Metallica

Metallica is an American heavy metal and thrash metal band formed in October 1981. years in Los Angeles, California.

One of biggest and most influential music groups in the worlds history today.

The band was formed when James Hetfield responded to an ad placed by drummer Lars Ulrich in a local newspaper.

The current lineup includes longtime guitarist Kirk Hammett (who joined in 1983). (2003) and bassist Robert Trujillo (2003), in addition to the mentioned Hetfield and Ulrich.

Former members of the band include Dave Mustaine (who later formed Megadeth) and bassists Ron Mcgovny, Cliff Burton and Jason Newsted.

The band has a long-standing collaboration with producer Bob Rock who has produced all albums since 1990. until 2003. years and served as an occasional bass player.

Metallica's early releases were characterized by fast tempos, instrumentation, and aggressive playing, which marked the band as part of the "Big Four" thrash metal subgenre, along with bands Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax.

The band gained fans in the underground music community as well as critics with their third album Master Of Puppets released in 1986. This album is considered the most influential and one of the Best Thrash Metal Albums. Metallica achieved considerable commercial success with their fifth album of the same name, Metallica (often referred to as the Black Album), which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. With this release, the band expanded their musical direction, resulting in an album that was closer to a wider musical audience.

The band won nine Grammy Awards and had five consecutive albums that debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 Chart, a record until then.

The band has sold over 110 million albums worldwide since the release of their previous album, Hardwired... to Self-Destruct.

## "Early days" Metallica

Metallica was founded in Los Angeles in late 1981. in the year that drummer Lars Ulrich placed an ad in a local newspaper, it contained: "drummer looking for other metal musicians to improvise with the Tygers of Pen Tang, Diamond Head and Iron Maiden."Guitarists James Hetfield and Hugh Tanner came forward about this ad.

Although he had not yet formed a band, Lars offered the founder of Metal Blade Records, Brian Slagel, to record a song for the forthcoming compilation album Metal Massacre I.

Slagel accepted the offer and Lars hired Hetfield as vocalist and rhythm guitar player. The band was officially formed in October 1981-  five months after Lars and James met.

In a conversation with his friend Ron Quintan, Lars asked how he could name the band. Quintana offered him two names, Metal Mania and Metallica, and Lars chose the latter.

Another ad was placed in the newspaper The Recycler for the solo guitar spot.

The announcement was made by Dave Mustaine.

Noting his expensive guitar equipment, Lars and James hired him.

Early 1982. METALLICA recorded her first original song, "Hit the Lights" on Metal Massacre I compilation LP from Metal Blade records . Hetfield played bass and Lloyd Grant played guitar solo. This album with first ever Metallica song was released in 1982. the band's name was misspelled "Mettallica".

Although furious about this mistake, they managed to get a lot of attention with this song, so the band had their first live performance as early as 14. March 1982. at Radio City in Anheim, where the bass guitar position was held by Ron Mcgavney. Metallica recorded her first demo cassette, Power Metal.

Autumn 1982. Lars and James attended a performance at The Whisky A Go Go nightclub in West Hollywood, where they saw future bassist Cliff Burton playing with his band Trauma ta that time . They were delighted with Barton's use of the bass pedal and offered him to join Metallica. Hetfield and Mustaine wanted to fire Rod Mc Gowney because, according to them, he was not creative but was just following what others contributed to the band and the music.

Although Burton initially declined the offer, by the end of the year he had agreed on the condition that the band move  near San Francisco. Their first show with Burton was at the Stone nightclub in March 1983. the first recording with Burton was a 1983 demo .

Metallica was ready to record their debut album, but with the Metal Blade house unable to cover the extra costs, the band began to look at other possibilities. Concert promoter Johnny Zazula, who heard Metallica's demo, offered to mediate a record deal between Metallica and New York labels. After some of them refused to collaborate, Zazula, taking money on loan for recording costs, contracted with Metallica to record at her own label, Megaforce Records.

## Kill 'Em All I Ride the Lightning (1983-1984)

May 1983. Metallica traveled to Rochester, New York to record the debut album Metal up your Ass, and Paul was to serve as the main producer. The members of the band decided to fire Mustaine from the band due to drug problems and violent behavior just before the 11th meeting. April 1983. years.

Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett joined the band that same afternoon.

Dave Mustaine, who later founded Megadeth, expressed a certain amount of aversion to Hammett in interviews, stating that Hammett had stolen his job. Mustaine was terribly angry because he believed that Hammett had become popular by playing on the guitar what he had written.

