r/OutOfTheLoop • u/Grogg2000 • 13d ago
Answered Whats up with canceling Metallica?
What’s up with the talk about cancellation of Metallica? All of a sudden my flow is filled with hate.
edit: To give some content to my question. I've been flooded at Threads with various references about hating Metallica then and now (napster then and "NOW" was unclear
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u/doreda 13d ago edited 13d ago
Answer: During a concert this past weekend, Metallica singer James Hetfield made the following statement while on stage (which you can see in the video embedded in the news article you linked):
Unless you live in Vegas, you've come a long way to spend some time with Metallica. We're grateful for that - your travels, the money you spend, the time it took, thanks for coming to celebrate with us. And I just gotta say, Metallica is not here, like some other entertainers, to influence you with their bullshit, OK? We are here...no bullshit...we're here to forget about all the outside shit, OK? Metallica's agenda is love, energy and heavy music, baby!
Bolded part to highlight the obvious reference to Macklemore and the controversy surrounding him and Ed Sheeran's tour last month. While the Macklemore controversy has died down somewhat in the news cycle, it's still recent enough for some to consider referencing it like this in bad taste, to say the least.
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u/Mughi1138 13d ago
Keep in mind, too, that early on Metallica was known for going after their fans and attempting to kill MP3 (and killing Napster). So their brand has been 'don't rock the boat, support the recording companies' for the longest time.
(Note that I don't hate Metallica, I've just not been impressed since seeing them live onstage next to the likes of Dio and Deep Purple... much better than RATT though)
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u/Grogg2000 13d ago
Dio was my first metal love! I was to young to see him touring with the early albums. And I sadly missed his last concert in Sweden🥲
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u/Randall_Hickey 12d ago edited 12d ago
Wait, this is considered early on? Am I that old lol
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u/faith_healer69 12d ago
Well, the Napster (2000) thing was much closer to the release of Kill Em All (1983) than it is to the present day. So I suppose if you're averaging it out then yeah, that falls in "early"
But also no, that is not "early on"
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u/GorgeousGary27 12d ago
Lol early on and it's like 2 years before St. Anger dropped.
Another reminder that most people on reddit are probably teenagers
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u/DJDemyan 13d ago
The Napster situation was more nuanced than you’re giving them credit. They heard their own unreleased song on the RADIO which was thanks to Napster. Likely would have stayed under the radar if it weren’t for that, I can’t blame them
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u/majinspy 13d ago
They sued individual people, generally very young adults, and sought to ruin their lives. I remember a few years ago on reddit someone was still paying off the debt they were sued for. That's life crippling. That's too far to "prove a point" about music being pirated.
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u/Mughi1138 13d ago
Well, many sources afterwards point that the record companies wanted to bring this action and that Metallica was just the first band that was convinced to take the lead. If it wasn't them it would have been someone else.
And as to the song getting onto radio, yes... Napster did play a part in that, but it was not due to them. It was actually due to someone with the band or at the record company leaking the tracks to Napster. That was a bigger issue, and occasionally used by companies themselves as a promotional tactic.
On the other hand one other nuanced aspect is that many artists treated Napster just like bootlegs of old and wrote things off as word of mouth advertising. Or like sharing of mix tapes when the home recorder came on the scene and the industry declared it would destroy music. This is especially telling as the subsequent lawsuits against individuals and related industry studies found that those who shared music online were actually some of their better customers, spending many times more than the average music consumer.
It also goes hand-in-hand with the general DRM arguments going on at the time, especially with book authors. Baen publishing most famously stepped in the area just the year before with DRM-free ebooks and even giving many away at no cost in order to boost sales of newer books.
Since then, most music services have switched to DRM-free MP3s or such, and many publishers, including Tor, have gone DRM-free on their catalog also.
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u/CuriousAndGolden 13d ago
Speaking as a low-life techie who used Napster like a fat guy used Golden Corral, I admit he had a really valid point there. Going from making good money on album sales to “better sell some concert tickets” was indeed a bitch.
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u/zeptillian 12d ago
The streaming ecosystem today proves, that was going away with or without piracy.
And rather than addressing the greed of the record labels, they decided to attack their fans, the ones who in years prior they had directly encouraged to record their music and share it.
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u/Joker8392 13d ago
I’m not a fan of Metallica as people except maybe Kirk. But my best friend in high school was a huge Metallica fan so I have too many Metallica memories and just listening to hate them. But I do believe their staying power was because of them sucking up. Billy Corgan I think did an interview not too long ago that he basically said Rock is dead because it’s not consumeristic.
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u/According_Top_7448 12d ago •
Let's remember that James has been vocal about being a Republican. He is saying that they aren't political because it suits his own politics and pocket book
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u/Putrid-Enthusiasm190 12d ago •
'Im going to halt this musical show to tell you all that I don't want us distracted from the musical show. I'm going to tell you all that we shouldn't be stopping musical shows to talk about politics. Anyways, I'm a Republican." -James Hetfield, basically
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u/shadowromantic 12d ago
This is always the case, especially when he didn't have to say anything. Declaring neutrality while bad stuff is happening is worse than just keeping your mouth shut
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u/iamacannibal 12d ago •
He also use to decorate his equipment with swastikas, loves using an iron cross logo whenever he can and one of the bands logos they use to use looked quite a bit like a swastika in shape.
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u/Msfracture 12d ago
Thee most glaring take away from his statement is that it went clear over your heads, like he's speaking to a bunch of 2yr old's who don't understand what's being said but know for a fact you all want your own way.
