Stranger Things fans are turning on Metallica, after discovering “problematic” behaviors in their past.
Metallica has gained a new crop of fans in recent months, thanks to the resurgence of their 1986 hit, Master Of Puppets after its inclusion in season four of Stranger Things. Things were looking great, but as of last week, some of their newly-gained fanbase has begun changing their tune.
Reportedly, an army of primarily Gen Z TikTokers are currently on a mission to “cancel” the ’80s metal icons, after discovering their “problematic” history. Among them is a TikTok creator named Serena Trueblood, who is well known for her video series, Is Your Fav Problematic.
In a post from last weekend, which has now amassed 39.5k likes, Serena displays footage of Metallica’s previous bassist, Jason Newsted, seemingly performing a “Nazi salute and march” on stage. There’s footage included of other band members as well, in which they appear to share jokes with a crowd about the then-recent passing of Kurt Cobain.
In the video, James Hetfield, lead singer of Metallica, is also accused of racist behaviour. To illustrate her reasoning, Serena inserts an old clip of Guns N’ Roses backing vocalist, Roberta Freeman, alleging the frontman used a derogatory term for people of colour, whilst referring to American rapper, Ice-T.
https://www.tiktok.com/@serenatrueblood/video/7128697743534476587?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7130052923837859329
“I find it interesting that they only cared about gatekeeping in their fandom when they started getting big again from Stranger Things,” Serena wrote in the caption underneath the clip. “They only cared about what lines their pockets.”
These new revelations have generated mixed responses among Stranger Things fans, with many of them taking to Twitter to share their thoughts. One fan of the sci-fi hit series stated: “I wish I watched this before I bought my Metallica shirt.” Another wrote, “If people are really trying to cancel Metallica I hope they never catch word of Motley Crue.” Check out some of the Tweets below.
metallica defending new fans and then those exact people canceling them 2 weeks later is so incredibly funny to me 😭
— tammy (@duffsvelvet) August 7, 2022
metallica is a horrible band that should be cancelled. that being said, you should give your tickets to me
— jesse pinkmans bf (@PINKMANLOVEB0T) August 8, 2022
If people are really trying to cancel Metallica I hope they never catch word of Motley Crue 😶
— Chief Zombie (@d34dvibes) August 8, 2022