In interview in 1985. Mustaine criticized Hammett for imitating him from demo  "No Life 'til Leather".

Metallica's first live performance with Kirk Hammett was 16. April 1983. a night club in New Jersey.

The album was originally titled Metal Up Your Ass. Due to a dispute with the label and distributors over the name of the album, it was renamed Kill 'Em All.

Released under Megaforce Records in America and Music for Nations in Europe,  although the album was not a huge financial success Metallica still attracted a large number of fans in the underground heavy metal music scene.

Metallica then had a tour for this album together with the band Raven. February 1984. Metallica supported Venom on their tour, where they performed to 7,000 people in the Netherlands.

Metallica recorded her second studio album Ride the Lightning at Sweet Silence in Copenhagen, Denmark. Issued in August 1984. the album reached 100 on the Billboard 200 chart. The French press mistakenly painted the album cover in green. Some songs from the album Are: "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Fade To Black", "Creeping Death" (which carries the biblical story of the emigration of Jews from Egypt, focusing on several curses that Moses cast on the Egyptians) and the instrumental "the Call of Ktulu". Dave Mustaine received credit for the songs "Ride the Lightning" and "the Call of Ktulu".

## Master Of Puppets (1984-1986)

Elektra Records CEO Michael Alago and Q-Prime Management Co-founder Cliff Brnstein attended in September 1984. the Metallica concert. Impressed by what they saw, they signed the band to Elektra Records. The band also became a client of Q-Prime Management. Metallica's growing success was such that Music for Nations released a limited edition single, "Creeping Death," .

Two of the three songs of this release ("Am I Evil?"and " Blitzkrieg") appeared on the 1989 Electra reissue. the album Kill ' Em All. Metallica embarked on their first major European Tour with Tank, where they performed to an average of 1,300 people. The return to the US was marked by a tour with bands WASP and Armoured Saint.

The band performed at their biggest ever concert at the Monsters of rock 17 festival. August 1985. they performed with Bon Jovi and rat in England, where they performed to 70,000 people. A performance in Oakland, California at the Day on the Green festival was in front of 60,000 people.

March 1986. the band recorded their third studio album, Master Of Puppets. it was the first album to be certified "Gold" 4. November 1986. it has been certified platinum six times.  After the release of the album, Metallica supported Ozzy Osbourne's tour of the United States. Hetfield broke his wrist while riding a skateboard, so he continued the tour only as a vocalist, and the rhythm guitar was played by the band's guitar technician John Marshall.

## Burton's death and Garage Days Re-Revisited (1986-1987)

On September 27, 1986, during the European leg of Metallica's Damage, Inc. Tour, members drew cards to determine which bunks on the tour bus they would sleep in. Burton won and chose to sleep in Hammett's bunk. At around sunrise near Dörarp, Sweden, the bus driver lost control and skidded, which caused the bus to overturn several times. Ulrich, Hammett and Hetfield sustained no serious injuries; however, Burton was pinned under the bus and died. Hetfield said:

> I saw the bus lying right on him. I saw his legs sticking out. I freaked. The bus driver, I recall, was trying to yank the blanket out from under him to use for other people. I just went, "Don't fucking do that!" I already wanted to kill the [bus driver]. I don't know if he was drunk or if he hit some ice. All I knew was, he was driving and Cliff wasn't alive anymore
>
>

About 40 people auditioned for the bass guitar, including Hammett's childhood friend. There were a lot of bass players from a lot of different bands. Jason Newsted, who had learned the entire Metallica setlist, after rehearsing with members of the band, was hired as Burton's replacement.

Jason's first live performance with the band was that same year at the California breakaway.

After Newsted joined the band, they lfinally moving to  northern San Francisco and tart tour in Europe an US . The tour ended in March 1987. Hetfield broke his wrist again while skateboarding, forcing the band to cancel Saturday Night Live and few more performances

August 1987. The $5.98 E. P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited

This E. P. it came out as a check on a new music studio, a check on Jason Newsted's talent, and a release from the sadness and stress of Burton's death. A video titled "Cliff' Em All " was released in 1987. it was a kind of memorial to Cliff Burton and his three years in the band. TheVHS recording contains bass solos, private recordings and pictures.