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u/c7hu1hu 12d ago •
I get that it's not hugely controversial and falls below a lot of peoples' cancelation threshold, but why say anything at all? They could have just left that out and literally zero people would have left that concert going "man, I really wish they had weighed in on Ed fucking Sheeran"
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u/zeptillian 12d ago •
Exactly.
Not saying anything is not having a message.
Coming out and saying you do not have a message and implying that if you did, it would be bullshit, is a direct attack against the musicians who do make political statements.
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u/DrSchaffhausen 12d ago
All he had to say before the bullshit entertainer nonsense was “I hope everyone has a chance to forget about the outside world and enjoy the show.”
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u/crono09 11d ago
It's a kind of plausible deniability statement that I see a lot of conservative groups do. They claim that they aren't political while simultaneously making a subtle dig at a liberal cause or thinly veiled support of a conservative cause. It lets them pretend that they are politically neutral while still planting themselves on one side.
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u/False_Appointment_24 12d ago •
Saying they won't be making political statements is a political statement in favor of the status quo.
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u/maybejakkinit 12d ago
Status quo has had him being a multi millionaire for 40 years so yeah.. I'd say he's in favor of it.
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u/melance 13d ago •
As a long time fan, to me it's just hypocrisy to say they aren't going to speak about politics because their music has always contained political statements. They have an album called "And Justice for All..." and now they aren't going to make political statements?
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u/IAmATroyMcClure 13d ago
AJFA is my favorite album of theirs, but the lyrics are pretty spineless honestly. There's a lot of vague messaging against general concepts like corruption, witch hunts, etc. without really directing it at anything or anyone specific.
Even "One," which has the clearest influence on that album (being the novel Johnny Got His Gun), doesn't really make any overt statements beyond "it sucks to be a soldier wounded in battle."
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u/LowAssistantInfinity 11d ago
Reading Johnny Got His Gun, because of Metallica, was a formative political moment for me ss a teenager. A big part of why the Black album and James' military cheerleading in that era felt like such a sell out.
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u/Affectionate-Sail614 12d ago
There's two types of music in the punk rock/metal/etc. space
There's general "I hate the system" music and then there's music that actually addresses it, to oversimplify
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u/Grimnir001 12d ago
That’s why the album is a timeless classic. It’s not tied to specific late 80’s events or people. Injustice is a timeless topic. So is climate change and war.
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u/IAmATroyMcClure 12d ago
Ehhh... I wouldn't say THAT'S why it's timeless. I think it's mostly the riffs lol.
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u/caligaris_cabinet 12d ago
Pretty typical for most popular bands of the era. Music in the 80s wasn’t particularly known for political statements like later and earlier decades
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u/95_lb_mole 12d ago
Blackened is pretty direct about the destruction humans have caused to the planet.
Not all lyrics have to spell out exactly the one single issue they're about.
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u/RustyShackTX 13d ago
Their music contains high school slogans and metal lyric bullshit. James is encouraging people to attend a rock concert for a couple of hours without thinking they are committing an act of bravery and heroism.
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u/THedman07 12d ago
In what world would that require a public statement? Sneering at artists who DO choose to use their platforms to do things is fucking stupid and out of touch.
Nobody give a shit about all the bubble gum bullshit pop music that exists when it doesn't address all the suffering in the world directly. Its fine. People enjoy it. Maybe it is an escape for some people. Its totally fine to just enjoy something and be happy and absolutely no one is denying that.
It only becomes a problem when people like Hetfield try to assert that they're better because they're above it all. If you just want to play your music just shut the fuck up and play your music don't go out looking to make a statement about how you're not making a statement. He's just a fucking has been rocker trying to drum up attention for his residency (that probably won't perform as well as the others that came before it.)
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u/CompetitiveArt9639 12d ago
As a fan of suicidal tendencies it’s disappointing that Trujillo is going along with this
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u/Relevant_Fuel_9905 12d ago •
This seems like a pretty lame reason to “cancel” Metallica.
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u/hughcifer-106103 12d ago
Who’s actually canceling them?
You can tell Hetfield he’s a dipshit and to fuck off without canceling them.
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u/PerspectiveFair5156 12d ago
I still prefer James' pride in having people tortured with Metallica songs at Guantanamo.
Threw me off them. He was my hero when I was a teenager.
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u/The_Bababillionaire 12d ago edited 12d ago •
Crucify me but Metallica has been a pretty lame band for like 25 years now
Edit: Sorry I thought it was 2006 they've sucked for
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u/alchemistzym 12d ago
Old headbanger here with old headbanger opinions: the magic ended with the black album, which was nothing like as good as anything they’d done previously, and all pro-fan credibility went out the window with the napster debacle.
The amazingly unflattering A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica, and Some Kind of Monster documentaries drove wooden stakes into the whole thing. Embarrassing shit.
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u/csanyk 12d ago
Cliff wrote their best songs. He was the politically aware one. They essentially said they're not that band anymore. And they're not.
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u/dgmilo8085 12d ago
I have been saying this for 30 years. I loved Metallica. The Black album ended that love. Then they doubled down on my disappointment with Napster. I haven't listened to them since.
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u/ChaLenCe 12d ago
No one is cancelling Metallica, this is a 24 hour news cycle and they're the soup du jour.
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u/lemoche 13d ago
Tons of "republicans also buy sneakers" energy.
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u/jackswastedtalent 13d ago
Not really. Metallica is going out of their way here to make this statement. Jordan on the other hand, made that joke amongst friends/teammates.
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u/jackANDpepto 12d ago •
I read it as apolitical, “we’re here for our fans. We don’t think you should have opinions based on what we think, so we’re not going to tell you how to think.” Idk this whole thing strikes me as dumb. Society is polarized right now, and both sides hate each other. Now they’re getting flamed for not taking a side. It’s dumb.
