Roger Waters calls James Hetfield a ‘prick’ after Metallica’s Sphere remarks

Roger Waters called Metallica frontman James Hetfield a “prick” after he said the band plans to keep politics out of its Sphere concerts

Waters, the former Pink Floyd singer and bassist who has spent years using his platform to speak about political issues, unloaded on Hetfield during an appearance on “The Katie Halper Show” podcast after the Metallica singer and guitarist’s remarks during the second weekend of the band’s Las Vegas residency.

“Can we stop talking about this prick?” Waters said. “I’m so bored with him. He’s just showing that he’s a complete prick.”

He went on to question Hetfield’s intelligence and musical abilities.

“He’s got an IQ of about three. And why we’re talking about him? I honestly don’t know, because he’s a nobody,” Waters said. “He may have a few hundred million dollars or whatever, but he’s a prick, and he’s no musician. I heard them playing acoustic instruments, and they couldn’t. It was appalling.”

Metallica and Waters both performed at Neil Young’s 30th annual acoustic Bridge School Benefit Concerts at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View in 2016.

Waters also took issue with what he characterized as a lack of empathy from the Metallica musician.

“It’s a shame this prick didn’t have somebody around him to explain that being kind is way more important than all that loud music and bouncing around and whatever,” Waters said.

The exchange follows comments Hetfield made during Metallica’s Saturday, Oct. 10, performance at Sphere, part of the band’s 24-show “Life Burns Faster” residency.

“Unless you live in Vegas, you’ve come a long way to spend some time with Metallica,” Hetfield told the audience, thanking fans for the travel, money and time involved in attending the concert.

He then appeared to take aim at entertainers who use concerts as political platforms.

“I just gotta say, Metallica is not here, like some other entertainers, to influence you with their bulls-, OK?” he said, drawing cheers from the crowd. “We’re here to forget about all the outside s-, OK?

“Metallica’s agenda is love, energy and heavy music, baby!”

Hetfield’s remarks came during a broader debate over how much musicians should use their concerts to address politics, fueled in part by rapper Macklemore’s removal from Ed Sheeran’s North American stadium tour after Macklemore made pro-Palestinian comments from the stage.

Sheeran’s other opening acts subsequently withdrew from the tour in solidarity with Macklemore.

Hetfield did not name Waters, Macklemore or any other artist.

Waters has been one of the music industry’s most outspoken advocates for Palestinian causes. During the Halper interview, he returned to that subject and ended his comments on Hetfield with a call for Palestinian solidarity.

The disagreement highlights a sharp divide between two very different approaches to the role of artists.

Hetfield has repeatedly said he believes politics can divide audiences and that Metallica’s purpose is to bring people together through music. In a 2017 interview with the Chilean newspaper La Tercera, he said, “I hate politics” and explained that he preferred not to discuss his political views because they separated people rather than connecting them.

Metallica’s stance, however, does not mean the band has avoided social or humanitarian causes.

Its All Within My Hands foundation, established in 2017, supports workforce education, hunger relief and disaster response efforts. The Metallica Scholars Initiative supports community colleges around the country, while the foundation also works with food banks and humanitarian organizations.

Waters has taken the opposite approach throughout much of his career, incorporating overt political themes into his performances and publicly criticizing fellow musicians when he believes they have failed to speak out.

Waters has also faced years of controversy himself over his political statements, including comments about Israel and the war in Gaza.

Music label BMG dropped him in 2024 over comments about Israel that drew accusations of antisemitism.

Waters’ latest comments come as he prepares for a major Bay Area appearance of his own.

A new touring production, “Legacy – A Pink Floyd Show,” will stop at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Theatre on Sept. 7. Waters is not scheduled to perform, but he is a major creative force behind the production, which is led by his son, Harry Waters, and features a 10-piece band.

The show will draw from Pink Floyd albums including “The Dark Side of the Moon,” “Wish You Were Here,” “Animals” and “The Wall.”

Meanwhile, Metallica’s Sphere residency continues in Las Vegas through March 13.