## ...And Justice For All (1988-1990)

...And Justice for all is the first studio album since Burton's death, released in 1988. years. The album had considerable commercial success, reaching a position of 6 on the Billboard 200 chart, and was Metallica's first album to enter the top 10. It went platinum 9 weeks after its release. Newsted's bass parts were deliberately muted slightly on the album as part of the continued displeasure he was experiencing. His musical ideas were also rejected, but he still received some credit for the composition "Blackened". There were some complaints about the production. Steve Hugh of Allmusic said that Lars ' drums crackle more than they shake, and his guitars Tinkle. The album was followed by the "Damaged Justice"promotional tour.

After the release of the album, the band released their first music video for the song "One". The band performed the song in an abandoned warehouse and the recording was reworked in accordance with the film Johnny Got his Gun. Instead of arranging a license agreement, the band bought the rights to the film. The reworked version was submitted to MTV, with no additional elements from the film, which MTV censored. They later accepted the reworked version, and the video introduced Metallica to viewers for the first time. The video went to 38. position in 1999. the year MTV released its list of the 100 greatest videos of all time, and it appeared on the 25th edition. anniversary of the A. D. D. video, which featured the most popular videos on MTV in the last 25 years.

## Metallica (1990-1993)

October 1990. in 1999, Metallica entered  One studio in North Hollywood to record their new album with new producesr ,  Bob Rock, who had done business with the bands The Cult, Bon Jovi and Motley crew. Album titled Metallica (also known as the Black Album) was remixed three times and cost 1 million. Although distribution was stalled until 1991. in the year, the album reached number one on the Billboard 200 chart. it is this album that is worthy of the attention that Metallica caused to a wider audience and it was 15 times platinum in the US, making it 26. best-selling album in the country of all time.

The tour that accompanied the album lasted 14 months, and the band played around the US, UK and Japan. April 1992. Metallica appeared at a tribute concert for Freddie Mercury, performing three songs. Hetfield performed "Stone Cold Crazy" with the rest of Queen and Tommy Lee.

At the joint concert of Metallica and Guns and Roses,at 8. August 1992.  James Hetfield suffered second and third degree burns to his face, arms and legs. This was due to a mix-up with pyrotechnics, when James fell into a 3.7-meter flame while performing "Fade To Black". Guitar tech John Marshall again replaced Hetfield in rhythm guitar for the rest of the tour, as James was unable to play so he just sang. November 1993. Metallica released a live album called Live Shit: Binge & Purge. The collection included 3 CDs, three VHS/DVD  recordings and one book.

## Load, ReLoad, Garage Inc. S&M (1994-1999)

After nearly three years of touring , including a performance at Woodstock in 1994. the band returned to recording for their sixth studio album. The band went on a brief hiatus in the summer of 1994. the year and had an open-air performance at Donington Park in the United Kingdom, which also featured the bands Slayer, Skid Row, Slashs Sneakpit, Therapy and Corrosion of conformity. The tour was called "Escape from the Studio '95." The band spent nearly a year recording new songs, resulting in the 1996 album Load. Same year, album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 rankings, for the second time in Metallica history.

The album cover was made by Andreas Seran, entitled "Blood and Semen III". This album marked a change in the band's musical direction, when the members also cut the long hair they had previously had.

Metallica led the alternative rock festival "Lollapalooza" in the summer of 1996.

During the early production of the album, the band prepared enough material for another album. This resulted in a follow-up album ReLoad.

And this album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart.

Metallica in 1998. made a double album of re-recorded songs called Garage Inc... The first disc contains covered songs by the bands Diamond Head, Killing Jocke, Misfits, Thin Lizzy, Mercyful fate and Black Sabbath. The second disc was the original album The $5.98 E. P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited.

The album charted at number two on the Billboard 200.

On  21. and 22. April 1999. Metallica recorded two performances with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael Kamen. Kamen, who had previously worked on orchestrations for  "Nothing Else Matters", pitched the band the idea of pairing Metallica with a symphony orchestra. METALLICA recorded two new songs, along with Kamen, for this performance: No Leaf Clover and Minus Human. Audio recordings and video/dvd  from the concert were released in 1999. an album and concert film called S & M. The album also reached the second position on the Billboard 200 chart, and on  the Top Internet Albums chart reached the first position.

## 2001–2006: Some Kind of Monster, St. Anger, and Trujillo joins

In April 2001, filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky began following Metallica to document the recording process of the band's next studio album.

