42 years. That’s how long heavy metal band Metallica has been running in a music industry notorious for its unpredictability. Since its inception in 1981, Metallica has seen more than its fair share of highs and lows. From performing to a reported 1.6 million fans in Russia, to frontman James Hetfield’s struggle with substance abuse, not many can say they’ve been together for almost half a century. Yet here they are, currently in the midst of their “M72 World Tour,” which extends into 2026. A musical career filled with milestones, Metallica celebrated one particular achievement by releasing a special tribute album, featuring a list of equally talented musicians from around the globe.
On September 10, 2021, Metallica released their star-studded tribute album The Metallica Blacklist, a juggernaut featuring covers of all 12 tracks from their 1991 self-titled album, Metallica (commonly referred to as The Black Album). With 53 musicians on board, each song is recorded an average of 5–7 times, with the exception of “Nothing Else Matters,” which has 12 covers.
Considered one of Metallica’s more ambitious projects, The Metallica Blacklist celebrates different musical styles, generations, and cultures coming together to deliver their own spin on the tracks. Considering how Metallica was once gate kept by heavy metal purists back in the early ‘90s, The Metallica Blacklist breaks the barriers of genre, proving that their music is universal without going astray from the band’s roots. Reacting to the release of The Metallica Blacklist, Hetfield expresses his gratitude towards the artists who have contributed to the project.
While the number of artists themselves comes off as excessive, the purpose of the tribute album is to celebrate a “vast range of genres, generations, continents and more, each contributing a unique interpretation of their favorite Black Album cut.” The feature roster includes big-name superstars like Miley Cyrus, to indie gems like Mac DeMarco. Just as Metallica is grateful for their features, their chosen artists also share the same sentiment for the legendary band. Songstress Phoebe Bridgers, who covered “Nothing Else Matters,” has “always been a big Metallica fan.” As a teenager, she watched a Metallica set at Outside Lands.
One particular feature has a special connection with Metallica. Weezer, who did a rendition of “Enter Sandman,” is best known for making nerd rock music with hits like “Buddy Holly” and “Island in the Sun.” But Weezer’s frontman Rivers Cuomo, is a well-known Metallica fan — so much so that the riff in “Undone (The Sweater Song)” is an unintentional rip-off of the riff in Metallica’s “Sanitarium.” The irony is that when Cuomo was writing “The Sweater Song,” he approached it with the mentality of wanting to write a Velvet Underground song. Having been a metalhead since high school, which is the reason he learned his instrument in the first place, it’s no surprise that his metal roots would show unconsciously. Fortunately for Cuomo, drummer Lars Ulrich “was cool” about the riff.
Receiving 10 Grammys (out of 26 nominations) is one thing, but nothing beats Metallica receiving their flowers from Sir Elton John. Fittingly, John is also part of The Metallica Blacklist project, covering what he deems “one of the best songs ever written.” Joined by fellow superstar Miley Cyrus, their rendition of “Nothing Else Matters” trades Hetfield’s and Kirk Hammett’s guitars for John’s piano. John even went on to make it publicly clear just how much he loves the song on The Howard Stern Show, moving a visibly touched Hetfield almost to tears.
“It’s a song that never gets old. And playing on this track, I just couldn’t wait. The chord structure, the melodies, the time changes, it’s got drama written all over it. I have to say, it was a no-brainer playing on this song. Metallica are probably the crème de la crème of those kinds of bands. You can’t really define them. They’re not a heavy metal band. They’re a musical band. Their songs aren’t just heavy metal. They’re beautiful songs. This is such a melodic song — it’s f***ing great, actually.”