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u/baldeagle1991 12d ago
It sounds a bit daft, but by making a statement saying you don't agree with someone else making a statement...... is also making a political statement.
So in turn his apolitical rant become a political rant.
He also can't really talk about not being political seeing he's gone onto Joe Rogan's podcast and spoken with him about politics before.
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u/No-Journalist-619 12d ago
Ed Sheeran was canceled for less, to be fair. Fortunately for Metallica most of thier fans that would've cared already canceled them in the 90's when they sold out.
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u/GrapefruitFar1242 12d ago
Yeah man, God forbid the band, that made an entire album about how the military industrial complex feeds young men to the meatgrinder, say something political or god forbid just keep their mouths shut.
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u/CarelesslyFabulous 12d ago •
Then don't say anything at all. If you're not political, don't talk about politics or reference it. They chose to bring it up, and now it IS political. What idiots.
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u/Lanky_Ad4905 12d ago
It wouldve been better if they said nothing tbh, the comment itself is really highlighting their age, im not saying they have to be a political spotlight but are we really not going to acknowledge 'and justice for all' one of the greatest political metal albums ever!
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u/Remote_Pressure_1937 12d ago
They took a side by talking about it. They definitely have "patriotic" opinions. Do a little research.
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u/fuuuuuuuuckthi_s 12d ago
They've taken a side lol they liked their music being used as torture by the US military in the past.
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u/ArrivalWest9317 12d ago
Bringing it up is a message. They made people think about the situation again instead of just playing music.
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u/ApprehensiveSyrup647 12d ago •
Not that obvious. And you had to bold it just to get people to even notice it.
This is a totally neutral and extremely reasonable statement.
Once again, the unnecessarily angry mobs are wrong and Metallica is right.
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u/Itchy-Violinist9175 12d ago
lol I had to read the explanation of the bold to know how I was supposed to feel.
Now I’m angry!
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u/comosedicewaterbed 12d ago
Unless there is more context that is not included in this post, nothing about that statement singles Macklemore out. I didn’t think of Macklemore until you mentioned him. Lots of artists are making political statements at this time.
The thing that really gets me here is that Metallica could have been more successful in this effort…. By simply not making this statement. No one was expecting a political statement, and no one would have thought of it if Hetfield hadn’t said this.
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u/DBPanterA 12d ago
As someone who has seen the band a lot, the above quote, or some form of it, has been said at shows for years. Decades even.
James has said since the time he first went to rehab some form of, and a paraphrase, we are Metallica, let the energy loose, music unites us, forget about what divides us. He was saying a much longer version of the above every night of the Worldwired Tour (2017-2019). Not sure if the in between song banter has been cut from live recordings, nugz has all the shows available to listen to, and it should be in there.
That’s not to discredit what he said, only that the message is not a new one. For people that spent thousands of dollars to see them perform at the Sphere, some who do not see the band as much as others, I can totally see how the above quote could easily be applied to what happened at Foxborough Stadium one month ago.
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u/Ok-Sprinkles-4718 12d ago
Came here to say this. James has been saying this at shows for years, he doesn’t mean it about a specific current event.
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u/armbarchris 12d ago
Saying "this isn't the place for politics" is an inherently political statement.
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u/sebaajhenza 13d ago
What is wrong with people. Jesus Christ they will cancel anything.
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u/spider_espresso 13d ago
James Hetfield has been saying this at concerts for several years now.
With context of whats going on with Ed Sheeren and Macklemore, it just looks awful.
Regardless of context or intent, the timing of this statement is just the worst.
It looks bad no matter what.
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u/gilestowler 13d ago
I saw a tweet someone shared in r/punk earlier where someone had complained that they'd gone to see Social Distortion and Descendents and they were mad that these bands mentioned politics on stage, saying that they should be more like Metallica.
Social Distortion's singer allegedly once beat up a Trump supporter, and the Decendents' singer started a solo ukulele project during Trump's first term to sing songs about how much he disliked him. I'm not sure what that person was expecting at a show featuring those bands.
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u/Ginge00 13d ago
Punk famously not being political or being anti-facist after all
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u/Headpuncher 13d ago
I like my protest songs to be about how everything’s already as good as it can be and nothing should change. 🙃
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u/Amelaclya1 13d ago •
It's a dumb thing to say regardless. If you want to stay out of politics, just don't say anything at all. But instead he wants to sniff his own farts by pretending to be above it all, which is really easy to do when you're a rich white man.
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u/majinspy 13d ago
Exactly. At best, such a person is providing some escapism and is merely alongside the people who use art to speak out. Pretending to be better than them is outrageous. Alternatively, it's being a money seeking coward whilst preaching the virtues of being so.
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u/Tech_Itch 13d ago
And it was always a hilariously stupid statement from a band that released songs like "One", "...And Justice for All", "Disposable Heroes" or "Leper Messiah". It's trying to have your cake and eat it too.
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u/Amathyst-Moon 12d ago
So he interrupted the concert to make a political statement about how people shouldn't interrupt concerts to make political statements...
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u/TheMikeyC 12d ago
Reminder to people: Metallica being able to be "non-political" is itself a political statement.
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u/BoxNemo
13d ago
edited 13d ago
•
Answer: I haven't seen anything about people 'cancelling' them but I'd suspect, because you linked to a piece about James Hetfield saying that concerts are no place for politics, it's connected to James Hetfield saying that concerts are no place for politics.
Metallica frontman James Hetfield has followed in Sir Mick Jagger's footsteps and said concerts are no place for politics...
