While Kerry King may most famously be known for his wicked-sounding riffs and his work in Slayer, the guitarist has also been known to collaborate with bands outside the world of thrash metal.
One past collaboration involved the punk group Sum 41. Apparently, the group attempted to reach out to King several times, hoping he would play on their song “What We’re All About.”
During a recent conversation with Metal Hammer, King spoke about this experience, confirming that Sum 41 reached out “10 times” asking him to be part of the song.
King eventually caved in and said he would collab with them – but why exactly did he say yes?
Well, per King himself, it has to partially do with another non-metal collab he took part in. Per the ex-Slayer guitarist (all quotes have been transcribed by Guitar World):
“A friend of mine at the label came to me at an angle that I just couldn’t argue with. He was like, ‘Well, you know you played on the Beastie Boys record [1987’s No Sleep Till Brooklyn].’
“Fuck! Haha, he’s got a point! That was my epiphany. That was before we put ourselves back on the map – those dudes were fun and they were popping.
“So, yeah, I played on the Beastie Boys record and I played on the Sum 41 record. I mean, those weren’t choices for me, those were just career choices I made. Some people may agree with them and some people may not.”
It is awesome to hear that King had a good time playing with Sum 41. If you have not checked out the band’s song “What We’re All About” (or it has been a while), you can check it out below.
How do you feel about metal artists collaborating with non-metal acts? If you want to learn about King’s experience working with the Beastie Boys, you can do so by following the link below.
Kerry King & Beastie Boys Didn't Get Along While Making 'No Sleep Till Brooklyn'
