METALLICA's LARS ULRICH Offers Advice To Young Musicians: 'You've Gotta Put The Time In'

On Thursday, October 9, California Film Institute's Mill Valley Film Festival featured "Metallica Saved My Life", a documentary that explores the life-changing impact of the San Francisco Bay Area heavy metal band on its fans, as its Centerpiece Screening on at Sequoia Cinema in Mill Valley, California. METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich and "Metallica Saved My Life" director Jonas Åkerlund were on hand for a post-show conversation followed by a reception that evening.

Asked what advice he would give to young artists who are looking to follow in METALLICA's footsteps, Ulrich said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Stick with it. Focus. Certainly the 10,000-hours thing is something I always — it comes up in my head. You've gotta put the time in. There are many different ways you can put the time in it. It could be in book form or at the receiving end of teaching or whatever. But you can also literally play guitars or drums or whatever you're doing and listen. There's no right or wrong path."

He continued: "I think it's pretty clear that with anything, you've gotta put the time in. Whether you're making films or running movie festival, film festivals or whatever, you've just gotta put the time in. And then maybe be honest with yourself about your motives. Now again, there's no right or wrong motives. Do you wanna play music because the passion burns inside you? Do you wanna play music to get famous? Do you want to play music to get wealthy? There's nothing wrong or right with any of it. But don't bullshit yourself what your motives are, if you know what I mean, because that will also lead you to wherever it is you wanna go with probably fewer forks in the road or fewer obstacles."

"Metallica Saved My Life" documents the incredible stories of family, identity, redemption, loss, and salvation that make METALLICA's fans perhaps the most recognized example of why music matters to the world, and of why METALLICA is the kind of band that can literally save lives, including their own.

Åkerlund, who previously directed METALLICA's music videos for 1998's "Turn The Page", 1999's "Whiskey In The Jar" and 2016's "ManUNkind", interviewed fans from 23 different countries for the documentary.

Ulrich told the San Francisco Chronicle the idea for the film was to celebrate "the diversity and the depth and the dedication and the passion of METALLICA fans," which he believes is a much more interesting approach than simply making a documentary about the band.

"We kept seeing the same faces in the front rows, and so getting an understanding of their backstories, that was the most eye-opening thing for me," Ulrich said.

In a statement announcing "Metallica Saved My Life" in April, the band said: "As a few of you may know, we've been working behind the scenes the last couple of years on a new film that will be released later this year starring you guys! 'Metallica Saved My Life' explores our world through the lives of fans who have supported each other through highs, lows, trials and triumphs for over four decades. And yeah, we're in it a little bit too."

Back in July 2023, METALLICA put out a casting call for "superfans" of the band to possibly appear in an upcoming documentary. The filmmakers were looking for "big personalities, unique characters and unexpected stories from METALLICA fans who consider METALLICA to be their favorite band, real 'Fifth Member' types. All stories and walks of life" were "welcome and encouraged to reach out."

The documentary was produced by METALLICA and Mercury Studios, powered by Universal Music Group.

METALLICA will next perform at Chase Center in San Francisco on October 15, as part of Dreamforce's Dreamfest, a concert benefiting UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals, before continuing its "M72" world tour in Australia next month.