Over two years they recorded more than 1,000 hours of footage.

On July 19, 2001, before preparations to enter the recording studio, Hetfield entered rehab to treat his "alcoholism and other addictions".

All recording plans were put on hold and the band's future was in doubt. Hetfield left rehab on December 4, 2001,and the band returned to the recording studio on April 12, 2002. Hetfield was required to limit his work to four hours a day between noon and 4 pm, and to spend the rest of his time with his family.

The footage recorded by Berlinger and Sinofsky was compiled into the documentary Metallica: Some Kind of Monster, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2004.

In June 2003, Metallica's eighth studio album, St. Anger, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, and drew mixed reactions from critics. Ulrich's "steely" sounding snare drum and the absence of guitar solos received particular criticism.The title track, "St. Anger", won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 2004; it was used as the official theme song for WWE's SummerSlam 2003.

For the duration of St. Anger's recording period, producer Bob Rock played bass on the album and in several live shows at which Metallica performed during that time. Once the record was completed, the band started to hold auditions for Newsted's permanent replacement.

Bassists Pepper Keenan, Jeordie White, Scott Reeder, Eric Avery, Danny Lohner, and Chris Wyse—among others—auditioned for the role. After three months of auditions, Robert Trujillo, formerly of Suicidal Tendencies and Ozzy Osbourne's band, was chosen as the new bassist. Newsted, who had joined Canadian thrash metal band Voivod by that time, was Trujillo's replacement in Osbourne's band during the 2003 Ozzfest tour, which included Voivod

Before the band's set at the 2004 Download Festival, Ulrich was rushed to the hospital after having an anxiety seizure and was unable to perform. Hetfield searched for last-minute volunteers to replace Ulrich.

Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo and Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison volunteered. Lombardo performed "Battery" and "The Four Horsemen"

Ulrich's drum technician Flemming Larsen performed "Fade to Black", and Jordison performed the remainder of the set. Having toured for two years in support of St. Anger on the Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003 and the Madly in Anger with the World Tour, with multi-platinum rock band Godsmack in support, Metallica took a break from performing and spent most of 2005 with friends and family. The band opened for The Rolling Stones at SBC Park in San Francisco on November 13 and 15, 2005.

## 2006–2013: Death Magnetic and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction

In February 2006, Metallica announced on its official website that after 15 years, long-time producer Bob Rock would not be producing the band's next studio album. Instead, the band chose to work with producer Rick Rubin.

Around the same time, a petition signed by 1,500 fans was posted online in an attempt to encourage the band to prohibit Rock from producing Metallica albums, saying he had too much influence on the band's sound and musical direction. Bob Rock said the petition touched his feelings; but he added, "sometimes, even with a great coach, a team keeps losing. You have to get new blood in there.

In December 2006, Metallica released a DVD titled The Videos 1989–2004,

In 2006. Metallica recorded a guitar-based interpretation of Ennio Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold" for a tribute album titled We All Love Ennio Morricone, which was released in February 2007. The track received a Grammy nomination at the 50th Grammy Awards for the category "Best Rock Instrumental Performance". A recording of "The Ecstasy of Gold" has been played to introduce Metallica's performances since the 1980s.

Metallica scheduled the release of the album Death Magnetic as September 12, 2008, and the band filmed a music video for the album's first single, "The Day That Never Comes".

Death Magnetic debuted at number one in the U.S., selling 490,000 units; Metallica became the first band to have five consecutive studio albums debut at number one in the history of the Billboard 200. A week after its release, Death Magnetic remained at number one on the Billboard 200 and the European album chart; it also became the fastest selling album of 2008 in Australia. Death Magnetic remained at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart for three consecutive weeks. Metallica was one of two artists whose album—the other being Jack Johnson's album Sleep Through the Static—remained on the Billboard 200 for three consecutive weeks at number one in 2008. Death Magnetic also remained at number one on Billboard's Hard Rock, Modern Rock/Alternative and Rock album charts for five consecutive weeks. The album reached number one in 32 countries outside the U.S., including the UK, Canada, and Australia. In November 2008, Metallica's record deal with Warner Bros. ended and the band considered releasing its next album through the internet.

