carpet premiere of the Rob Zombie film 3 from Hell, Danzig told interviewers that production for a new film would begin in October. He described the project as “a vampire Spaghetti western”, after revealing there would not be any more Misfits tours.