HOW METALLICA BECAME METAL’S FIRST BILLION DOLLAR BAND

ART OF ATTRITION Provides A Devastating Soundtrack To Anger With “Vitriol” Off “...And It Will All End Forever” Out July 2024

Art of Attrition is a blackened technical deathcore band who separated themselves from the underground local scene with their 8-string barrage of dueling melodic guitars, gravity blast beats, intense guttural vocals, and epic orchestration.

Just for the record, the exact amount the band is worth can vary and is estimated online in articles to be between $900 million to $1 billion dollars (US).

Who could imagine a band that started out as four misfits jamming in a garage who could hardly play would go on to be heavy metal's first billion dollar band.

Back in 1981 the band consisted of James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Dave Mustaine and Ron McGovney. Cliff Burton replaced McGovney in 1982 and played with the band until his death in 1986. After his death, Jason Newsted was recruited as the new bassist of the band until his departure in 2001. Robert Trujillo has been the bassist since 2003. The lead guitarist role was taken by Kirk Hammett in 1983 after Dave Mustaine was fired from the band.

The band has sold an RIAA certified 66 million records in the US and over 150 million worldwide, making them the most successful metal band of all time, and one of the most successful artists of all time.

Metallica has made over $100 million in album sales during their career. The band's "Black" album alone has sold over $30 million.

Metallica’s “Wherever We May Roam Tour” was one of their most successful and profitable tours ever. The band earned a total of $96.7 million during this time, which is equivalent to over $180 million in today’s money.

Their “World Wired Tour” launched in 2016 and was one of the highest-grossing tours in history, grossing over $450 by its conclusion in 2019.

Their current M72 World Tour" is generating $6-10 million dollars per show in revenue not including their cut in merchandise.

Lars is considered to have a net worth of $350 million. Besides receiving royalties from Metallica's albums, he's also a huge art collector. He's also involved in real estate and also owns a luxury car collection.

Rob receives most of his wealth from the royalties and tours he completed with Metallica, Suicidal Tendencies, Infectious Grooves, Ozzy Osbourne and Black Label Society. He also receives royalties from writing credits on Death Magnetic, Lulu, Beyond Magnetic, Hardwired To Self Destruct, and S&M2. Rob's net worth is considered around $30 million.

James estimated wealth is over $300 million. Most of his money has been made from his musical royalties and his vast amount of real estate. He also founded Blackened Recordings and owns his own clothing line plus his ESP signature guitar collection. Hetfield also has a massive car collection that consists of 11 custom vehicles, including a 1932 Ford Roadster, a 1934 Packard, a 1948 Jaguar “Black Pearl,” the 1961 Lincoln Continental “Dead Kennedy” and a 1967 Chevy Camaro, among others.

James Hetfield's Car Collection

Kirk's estimated wealth is around $200 million. He owns a great amount of real estate in the San Francisco area. He also loves horror films and has a huge collection of props, costumes and posters. He even has his own convention called ‘Kirk Von Hammett’s Fear FestEvil’. He also owns a restaurant called “El Charro” located in San Francisco.