MEGADETH's DAVE MUSTAINE: 'I Think ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME Is Opposed To Me Being In There'

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine says that he believes the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is "opposed" to him being inducted into the Cleveland-based institution.

Artists are eligible for the Hall Of Fame 25 years after the release of their debut recording. Honorees are chosen by more than 900 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame foundation voters, along with a single ballot containing the aggregate results of the annual online fan vote.

After a fan tweeted that it was "past time" for MEGADETH to be inducted into the Rock Hall, Mustaine responded: I think that the @rockhall is opposed to me being in there." He added: "It is one of my bucket list items: The R&R HOF and my Grammy." Another fan then tweeted that Mustaine "deserve[s] both" a Grammy and a Rock Hall induction, to which the MEGADETH leader replied: "Thank you. I just wish that both of those boards felt the same way that you do. I am in there bcuz of Met in a way. But I'd like Megs to go!"

Mustaine told Noisey last year that he was "hoping" to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, but added that "if they don't want me in there, it's okay. I mean, I am in there vis-à-vis METALLICA, and no matter what those guys say or what anybody believes about their induction ceremony, they wouldn't have been there if it wasn't for me being in the band, because I was there in the beginning, so I have some satisfaction."

Mustaine, who was a member of METALLICA for less than two years, from 1981 to 1983, before being dismissed and replaced by Kirk Hammett, was not inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the band during the April 2009 ceremony at Cleveland, Ohio's Public Auditorium.

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich later explained to The Plain Dealer that Mustaine was not included because "you've got to kind of cap it somewhere. Dave Mustaine never played on any METALLICA records. No disrespect to him. But there [were] half a dozen other people that were in the lineup in the early days. We thought . . . the fair thing to do would be to include anybody that played on a METALLICA record."

He added: "Dave Mustaine was in the band for 11 months, predominantly in 1982. . . . I'm not trying to play it down. I have nothing but respect and admiration for his accomplishments since."

METALLICA invited Mustaine to attend the Rock Hall induction. He declined, citing European tour commitments, but issued a statement congratulating the band. He later explained his absence in an interview, saying: "I'm not gonna sit in the audience and watch the band I started with these two guys get inducted and me not be a part of it."

He added: "There's ten million people that agree [I should have been inducted]. . . You know what [Lars] said to me?! He said, [imitating Lars' Danish accent] 'Only the people that are on the fucking record can be at the Hall Of Fame, man.' And I was like, 'Well, Hooked On Phonics worked for me; I can read my name; it's all over [the first METALLICA album]. [Laughs] But you know what?! It's okay, 'cause if I'm gonna get into the Hall Of Fame, there's nothing he can do to stop me."