James Hetfield Makes First Post-Rehab Appearance at Custom Car Exhibit | Revolver

James Hetfield Makes First Post-Rehab Appearance at Custom Car Exhibit

Metallica frontman showcasing 10 vehicles at Petersen Automobile Museum
James Hetfield metallica 2020 GETTY, Michael Tullberg/Getty Images
photograph by Michael Tullberg/Getty Images

Metallica's James Hetfield has made his first public appearance following the band's announcement on September 27th, 2019, that the singer-guitarist would be re-entering rehab to "work on his recovery." The appearance took place at a ticketed exhibit at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles where 10 of Papa Het's classic custom cars were on display, and the six-stringer also helped auction off two of his personal guitars at the event, titled "Reclaimed Rust: The James Hetfield Collection." A photo of Hetfield was posted to fan page Instagram account, exuberantly captioned, "James is back!! in the Peterson [sic] Automotive Museum." 

"There's no other place like this," Hetfield reportedly told attendees at the sold-out event. "The Petersen is the pinnacle. It's the best place to have your vehicles. They weren't doing me much good sitting in my garage. I loved looking at them. The best part is they're all together. I didn't want to auction them off and [have them] go all over the world. It's a collection. It marks my life."

The exhibit is officially open to the public tomorrow, February 1st, and will feature guitars and other memorabilia throughout its run. For ticketing information and more details, check out the Petersen Automotive Museum's official website