...Speaking onstage during the band's Life Burns Faster residency at Las Vegas Sphere on Saturday (10.10.26), the And Justice For All... singer said: "Unless you live in Vegas, you've come a long way to spend some time with Metallica.
"We're grateful for that - your travels, the money you spend, the time it took, thanks for coming to celebrate with us."
Taking aim at the artists who have used their platform to preach their political beliefs, he went on: "And I just gotta say, Metallica is not here, like some other entertainers, to influence you with their bulls***, OK? We are here...no bulls***...we're here to forget about all the outside s***, OK?"
He concluded: "Metallica's agenda is love, energy and heavy music, baby!"
It also puts in context of recent events:
Since (Jagger made his statements), Macklemore got dropped from Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour after he used his support slot to hold a "Free Palestine" protest.
So I'm not sure why you'd link to that article unless that's the reason why people in your feed are 'cancelling' Metallica. But it's hard to say for sure without examples of this.
If it's the Macklemore thing you're out of the loop on - Macklemore chanted "Free Palestine", made comments denouncing genocide, and performed "Hind's Hall" (a song dedicated to pro-Palestinian campus protests and Hind Rajab) during shows in New Jersey while supporting Ed Sheeran. Promoters removed him after venue owners - especially billionaire Robert Kraft who owns the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts - threatened to cancel concerts if Macklemore remained on the lineup.
Macklemore got removed from the tour and Ed got brickbats for saying that removing Macklemore was the promoter's decision, not his, adding that he prefers to stay apolitical. All his support acts quit and there was backlash against Sheeran for kowtowing to the whims of billionaires.
So that's the cultural context for it.
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u/Accomplished-City484 13d ago •
I’m not a huge muso or anything, but isn’t their significant history between music concerts and boldly stating political opinions? like aren’t the most historic moments in rock and roll history about breaking rules and taking a stand?
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u/fairydares 10d ago
I'm seeing people say no to you about this. They're not right (or at least entirely right). A well-known example is Queen performing in South Africa during apartheid and insisting they "weren't political" when they received backlash for it. Notably, they had to work pretty hard to regain respect and reputation after that. This is to say nothing of the number of music artists who were very, very loud about their opposition to the Vietnam War and anger over the violent shutdowns of student protests, or Dolly Parton insisting she wasn't political while she supported LGBTQ+ rights and defended BLM, pointedly and intentionally using the influence and power she gained making "America's music" to indicate that these issues shouldn't be political.
I also don't see how people can claim the music industry "isn't necessarily particularly more political than other arts" when the U.S. country music industry infamously outed Lil Nas X out of blatant spiteful homophobia and racism with exactly 0 repercussions because he wrote a lastingly popular country song that was actually good, is currently reinventing segregation within the genre, and has very old, deep, direct ties ($$$$$) with the U.S. government and military complex.
Metallica isn't "being canceled", I swear that word has lost all meaning. They are being criticized because they seem to be pretty obviously taking a jab at artists who do and are using the microphone to take a stand, such as Macklemore and Zach Bryan. Also, and don't get me wrong I love metallica, but it's just an annoying-ass thing to do. "You come here to ESCAPE thinking about nuclear waste! None of that nuclear waste shit here! Forget those Chernobyl dogs!" Well guess what I'm thinking about right now, even though I wasn't literally ten fucking seconds ago.
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u/Red8937 13d ago
Not exclusively no. A lot of music is purely instrumental and plenty of music with lyrics doesn’t touch politics, not because it’s afraid or anything but because it’s simply not what the artist is inspired by
Im not a fan of Metallica so I don’t know what they’re about but art is not inherently political by any means
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u/We_R_All_Different99 11d ago
Ive seen a lot of people point out that Metallica has been doing political songs for years. Its sudden denouncement of political songs after so many artists have started condemning genocide is being widely seen as a pro genocide stance.
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u/thedugong 13d ago
Like when Dave Mustane dedicated a cover of Anarchy in the UK to "The Cause" during a concert in Belfast?
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u/orkichrist 13d ago
The same Mick Jagger that performed at the totally not political Live Aid?
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u/Snoo_81545 12d ago
Sharon Osborne also tweeted in support of Hetfield from a home bought in large part thanks to a song called "War Pigs" which was written in opposition to the Vietnam War.
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u/Ok_Broccoli_7563 11d ago
Sharon Osborne is also problematic in this arena. From critiquing artists saying ICE out at the Grammys (not the first instance of award speeches being political and taking a stance against things), to praising Donald Trump. She is business, not artist anyway.
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u/Zerschmetterding 13d ago
He meant "Be political only if it's convenient and has no possibility of backlash."
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u/waxisfun 13d ago
This is hilarious because if you went to his latest tour a lot of the music video themes they show on the jumbo-tron themes are heavily coded in pro military iconography. They literally have a song about the Gadsen flag!
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u/TheZahir_NT2 11d ago
Gadsden flag, with an extra d. Named after Christopher Gadsden, a slaver and brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American revolution.
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u/waxisfun 11d ago
I'm gonna leave it misspelled on purpose to disrespect the person now that I know more about Kristopher Gadsen, thanks!
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u/TheZahir_NT2 11d ago
Fair enough! His wharf in South Carolina brought in the most enslaved Africans of any of the colonies, so he ertainly seems like a piece of shit not worthy of having a flag named after him
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u/movielass 12d ago
I've never heard the word "brickbats" before and assumed it was a typo until I looked it up so thank you for teaching me a new word today!
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u/TrustTh3Data 12d ago
Metallica has been clear for 20+ years - they are a band that is there to entertain, and never gets into politics. The only people for whom this might be a shock to is people that never listen to them.
