“People get their ya-yas when they see people struggling for some crazy reason”: Dave Mustaine explains “animosity” he received after Metallica exit

Megadeth in 2024 and Metallica in 2023 — (Image credit: Mariano Regidor/Redferns | Scott Legato/Getty Images)

Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine has opened up on the “animosity” he received after getting fired from Metallica.

The 62-year-old, who played lead guitar in Metallica from 1982 to ’83, was dismissed from the heavy metal giants over conflicts arising from his alcohol use. He was replaced by current lead guitarist Kirk Hammett.

Talking to Phoenix New Times, Mustaine says that the firing made him a subject of disdain in the metal community.

“Once we broke up with James [Hetfield, vocals/guitars] and Lars [Ulrich, drums] and we went our separate ways, it was really weird with all the animosity from people I didn’t even know,” he remembers.

Elsewhere in the interview, the now-Megadeth singer/guitarist wonders if the treatment is a result of jealousy over his career. Megadeth are the second-best-selling thrash metal band worldwide, after Metallica, and reached number two in the US album charts with 1992’s Countdown To Extinction.

“People get their ya-yas when they see people struggling for some crazy reason,” Mustaine says.

“There’s the people out there who love you and want you to do good and the people out there, for whatever reason, who don’t want you to do good. You ask yourself, ‘What did I do to you? Are you that fucking jealous?’

“There’s a lot of people like that. You just have to learn to avoid them.”

Mustaine also reflects on his younger, infamously outspoken self, saying his attitude was sometimes warranted but sometimes excessive.

“There have been numerous times where people had a right to take exception with something I’ve done because there have been some things that I did or said that I look back now and I think, ‘Wow, that was a little over the top, Dave,’” he reflects, “but sometimes things just need to be said.

“There were no people that had the balls to say anything, but that ain’t me. If someone was trying to pull a scam with us, that’s not going to happen.”

Megadeth released their 16th studio album – The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead! – in 2022 and are currently touring North America to promote it. See the full list of dates and get tickets via the band’s website.

Bassist James LoMenzo recently revealed that Megadeth have started work on album 17.

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Louder’s resident Gojira obsessive was still at uni when he joined the team in 2017. Since then, Matt’s become a regular in Metal Hammer and Prog, at his happiest when interviewing the most forward-thinking artists heavy music can muster. He’s got bylines in The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, NME and many others, too. When he’s not writing, you’ll probably find him skydiving, scuba diving or coasteering.