'MEGADETH Day' Proclaimed In City Of La Vergne, Tennessee

The City of La Vergne, Tennessee proclaimed January 17, 2026, as "Megadeth Day", recognizing the internationally acclaimed heavy metal band's visit to the city during a special music event hosted locally.

According to a press release, MEGADETH visited La Vergne City Hall on Friday, January 16 for a proclamation presentation by La Vergne mayor Jason Cole, who closed the proclamation by stating, "in celebration of the band's extraordinary contributions to music, their lasting cultural impact, and their continued influence on artists and fans worldwide." Also attending the presentation were vice mayor Steve Noe and aldermen Carol Haas and Kara Hobbs.

The proclamation coincided with the band's presence in La Vergne for "Let There Be Shred: The Ultimate Megadeth Immersive Listening Event", an exclusive, one-day experience described as an all-day celebration offering fans an in-depth look at the band's music, stories, and legacy. The event was held in La Vergne on Saturday, January 17, at the studios where the band's newest album was recorded last year.

MEGADETH's self-titled album will be released January 23 and is described as the band's seventeenth and final studio album, supported by a global farewell tour.

MEGADETH's founder and leader Dave Mustaine has lived in the Nashville area for more than a decade.

The follow-up to 2022's "The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!", "Megadeth" will be released via Mustaine's Tradecraft imprint on Frontiers Label Group's new BLKIIBLK label.

In an August 2025 press release announcing MEGADETH's final album and farewell tour, Mustaine thanked fans for their commitment and love while celebrating the band's impact on the music world.

"There's so many musicians that have come to the end of their career, whether accidental or intentional," Mustaine said. "Most of them don't get to go out on their own terms on top, and that's where I'm at in my life right now. I have traveled the world and have made millions upon millions of fans and the hardest part of all of this is saying goodbye to them."

He continued. "We can't wait for you to hear this album and see us on tour. If there was ever a perfect time for us to put out a new album, it's now. If there was ever a perfect time to tour the world, it's now. This is also a perfect time for us to tell you that it's our last studio album. We've made a lot of friends over the years and I hope to see all of you on our global farewell tour.

"Don't be mad, don't be sad, be happy for us all, come celebrate with me these next few years. We have done something together that's truly wonderful and will probably never happen again. We started a musical style, we started a revolution, we changed the guitar world and how it's played, and we changed the world. The bands I played in have influenced the world. I love you all for it. Thank you for everything."

For its final album, MEGADETH once again worked with Chris Rakestraw, a producer, mixer and engineer who previously worked on MEGADETH's last two LPs, the aforementioned "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" and 2016's "Dystopia".

In addition to Mustaine, MEGADETH's current lineup includes guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari, drummer Dirk Verbeuren and bassist James LoMenzo.

Released in September 2022, MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!", sold 48,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marked MEGADETH's eighth top 10-charting album.

MEGADETH's previous top 10 entries on the Billboard 200 were "Countdown To Extinction" (No. 2, 1992),"Youthanasia" (No. 4, 1994),"Cryptic Writings" (No. 10, 1997),"United Abominations" (No. 8, 2007),"Endgame" (No. 9, 2009),"Super Collider" (No. 6, 2013) and "Dystopia" (No. 3, 2016).

Led by the growled vocals and razor-wire riffing of Mustaine, MEGADETH are one of the "Big Four" thrash titans. Shortly after being kicked out of METALLICA in 1983, Mustaine met bassist David Ellefson, and the pair bonded quickly, forming the core of MEGADETH. Drummer Gar Samuelson and guitarist Chris Poland later joined, and MEGADETH released their underground-hit debut "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" in 1985. Its follow-up, "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", solidified the band's status with sprawling yet tightly wound songs like the uneasy opener "Wake Up Dead" and the fiery title track.

"So Far, So Good... So What!", released in 1988, featured a new lineup as well as a thrashy cover of the SEX PISTOLS' "Anarchy In The U.K." and the anti-PMRC broadside "Hook In Mouth". In 1990 they released "Rust In Peace", with Nick Menza on drums and technical wizard Marty Friedman on guitar; songs such as "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" and "Hangar 18" blended pummeling riffs and suspicion-fueled lyrics with a stadium-rock ambition that matched the era's metal-embracing tendencies.

"Countdown To Extinction", released in 1992, and "Youthanasia", released in 1994, continued the band's dominance of metal and emergence in rock's mainstream, with the latter album's "À Tout Le Monde" being a rare thrash ballad. After a brief breakup in the early 2000s, MEGADETH returned as a de facto Mustaine solo project with 2004's "The System Has Failed". Ellefson rejoined in 2010 prior to the album "Th1rt3en" and remained in the MEGADETH lineup until 2021, when he was fired.

Photo courtesy: City of La Vergne