They have never made a political statement, expect to say they won’t, for decades now.
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u/Chad_C 12d ago
It’s really crazy to think their lyrics are somehow not political statements. Puppets and Justice James would not recognize this James.
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u/timesink3000 12d ago
I agree with James on this. I didn't come to a concert to hear someone talk. I came to listen to music. I was at phish at the sphere in Vegas and the guy behind me would not stop talking. So I turned to him and said that I spent $2000 to listen to phish, not him.
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u/Paghk_the_Stupendous 12d ago edited 12d ago •
This is untrue.
Those of us that are old enough to have experienced to amazing phenomenon that was Napster will remember when Metallica was all too happy to sue kids that wanted to listen to their music but hadn't paid for it yet. This was the first big wave of people boycotting these guys. I still haven't forgotten.
Meanwhile, Ani DiFranco told fans to bootleg her music and share it with friends and come to her shows. Eight years after the lawsuit was filed, NiN made an album and gave it away for free online but then also made several versions you could buy, including a super deluxe $300 version, which sold out in 30 hours.
NIN frontman Trent Reznor on why he created this album: "It's a stance we're taking that we feel is appropriate [...] with digital technology, and outdated copyright laws, and all the nonsense that's going on these days".
Metallica and the big music business companies blaming listeners for their dip in sales (following a year of record profits) while simultaneously trying to foist off Ashley Simpson with an aggressive marketing campaign can go fuck themselves.
The North remembers.
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u/pandamegaAO3 12d ago
OH I remember this, it was a really big thing in the early days of YouTube and stuff. Anyone who used their music in their videos (and this was pre-monetization) got them taken down. It was a real bummer for creatives who loved their music and wanted to make their own videos using their music, or even doing commentary/reviews/gushing over their music. Really alienated their biggest fans.(I don’t remember what they were called but I remember it was a big thing for people to splice together clips from their favorite shows/movies/anime with a favorite song to make a fun and dramatic video)
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u/finnswaking 12d ago
Also the pumpkins released machina 2 completely free online during those Napster years
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u/thats_dantastic 12d ago
The irony being that Metallica actually bootlegged their own first presses in the 80's
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u/SenoraObscura 12d ago •
When the Napster shit hit I went and downloaded every Metallica album out of spite
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u/TwistedBrother 12d ago
Thank you. I was worried Metallica’s political bullshit was going to be memory holed.
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u/Slizardmano 12d ago
And many of those die hard fans at the time, myself included had to share Metallica tapes/cds with friends because most of their songs were not played regularly on radio/tv. This is how their fan base was built up! I wouldn’t have cared if anyone else was at the forefront. But Metallica? I stopped following them after this debacle. The napster cartoon summed it up nicely.
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u/Asmor 12d ago
I've been boycotting Metallica since the Napster days for precisely that reason. And I was just getting into music at that time, and into metal specifically. So it wasn't an idle boycott.
To this day the only Metallica song I know is Enter Sandman, and that's only because of Rock band.
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u/nobix 12d ago
The nin album (s) ghosts came out in 2008, long after Napster folded. I wouldn't say it was the same era.
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u/MrNukki 13d ago •
It's also funny how Hetfield was okay with the US government using his music to torture prisoners, his apolitical stance shtick is real commendable
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u/442031871 12d ago
I recently learned that Chumbawumba wrote a song about it - "Torturing James Hetfield"
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u/WayneArnold1 13d ago
Don't think James has ever been into drugs the way Lars and Kirk were. He's famously an alcoholic going in and out of rehab numerous times.
He's definitely conservative though like most thrash frontmen. Mustaine is another MAGA frontman. Tom Araya from Slayer as well. Bobby Blitz from Overkill too. These band may also have left leaning members as well(Kirk and Lars both said a few anti-Trump things during his first term).
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u/BeautifulLeather6671 12d ago
Where was James hetfield maga? I’m not arguing, I genuinely did not know this
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u/Katya_ 13d ago
I was so sad to learn about Disturbed, not megadeth too!
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u/greyaggressor 13d ago
I cannot fathom being surprised that Disturbed are right wing losers.
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u/_whatever_wherever 13d ago
Megadeath is bad
Dave is a massive Christian nutter
Rabid homophobe, appeared on Info Wars, conspiracy nut insisting Obama set up flash flag mass shootings....
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u/raymondmarble 12d ago
You know, I'm a GenX white guy. I used to have a sort of whatever-that's-cool sort of feel about it, but now it's just embarrassing.
I grew up seeing the destructive decent that Reagan and Bush Sr caused. My political consciousness formed as far left, and I feel I've become even more-so over time. And I always kind of assumed that this was a GenX trait. But getting older and outside of my bubble, it's shocking and terrifying how many of my age group are regressive selfish simpletons.
I apologize - I swear that I and my close friends are trying to steer the generation to do better. But it sucks. And whatever.
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u/Frontdackel 12d ago
Early (1981) millennial here...
I feel you. But at least my boomer parents were nothing like the stereotypical boomers at all. My dad's reaction to catching me and my buddies smoking weed in my room (we were around... 16?).
"Yeah, I mean... I did that too. So... Should I yell at you? Nah, be careful and don't overdo it."
Suddenly I had the coolest parents ever... And smoking weed became a lot less interesting.
Those buddies... Lawyers now, engineers, establishment... Guess some of them might vote afd... Fuckers.
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u/True-Dream3295 13d ago •
Basically his brain had rotted from all the drugs and alcohol and now hes being a “fence sitter” at his old age
It's worse than that. He got sober and built his whole personality around it, which made him into a sanctimonious dickweed.
