Family

Trivia

Member of The National Rifle Association.
Is a skilled hunter.
Vocalist and guitarist for the heavy metal band Metallica.
Metallica's 1991 song "The God That Failed" was based on the death of Hetfield's mother, because as a Christian Scientist she believed that her faith in God alone would be able to save her from cancer.
Metallica's hit 1991 song "Enter Sandman" was inspired by fears and nightmares Hetfield had as a child.
He originally wrote the 1991 hit "Nothing Else Matters" as a personal song, not intended to be played in front of anyone else, but Metallica drummer and band mate Lars Ulrich convinced him to use it for a Metallica song, which he did.
His wife is from Argentina and is a former costumer for his band Metallica.
Suffered second-degree burns through a stage pyrotechnic accident while touring in Montreal, Canada, 8 August 1992.
Children: (with wife Francesca) Cali Tee Hetfield, (b. June 13, 1998 at 8 lbs 4 oz & 20 inches in San Francisco, California), Castor Virgil Hetfield, (b. May 18, 2000 at 9 lbs 6 oz & 22 1/2 inches in San Francisco, California) and Marcella Francesca Hetfield (b. January 17, 2002 at 8 lbs 5 oz & 21 1/4 inches in San Francisco, California).
His musical inspirations are Thin Lizzy, Ted Nugent, Venom, Nick Cave, Rocket from the Crypt, The Misfits, Black Sabbath, Diamond Head.
He has English, and some Scots-Irish, ancestry. While most of his family has lived in the United States for many generations, his maternal grandmother was English (born in London, England).
Lives in San Rafael, California.
In 1992 Hetfield was badly burned at the infamous Guns N' Roses / Metallica Stadium Tour in Montreal, Canada, when he accidentally stepped into a pyrotechnic blast. After 17 days he was able to continue vocals with Metallica, but was forced to temporarily give up his guitar duties to a band technician until he was able to make a full recovery.

[at the end of concerts] Thank you, friends!
There is one Metallica. We have many styles, it's called Metallica.
There is something powerful in Metallica, a will, a drive.
If I hadn't had music in my life, it's quite possible I'd be dead and I'd much rather be alive.
[Why Metallica survived after the death of Cliff Burton] Knowing Cliff's attitude, he'd kick our butts if we quit.
Regret? That's a screwed-up word.
[about the Metallica / Guns N' Roses tour] Did I enjoy the tour? It was different. It was a good idea. We really had no idea what was going to come with it. They're a different type of band--and I use the word "band" loosely. It's a guy and some other guys. We were out to show people that there was something a little more progressive and hardcore than Guns N' Roses. And to go about it our way. But it was hard going on, dealing with [Axl Rose] and his attitude. It's not something we'd want to do again.
[on if the Metallica song "Ride the Lightning" was about capital punishment] Not exactly; I believe in capital punishment, but it was more like the idea of being strapped in the electric chair even though you didn't commit the crime. That song, and others on the record, were about not being able to escape a situation. [Lars Ulrich and I are both control freaks, and the idea of not being able to get out of a bad situation is a fear we both have.