On January 14, 2009, it was announced that Metallica would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 4, 2009, and that former bassist Jason Newsted—who left the band in 2001—would perform with the band at the ceremony. Initially, it was announced that the matter had been discussed and that bassist Trujillo had agreed not to play because he "wanted to see the Black Album band".However, during the band's set of "Master of Puppets" and "Enter Sandman", both Trujillo and Newsted were on stage. Ray Burton, father of the late Cliff Burton, accepted the honor on his behalf. Although he was not to be inducted with them, Metallica invited Dave Mustaine to take part in the induction ceremony. Mustaine declined because of his touring commitments in Europe.

Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax performed on the same bill for the first time on June 16, 2010, at Warsaw Babice Airport, Poland, as a part of the Sonisphere Festival series. The show in Sofia, Bulgaria, on June 22, 2010, was broadcast via satellite to cinemas.

Metallica's World Magnetic Tour ended in Melbourne on November 21, 2010. The band had been touring for more than two years in support of Death Magnetic. To accompany the final tour dates in Australia and New Zealand, a live, limited edition EP of past performances in Australia called Six Feet Down Under was released. The EP was followed by Six Feet Down Under (Part II), which was released on November 12, 2010 Part 2 contains a further eight songs recorded during the first two Oceanic Legs of the World Magnetic Tour. On November 26, 2010, Metallica released a live EP titled Live at Grimey's, which was recorded in June 2008 at Grimey's Record Store, just before the band's appearance at Bonnaroo Music Festival that year.

In a June 2009 interview with Italy's Rock TV, Ulrich said Metallica was planning to continue touring until August 2010, and that there were no plans for a tenth album. He said he was sure the band would collaborate with producer Rick Rubin again. According to Blabbermouth.net, the band was considering recording its next album in the second half of 2011. In November 2010, during an interview with The Pulse of Radio, Ulrich said Metallica would return to writing in 2011. Ulrich said, "There's a bunch of balls in the air for 2011, but I think the main one is we really want to get back to writing again. We haven't really written since, what, '06, '07, and we want to get back to kind of just being creative again. Right now we are going to just chill out and then probably start up again in, I'd say, March or April, and start probably putting the creative cap back on and start writing some songs.

On November 9, 2010, Metallica announced it would be headlining the Rock in Rio festival in Rio de Janeiro on September 25, 2011. On December 13, 2010, the band announced it would again play as part of the "big four" during the Sonisphere Festival at Knebworth House, Hertfordshire, on July 8, 2011. It was the first time all of the "big four" members played on the same stage in the UK.

In an interview at the April 2011 Big Four concert, Robert Trujillo said Metallica will work with Rick Rubin again as producer for the new album and were "really excited to write some new music. There's no shortage of riffage in Metallica world right now." He added, "The first album with Rick was also the first album for me, so in a lot of ways, you're kind of testing the water. Now that we're comfortable with Rick and his incredible engineer, Greg Fidelman, who worked with Slayer, actually, on this last record—it's my hero—it's a great team. And it's only gonna better; I really believe that. So I'm super-excited. In June 2011, Rubin said Metallica had begun writing its new album.

On June 15, 2011, Metallica announced that recording sessions with singer-songwriter Lou Reed had concluded. The album, which was titled Lulu, was recorded over several months and comprised ten songs based on Frank Wedekind's "Lulu" plays Earth Spirit and Pandora's Box. The album was released on October 31, 2011. The recording of the album was problematic at times; Lars Ulrich later said Lou Reed challenged him to a "street fight".On October 16, 2011, Robert Trujillo confirmed that the band was back in the studio and writing new material. He said, "The writing process for the new Metallica album has begun. We've been in the studio with Rick Rubin, working on a couple of things, and we're going to be recording during the most of next year."

Metallica was due to make its first appearance in India at the "India Rocks" concert, supporting the 2011 Indian Grand Prix. However, the concert was canceled when the venue was proven to be unsafe. Fans raided the stage during the event and the organizers were later arrested for fraud. Metallica made its Indian debut in Bangalore on October 30, 2011. On November 10, it was announced that Metallica would headline the main stage on Saturday June 9, 2012, at the Download Festival at Donnington Park and that the band would play The Black Album in its entirety. Other bands headlinening 3 nights event were The Prodigy and Black Sabbath.