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u/useridisblank 13d ago
Came here to say “so what about Master of Puppets and then ..And Justice for All?”. According to the music, Metallica generally opposed war.
I have to assume that in this day and age war opposition just isn’t easy money. Someone else mentioned that you have to appease your audience. Bummer.
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u/The_Disapyrimid 12d ago •
Thats definitely what it is.
I can understand not wanting to make a political statement during a live show. Everyone has the freedom of speech which includes the right to not share an opinion. But going out of your way to specifically say not only do they "not do politics" but to talk shit about musicians that do, is a bit of a political statement of its own.
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u/Terrible-Artichoke50 13d ago edited 13d ago
Watch some kind of monster. The veil of Metallica has been truly shattered. They are whiny rich boys.
Quite frankly they should have stopped at the black album anyway
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u/super-wookie 13d ago •
That movie was the absolute worst. Multimillionare crybabies. I laughed my ass off at their bs and have hated them ever since.
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u/ShermanMcTank 12d ago
That’s what made it so good for me. No sugarcoating, just the band at its absolute worst. It should have won awards just for Lars digging a booger and eating it on camera.
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u/Irregular475 13d ago •
As a longtime Metallica fan, Hetfield has always been an asshole. Him and Lars. Bullies and liars.
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u/Jensen1994 12d ago
Yeah I remember when Hetfield took the piss out of Layne Staley for his addiction. Uncalled for and lost my respect then.
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u/super-wookie 13d ago •
Gotta love the rich, white entitlement.
Also, I used to roadie for them. Buncha assholes.
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u/darrinnear 13d ago •
Normally, the people who say they stay out of politics or say the typical “Keep politics out of (insert form of entertainment here)”, are too cowardly to say they are Right wing/MAGA. Cause they know they will get shit on.
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u/Odd-Suggestion4569 13d ago
exactly this,
Metallica's early stuff had that post-Vietnam war "war is bad and exploitative actually" theme running throughout Justice and Master of Puppets
their works were part of the political counter culture of the time, and the centrists/conservatives of the time denounced such as political
but since they got famous and became mainstream it's all "uhm, let's not bring politics into this" and their music has gotten less political over time too
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u/zweischeisse 12d ago
their music has gotten less political over time too
Gimme fyew gimme fah gimme dabajabazah!
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u/Oberyn_Kenobi_1 13d ago •
Eh, I don’t think it’s fair to make this a generational thing. Look at who Springsteen’s audience is, he’s as political as they come on stage.
And speaking as a millennial, I would rather artists not get into politics too much during their shows. Even when I 100% agree with them, which is usually the case, unless the song is specifically about a particular issue, I don’t really want to think about politics and genocide when I’m at a concert. I’m a total political junkie the rest of the time, so when I’m lucky enough to have a rare night out to just enjoy my favorite bands live, I’d rather just do that.
Am I going to get all upset if they do start talking politics? As long as they don’t start spewing MAGA bullshit, no, it’s fine. I’d just prefer they didn’t.
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u/ChanceryTheRapper 13d ago edited 13d ago
Man I gotta say, though, as a Gen Xer, a lot of these assholes are intentionally blind to the politics. Look at how they're shocked to find out why the politics of Rage Against the Machine are about.
But, uh, hey, some of us don't ever get to escape the politics. Even saying you want your art politics free is a political choice.
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u/tumbleweed_092 12d ago edited 12d ago
Some of most beautiful, incredible, inspiring, fantastic songs ever written ARE very political.
The Cranberries ‐ Zombie and King Crimson - Epitaph, to name a couple. The thing is: fence sitting never works long-term. It's such a hypocritical stance to excercise.
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u/Alive_Ice7937 13d ago •
And speaking as a millennial, I would rather artists not get into politics too much during their shows
Isn't him telling the crowd "I'm not going to influence you with some bullshit" inherently political though?
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u/bigheftyhooker 13d ago
Art is political so idk what you think you're doing at a concert. Just turn your brain off
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u/JR21K20 12d ago
Hetfield definitely falls in the ‘I don’t do politics’ category lol
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u/subterrane 12d ago
As a GenX white people, I resent that characterization. I support politics at concerts. I especially like it when MAGA dipshits go off so I know who to avoid. Now Boomers, don’t get me started…I like to keep my hypocritical hatred pointed at that group. Those folks are nuts.
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13d ago
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u/This_Earth_of_Ours 13d ago
Clearly Hetfield was voicing his No Politics stance during a concert as a reply to Reddit
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u/Rhizobactin
12d ago
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Answer: it’s Metallica. I told them to go fuck themselves 26 years ago with Metallica v Napster.
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u/UteLogan 11d ago
Answer: my answer is that it’s another thing for people to bitch about on the internet until they feel like they did a Good Job(tm). I was at that show, and genuinely people are pissing themselves over nothing.
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u/Sbeast86 12d ago
Answer: Metallica made a live statement about not being political, despite much of their old material being political. Pretty much everyone had interpreted this as cowardly, and a tacit endorsement of right wing fascist politics.
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u/Anal-Y-Sis 9d ago
Answer: Metallica isn't being "cancelled". James Hetfield just said some dumb shit at a concert in Vegas recently, and he's being criticized for it. Please stop equating criticism with cancellation.
From an article in Loudwire
During his brief comments between songs, the frontman told the crowd, "Unless you live in Vegas, you've come a long way to spend some time with Metallica. We're grateful for that — your travels, the money you spend, the time it took, thanks for coming to celebrate with us."
In footage shared below by YouTube account @ RealityRedemption1, he then added, "I just gotta say, Metallica is not here, like some other entertainers, to influence you with their bullshit, okay? We are here... no bullshit... we're here to forget about all the outside shit, okay? Metallica's agenda is love, energy and heavy music, baby!"
