10 Times Metallica Did Whatever The Hell They Wanted

With the benefit of hindsight, Metallica’s legal dispute with file sharing network Napster is one with a great deal of validity.

Fast forward 20 years and the music industry is one going through turmoil, with the advent of the internet leading on to illegal file sharing, bands have had to shift their business model to make any money at all, and studios are incredibly hesitant to sign any but the most promising artists in an effort to protect what little capital they have left.

Back in 2000 however, the idea of four millionaires taking a website to court because it gives the fans their music free of charge was an incredibly hard pill to swallow. Despite making a name for themselves in the 80s through the similarly cost free tape trading, Metallica’s decision to protect their intellectual property in such a flagrantly combative way reeked of hypocrisy and greed.

After hearing a demo of an unreleased track on the radio, Lars Ulrich spoke before The Senate Judiciary Committee before taking on Napster and demanding $10 million in damages, as well as the banning of 335,435 user from the service.

The names of these users were delivered in a 600 page document to the offices of Napster, in a wildly misjudged PR move that nearly squandered any and all goodwill Metallica had garnered over the last two decades.