Metallica frontman James Hetfield has entered rehab.
The news was confirmed in a post to Facebook by his fellow bandmates Kirk Hammett, Robert Trujillo and Lars Ulrich as they further announced that the band’s upcoming Oceania shows with guests Slipknot had been cancelled.
“We are truly sorry to inform our fans and friends that we must postpone our upcoming tour of Australia and New Zealand” the post reads. “As most of you probably know, our brother James has been struggling with addiction on and off for many years. He has now, unfortunately, had to re-enter a treatment program to work on his recovery again” the three continue.
They add, “We fully intend to make our way to your part of the world as soon as health and schedule permit. We’ll let you know as soon as we can. Once again, we are devastated that we have inconvenienced so many of you, especially our most loyal fans who travel great distances to experience our shows. We appreciate your understanding and support for James and, as always, thank you for being a part of our Metallica family.”
Tickets for the upcoming shows with Slipknot in Australia and New Zealand will be fully refunded, and you can head to the Metallica website for more details on how to obtain a refund.
We’d like to wish James Hetfield all the best in his recovery.