Metallica celebrated its 30th anniversary by playing four shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco in December 2011. The shows were exclusive to Metallica Fan Club members and tickets were charged at $6 each or $19.81 for all four nights. The shows consisted of songs from the band's career and featured guest appearances by artists who had either helped or had influenced Metallica. These shows were notable because Lloyd Grant, Dave Mustaine, Jason Newsted, Glenn Danzig, Ozzy Osbourne, Jerry Cantrell, band Apocalyptica, members of Diamond Head, and King Diamond joined Metallica on stage for all appropriate songs. In December 2011, Metallica began releasing songs that were written for Death Magnetic but were not included on the album online. On December 13, 2011, the band released Beyond Magnetic, a digital EP release exclusively on iTunes. It was released on CD in January 2012.

On February 7, 2012, Metallica announced that it would start a new music festival called Orion Music + More, which took place on June 23 and 24, 2012, in Atlantic City. Metallica also confirmed that it would headline the festival on both days and would perform two of its most critically acclaimed albums in their entirety: The Black Album on one night, and Ride the Lightning on the other.

In November 2012, Metallica left Warner Bros. Records and launched an independent record label, Blackened Recordings, which will produce the band's future releases. The band acquired the rights to all of its studio albums, which were all reissued through the new label. Blackened releases were licensed through Warner subsidiary Rhino Entertainment in North America and internationally through Universal Music.

## 2013–2019: Metallica: Through the Never and Hardwired... to Self-Destruct

In an interview with Classic Rock on January 8, 2013, Ulrich said regarding the band's upcoming album, "What we're doing now certainly sounds like a continuation [of Death Magnetic]". He also said, "I love Rick [Rubin]. We all love Rick. We're in touch with Rick constantly. We'll see where it goes. It would stun me if the record came out in 2013. Also in 2013, the band starred in a 3D concert film titled Metallica: Through the Never, which was directed by Antal Nimród and was released in IMAX theaters on September 27.

In an interview dated July 22, 2013, Ulrich told Ultimate Guitar, "2014 will be all about making a new Metallica record"; he said the album will most likely be released during 2015.] Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo later confirmed the band's intention to enter the studio. At the second Orion Music + More festival held in Detroit, the band played under the name "Dehaan"—a reference to actor Dane DeHaan, who starred in Metallica: Through the Never. The band performed its debut album Kill 'Em All in its entirety, celebrating the 30th anniversary of its release.

On December 8, 2013, the band played a show called "Freeze 'Em All" in Antarctica, becoming the first band to play on all seven continents. The performance was filmed and released as a live album the same month.

At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards in January 2014, Metallica performed "One" with Chinese pianist Lang Lang. In March 2014, Metallica began a tour called "Metallica By Request", in which fans request songs for the band to perform. A new song, titled "Lords of Summer" was written for the concerts and released as a "first take" demo in June 2014. In June 2014, the band headlined the Glastonbury Festival in an attempt to attract new fans. Ulrich said, "We have one shot, you never know if you'll be invited back".

They also were announced to headline Lollapalooza in March 2015, returning to perform there for the first time in 20 years. On May 2, 2015, Metallica performed their third annual Metallica Day at AT&T Park. Metallica were also announced to play at X Games for the first time at X Games Austin 2015 in Austin, Texas.

In late October, the band unveiled a new website with an introduction from Ulrich containing footage from the studio of the band working on new material. On November 2, Metallica were announced to play "The Night Before" Super Bowl 50 at AT&T Park.

In April 2016, during the week leading up to Record Store Day, for which the band was its ambassador for 2016, Ulrich told Billboard that the band's expanded role within the music industry had played a part in the amount of time that it had taken to write and record the album. "The way we do things now is very different than the way we did things back in the days of Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning. Nowadays we like to do so many different things." Ulrich was also optimistic that production of the album had almost reached its completion. "Unless something radical happens it would be difficult for me to believe that it won't come out in 2016". On August 18, 2016, the band announced via their website that their tenth studio album, Hardwired... to Self-Destruct, would be released worldwide on November 18, 2016, via their independent label, Blackened Recordings. They also unveiled the track listing, album artwork, and released a music video for the album's first single, "Hardwired". The album was released as scheduled and debuted at number one on the Billboard 100

Metallica announced they would be touring the US and Canada in summer of 2017 for the WorldWired Tour. The stadium tour also includes Avenged Sevenfold, Volbeat and Gojira as supporting acts. On August 7, 2017, Metallica was invited by the San Francisco Giants again for the fifth annual "Metallica Night" with Hammett and Hetfield performing the national anthem. In January 2018, the band announced that they would be reissuing The $5.98 E.P. – Garage Days Re-Revisited on April 13 for Record Store Day,and the sixth annual "Metallica Night" was also announced a few weeks later, this time in April, with all proceeds going to the All Within My Hands Foundation, which the band created in late 2017. In February 2018, the band announced a second set of North American tour dates, most of which for cities that they had not visited in up to thirty years.

