Skip to content
News

Lars Ulrich on Metallica’s Grammys Performance With Lady Gaga: “We’re Just Getting Started”

LOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 12: Recording artists Lars Ulrich (L) of music group Metallica and Lady Gaga perform onstage during The 59th GRAMMY Awards at STAPLES Center on February 12, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for NARAS)

Despite their performance not going as planned, Metallica’s Lars Ulrich had nothing but great things to say about Lady Gaga’s duet with the metal group at the Grammys. “Her voice, her attitude, her outlook on everything is so awesome,” he told Rolling Stone. “[The performance] was so effortless and organic and she just has the spirit of hard rock and metal flowing through her veins. It comes really easy for her. There’s nothing contrived; she just has this super warm, easy energy.”

“[She was the] quintessential perfect fifth member of this band,” he added. “We already started fast-forwarding to the next chapter when we can do more of this. It’s not one of those ’20 lawyers, strategists and managers trying to force two people from two different worlds to figure out how to spend four minutes together on a national telecast.’ Of any of these undertakings, this is about as organic and authentic as there’s ever been one. We’re just getting started.”

Ulrich also opened up about James Hetfield’s microphone not working for the first half of the performance. While he didn’t confirm reports that a stagehand unplugged it, he did describe the incident as a “slight technical snafu.”

“You just learn to live with that side of it,” he said. “It happened to Adele last year. I guess this year it was our turn.”