King Diamond Says That It Is An ‘Honour’ To Have Inspired Metallica

King Diamond Says That It Is An 'Honour' To Have Inspired Metallica
King Diamond: Cecil, CC BY-SA 3.0 (Wikimedia Commons)/ Metallica: Metallica Facebook
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During an interview hosted by Metal Hammer, which featured fan submitted questions, King Diamond was asked which band he is the most proud of inspiring.

Of the many bands that the Mercyful Fate singer has inspired, he named that of thrash metal titans Metallica. In his response to the question, Diamond speaks to Metallica being the biggest metal band in the world, and what it means to him for Metallica to have covered his band’s songs.

King Diamond talks Metallica

“Oh, there are many, but it has to be Metallica. They are the biggest metal band in the world, and for them to be inspired and to cover some of our songs, it’s a huge honour. Lars called me from their studio and said, ‘Want to hear something new?’ and he played me their Mercyful Fate medley and told me it was going to be on an album! Blown away. We’ve played it a few times with them, too.”

Let alone that Mercyful Fate and Diamond’s solo material make for some of the most iconic works of metal in the genre’s history, being able to inspire Metallica is also one hell of an achievement.

During that same interview, King Diamond talks about a matter where Gene Simmons of Kiss once tried to sue the Mercyful Fate singer over his use of makeup. If you want to learn more details about that story and how things ultimately played out, you can follow the link below.

King Diamond Says Gene Simmons Tried To Sue Him Over Makeup Usage

Another act who King Diamond certainly had to have inspired is that of Swedish occult rockers Ghost. In a different interview, the Mercyful Fate singer spoke to people comparing both Ghost and Mercyful Fate, how he views Ghost, and the differences between the two.

To learn more about that story and read what Diamond had to say about said comparisons, you can follow the link below.

“I never felt that they were copying us”: King Diamond Says Ghost Did Not Copy Mercyful Fate