## 2019–present: Further activity and 72 Seasons

In an interview with Australian magazine The Music's official podcast in March 2019, Trujillo said that Metallica had begun jamming on new material for its next studio album. In an interview with Australian magazine Mixdown the following month, Hammett said that the band had tentative plans to enter the studio after the conclusion of its WorldWired Tour. He stated, "We're in our third year since Hardwired. Maybe we can get a bit more focus and go into the studio a bit sooner." After not contributing any writing to Hardwired... to Self-Destruct, Hammett said regarding his ideas for the new album, "I have a ton of material. I've over-compensated, so I'm ready to go anytime.

In March 2019, Metallica announced that its WorldWired Tour would continue with Slipknot in support. Later that month, the band announced that it would perform at the grand opening of San Francisco's new Chase Center with the San Francisco Symphony in September to celebrate the twenty-year anniversary of S&M. The commemorative shows, titled S&M2, were screened in more than 3,000 theaters worldwide on October 9; the event featured arrangements from the original S&M concerts as well as new arrangements for songs recorded since then and a cover of the Alexander Mosolov piece Iron Foundry, and were conducted by Edwin Outwater and San Francisco Symphony music director Michael Tilson Thomas. S&M2 went on to earn $5.5 million at the box office, making it the biggest global rock event cinema release of all time; a second screening was later announced for October 30 as a result. In August 2020, the band announced that they would release the S&M2 performances as an album, DVD and box set.

In July 2019, Metallica announced a set of South American tour dates for April 2020 with Greta Van Fleet in support. In September, ahead of that year's Global Citizen Festival, it was announced that Metallica would perform at the following year's festival in September 2020 alongside artists such as Billie Eilish, Miley Cyrus and Coldplay, in what would be the final event of Global Poverty Project's year-long Global Goal Live: The Possible Dream campaign.

The following day, on September 27, Metallica announced that Hetfield had re-entered a rehabilitation program and that its Australia/New Zealand tour would be postponed. In a statement by Ulrich, Hammett and Trujillo, the band spoke of the devastation of the news, saying that Hetfield "[had] been struggling with addiction on and off for many years" and that all tickets would be fully refunded. Ulrich later added that Hetfield was "in the process of healing himself", and that the band hoped to return to Australia and New Zealand in 2020. The band's other commitments, including a benefit concert in March 2020, were still expected to continue as planned; a further five US festival appearances were announced in October. These shows were later postponed or cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and to support Hetfield's recovery.

In March 2020, the band began a series on YouTube and Facebook called #MetallicaMondays, where they streamed full archived shows every Monday to relieve boredom while staying home and social distancing amid the pandemic. In May 2020, while in quarantine, Metallica performed a virtual acoustic version of "Blackened", titled "Blackened 2020", which was later made available for download.

On August 10, 2020, Metallica played a show at Gundlach-Bundschu Winery in Sonoma, California, which was only attended by a few crew members, and it was recorded and played for drive-in movies across the U.S. and Canada on August 29.

On November 28, 2022, the band released the single "Lux Æterna". On January 19, 2023, Metallica released the second single titled "Screaming Suicide". On March 1, 2023, Metallica released the third single titled "If Darkness Had a Son". On March 30, 2023, Metallica released a music video for the album's title track, "72 Seasons". The band released their eleventh studio album 72 Seasons on April 14, 2023.

## Legacy and influence

Metallica has become one of the most influential heavy metal bands of all time and is credited as one of the "big four" of thrash metal, along with Slayer, Anthrax, and Megadeth.

The band has sold more than 125 million records worldwide, including an RIAA-certified 66 million and Nielsen SoundScan-reported 58,000,000 in the US, making Metallica one of the most commercially successful bands of all time.

The writers of The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll said Metallica gave heavy metal "a much-needed charge".Stephen Thomas Erlewine and Greg Prato of Allmusic said Metallica "expanded the limits of thrash, using speed and volume not for their own sake, but to enhance their intricately structured compositions", and called the band "easily the best, most influential heavy metal band of the '80s, responsible for bringing the music back to Earth".

