James Alan Hetfield was born on August 3rd, 1963, in Downey, California. He answered Lars Ulrich's classified advertisement in 1981 and together they founded METALLICA, the band that would sell more records than any other in metal history. As lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and primary lyricist, Hetfield built his reputation on a right hand of almost inhuman precision — the downpicked gallop of "Master of Puppets" and "Blackened" remains a rite of passage for guitarists — and on a voice that hardened from adolescent bark into one of the most recognisable instruments in rock. His lyrics turned childhood loss, addiction and rage into material that sold to stadiums without ever quite sanding off its edges. Across more than four decades and eleven studio albums, Hetfield has remained the anchor of METALLICA's sound and, arguably, of modern heavy metal itself.