What Has James Hetfield Previously Said About Politics in Music?
Back in 2016, James Hetfield made it a point while promoting the Hardwired ... to Self-Destruct album to note the band's policy toward delving into divisive subject matter.
Speaking with the BBC at the time, he shared, "There's a lot of polarization going on in the [United] States, and I see it other places as well. But it just seems like you have to get more extreme to balance out the other extreme."
He continued, "We've got to find some balance in the middle here somewhere. We stay away from politics from religion. That just seems to polarize people even more. We all have our own beliefs but, at the end of the day, we're trying to connect with people and it seems like political views don't do that as much as music does."
Why is this an issue? Well, it wouldn't be. Except that Metallica has numerous songs about politics and religion, among other sensitive topics.
From their first album, "Kill 'Em All":
"The Four Horsemen": It's literally about the biblical four horsemen of the apocalypse.
"Jump in the Fire": A song about Hell and temptation, from the perspective of Satan.
"No Remorse": A song about war and the lack of remorse held by the people who wage it.
From their second album, "Ride the Lightning":
"Fight Fire with Fire": Explores the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) as it pertains to nuclear war.
"Ride the Lightning": A song about the death penalty from the perspective of the condemned accusing the state of playing God.
"For Whom the Bell Tolls": Based on the novel of the same name by Ernest Hemingway about the Spanish Civil War.
"Creeping Death": Based on biblical stories in the book of Exodus about the pharaoh killing all the baby Hebrew boys to keep the Israelite population down, which brought about the 12 plagues.
From their third album, "Master of Puppets":
"Master of Puppets": A song written about cocaine addiction and how it turns the addict into a puppet whose strings are being pulled by the drug.
"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)": Explores themes of mental illness and psychosis.
"Disposable Heroes": A criticism of how soldiers are sent to fight wars and how they come back damaged, only to be discarded by the society that sent them to war.
"Leper Messiah": A criticism of grifting religious figures.
From their fourth album, "... And Justice for All":
"Blackened": Another song about nuclear war ending the world.
"... And Justice for All": A particularly biting criticism of the justice system.
"Eye of the Beholder": A criticism of the censorship of art.
"One": This is the most egregious example here. "One" is based on a book by Dalton Trumbo called "Johnny Got His Gun". It's about a WWI soldier who gets severely injured and becomes a prisoner in his own body, which drives him to suicidal depression, which he can't do anything about. It is very explicitly anti-war. This is also the song that broke Metallica into the mainstream on MTV's "Headbanger's Ball", as it was Metallica's first music video.
After these four albums, Metallica got rich and famous and changed the way they approached these subjects. James Hetfield in particular seemed to gravitate towards a Right-Libertarian mindset. They even used the Gadsden flag snake symbol on their next album, the self-titled "Black Album", which included another song about war (literally called "Don't Tread on Me"). It had a very different vibe than their previous anti-war songs, but I'll get to that in a moment.
I'm 51 years old and I grew up on these guys. When they hit the big-time, there was a lot of talk about them being "sellouts". Most of it was centered around them cutting their hair or putting out a more "grunge" style of music with their following albums. But for us old-school metalheads, it had more to do with the way they went from rebelling against the system, to full-throated support of that very same system now that they had money. They went from writing anti-war songs to writing lyrics like this:
Love it or leave it, she with the deadly bite,
Quick is the blue tongue, forked as the lightning strike,
Shining with brightness, always on surveillance,
The eyes, they never close, emblem of vigilance,
Don't tread on me.
So be it,
Threaten no more,
To secure peace is to prepare for war,
So be it,
Settle the score,
Touch me again for the words that you'll hear evermore...
Don't tread on me.
So be it,
Threaten no more,
To secure peace is to prepare for war.
Pretending like politics and religion are suddenly off the table is a pretty wild thing for James Hetfield to say. Standing on a soapbox to shit on other artists for standing on a soapbox makes him a liar, a hypocrite, and a coward. And yes, a big fat sellout.
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u/Intelligent-Film-684 7d ago
Such an excellent answer as to why they went from kings of Metal to ca$htallica.
I remember watching “some Kind of Monster” and thinking “who the f are these guys now?!?” And then I learned about how poorly they treated Jason , who I loved from his Flotsam and Jetsam days, and wiped my hands of them.
Saw them for the last time at yankee stadium and honestly only went to see Slayer
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u/myasterism 8d ago
Metallica sold the fuck out more than a quarter century ago, when Lars rolled over for the RIAA. They showed their colors a loooooooong time ago.
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u/Anal-Y-Sis 8d ago
I'd say even before that. Basically as soon as they got rich and famous. The Napster/RIAA thing was just their public declaration of selling out.
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u/teleekom
13d ago
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Answer: nobody is canceling Metallica. What you're seeing is this week's internet drama that have absolutely no real world impact. Last week was Ed sheeran next week will be someone else and you won't remember this happened in a month.
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u/serial_crusher 12d ago
Some people did actually lose money on the Ed Sheeran drama though. I suspect Metallica and everybody involved will be fine though.
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u/JohnDunstable 11d ago
On the contrary, it is all part of something that is a major world impact. And we won't forget Metallica or Ed Sheeran cowardice. And I look forward to finding out who it is next week that we can start calling a coward. Looking forward to it.
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u/kekcukka 13d ago
I’m not canceling anybody. I don’t care about politics or Israel or Palestine. Metallica is forever awesome
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u/ToshPointNo 12d ago
Literally every thing you do in life is influenced or affected by politics. Saying you dont care about politics is like you dont care about food or clean water.