Jonathan Davis of Korn said he respects Metallica as his favorite band; he said, "I love that they've done things their own way and they've persevered over the years and they're still relevant to this day. I think they're one of the greatest bands ever.

Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin said Metallica has been the biggest influence on the band, stating, "they really changed my life when I was 16 years old—I'd never heard anything that heavy".

Chuck Billy of Testament has also cited Metallica as an influence on the band, as well as Hetfield as "an inspiration with clever lyrics"; he added, "When I first started hearing Metallica it was something new to me the way his cadence of vocal styles sang to the music.

On April 4, 2009, Metallica were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. They entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the second year they were eligible and first year they were nominated. Metallica's induction into the Hall included its current lineup, James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Robert Trujillo, and Lars Ulrich, and former members Jason Newsted and Cliff Burton.

MTV ranked Metallica the third "Greatest Heavy Metal Band in History".

Metallica was ranked 42nd on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of All Time",was listed fifth on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock", and the band was number one on VH1's "20 Greatest Metal Bands" list.

Rolling Stone placed the band 61st on its list of "The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time"; its albums Master of Puppets and Metallica were ranked at numbers 167 and 252 respectively on the magazine's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Master of Puppets was named in Q Magazine's "50 Heaviest Albums of All Time",and was ranked number one on IGN's "Top 25 Metal Albums", and number one on Metal-rules.com's "Top 100 Heavy Metal Albums" list. "Enter Sandman" was ranked number 399 on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".

Kerrang! released a tribute album titled Master of Puppets: Remastered with the April 8, 2006, edition of the magazine to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Master of Puppets. The album featured cover versions of Metallica songs by Machine Head, Bullet for My Valentine, Chimaira, Mastodon, Mendeed, and Trivium—all of which are influenced by Metallica. At least 15 Metallica tribute albums have been released.

On September 10, 2006, Metallica guest starred on The Simpsons' eighteenth-season premiere, "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer". Hammett's and Hetfield's voices were used in three episodes of the animated television series Metalocalypse.

Finnish cello metal band Apocalyptica released a tribute album titled Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, which features eight Metallica songs played on cellos.

On March 7, 1999, Metallica was inducted into the San Francisco Walk of Fame. The mayor of San Francisco, Willie Brown, proclaimed the day "Official Metallica Day". The band was awarded the MTV Icon award in 2003, and a concert paying tribute to the band with artists performing its songs was held. Performances included Sum 41 and a medley of "For Whom the Bell Tolls", "Enter Sandman", and "Master of Puppets". Staind covered "Nothing Else Matters", Avril Lavigne played "Fuel", hip-hop artist Snoop Dogg performed "Sad but True", Korn played "One", and Limp Bizkit performed "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)".

The Guitar Hero video game series included several of Metallica's songs. "One" was used in Guitar Hero III. The album Death Magnetic was later released as purchasable, downloadable content for the game. "Trapped Under Ice" was featured in the sequel, Guitar Hero World Tour.

In 2009, Metallica collaborated with the game's developers to make Guitar Hero: Metallica, which included a number of Metallica's songs. Harmonix' video game series Rock Band included "Enter Sandman" and "Battery"; "Ride the Lightning", "Blackened", and "...And Justice for All" were released as downloadable tracks.

In October 2020, Miley Cyrus announced that she was planning on recording a Metallica covers album and on January 7, 2021, she announced that she has recorded a cover version of "Nothing Else Matters" that would feature Elton John on piano, drummer Chad Smith from Red Hot Chili Peppers and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

## Band members

· James Hetfield – lead vocals, rhythm guitar (1981–present)
· Kirk Hammett – lead guitar, backing vocals (1983–present)
· Robert Trujillo – bass, backing vocals (2003–present)
· Lars Ulrich – drums (1981–present)
**Session/touring musicians**
· Bob Rock – bass (2001–2003)
· Dave Mustaine – lead guitar, backing vocals (1981–1983)
· Ron McGovney – bass, backing vocals (1981–1982)
· Cliff Burton – bass, backing vocals (1982–1986; died 1986)
· Jason Newsted – bass, backing vocals (1986–2001)

## Studio albums

· Kill 'Em All (1983)

· Ride the Lightning (1984)

· Master of Puppets (1986)

· ...And Justice for All (1988)

· Metallica (1991)

· Load (1996)

· Reload (1997)

· St. Anger (2003)

· Death Magnetic (2008)

· Hardwired... to Self-Destruct (2016)

· 72 Seasons (2023)