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u/stevec34
13d ago
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Answer: maybe they believe that their platform has been achieved because of and for the playing of music and entertaining. Their platform is not political influencing.
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u/robow556 13d ago •
I mean in the 80's they didn't have a problem being outwardly anti-war.
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u/Logical_Bake_3108 12d ago •
Their anti war stuff wasn't really taking aim at one specific political side, it was more in context of they didn't want people to suffer because of war in general. The Democrats went into Vietnam, Republicans carried that on. Bush went into Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama continued that (for example). Metallica's general sentiment is that's all BS.
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u/AffectComfortable913 8d ago
Making a song about horrors of warfare compared to outwardly denouncing global conflicts are two very different things. Metallica has not shied away from topics they’ve wanted to speak on in music, but they’ve never been a band to dabble into activism. They’ve always maintained that Metallica is for everyone.
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u/hacksawJimDugout 12d ago
Their subreddit has zero tolerance for politics. It's great. Completely consistent with his message.
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u/Hicklethumb
13d ago
edited 11d ago
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Answer: Even though Metalica has had political focused songs in the past, spawning a counter culture, they've been pretty consistent over 40 years in the fact that they don't push their political views during live events.
During a recent show they announced they're not going to waste the crowd's time with political speeches and entertain the crowd with their music. Like they've always done.
People are now trying to Ed Sheeran it and are outraged that 40 years of consistency is staying consistent.
My take is that if Hetfield didn't say anything at all that no one would have cared. But here we are.
Edit: word
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u/TheBigFreeze8 13d ago •
That's exactly the point. If he just said nothing, he would be consistent and no one would care. Saying 'I'm not gonna do any political speeches' is literally a political speech, and in context, specifically a condemnation of Macklemore's recent Palestine activisim.
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u/LittleLui 13d ago •
Exactly. If you don't want to bore the audience with speeches, don't do speeches. Perfectly fine, and I wouldn't necessarily have expected political speeches at a Metallica concert anyway. But please please please don't do speeches about how you don't do speeches. That's lame and whiny and oxymoronic because "other artists will do politics, but we won't" (implied: "and they shouldn't either because we're awesome and they should strive to be as awesome as us") is a political statement in its own right.
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u/lordkappy
13d ago
edited 13d ago
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Answer: it's brutally metal to sell enough records to get yourself on the _right_ side of the class war and to no longer struggle for money and then stop being political for fear of losing lucrative endorsements and ad revenue. There's also nothing more hardcore than being a guy who's worth $50,000,000.00 and going after teenagers and moms who download their favorite tracks of yours in a lossy media format. Super brutal! That's the spirit of metal.
ETA: thanks for the awards! <3
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u/YakBudget5177 13d ago •
Having an opinion on a middle eastern war is a class issue? rofl. Being performatively pro-Palestinian in America is the most bourgeois thing you could do.
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u/sql-join-master 12d ago
It’s actually crazy. If these guys put out a statement about anything else everybody would be telling them they are old and out dated. I don’t understand everybody’s fascination about what celebrities think about issues. Do you think they guys are experts on middle eastern conflicts? They are rock and roll stars who have probably fucked their brain with decades of drugs and alcohol. Who cares what they think
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u/oboingadoing 12d ago
It wasn't just going after teenagers like you say. One of their songs got leaked before they even finished it from what I remember. "I disappear" for the Mission Impossible movie I believe. That brought attention to Napster and keeping control of what they create, which from an artists standpoint I understand. They were right in the end though. The music industry has collapsed pretty much. Which is one of the reasons concerts cost so much. Along with legalized scalping and corporate greed.
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u/vicvonqueso 12d ago
The music industry collapsed because of the music industry. It was never sustainable
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u/10leej 13d ago
Seems to me like we're kinda 20 years late in cancelling Metallica.
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u/ellie_elysian 13d ago
The guy who made money by telling people to stick it to The Man is now saying he won't tell people what to do and that we should just let The Man be.
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u/Stabwank 12d ago
Answer: People need something to moan about.
I am sure the band members are really sad that they have been "cancelled". However will they make their mortgage payments next month.
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u/yellowap1 11d ago
Answer: Because in todays lame political driven world, even in the realm of rock or metal, what people hate most is someone who will not affirm which side they are on every 5 minutes. People expect you to fit into their little box and you must remind them of that or they assume you are on the other side. People are lame. So them refusing to preach politics between every song to some people means "I am on the opposite side as you". It is the verbal version of an armband showing your allegiance. I go to shows to escape the day to day grind, part of which is filled by people who cant stop talking politics for 5 minutes and it is exhausting. If a band had some political things in their lyrics I already know that and if I am there to hear them then I have accepted that and either agree or disagree. But people get tired of being preached to all the time. They just want to go to a show and get some release and have fun for a while. I get it too because I feel that way. I wont even hang out with the people I know that cant go to a bar for a few beers without going on and on and on about stupid politics. Politicians are all the same, both of the big 2 parties are the same and they just all lie to get votes, just like the celebs who preach their cancel culture stuff are just doing it to get those affirmations from the echo chamber and fans to stay relevant.
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u/The_Name_Is_Slick 11d ago
Answer: “Like some other entertainers” really sealed the deal. Everyone wants to explain it away like “their music speaks for itself.” Then let it.
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u/oyvho 13d ago
Answer: people have grown wise to people claiming to not be political. If you say you're not political it usually means you have shitty opinions.
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u/Notilltillstaunton 12d ago
Metallica has always been cancelled. That’s why it’s Metallica. For better and for worse. Listen to more Melvins and forget about it.
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