Dave Mustaine recently discussed Megadeth’s song “À Tout le Monde,” which was outlawed on MTV in the 1990s, in an interview with Spin Magazine. After discussing the song’s actual meaning, he addressed the issues they were having with it. Regarding the song’s true meaning, he stated:
“‘À Tout le Monde’ was a song that was written a while ago, it was on the ‘Youthanasia’ album, and it was basically about a dream I had where my mom had died suddenly and it was very shocking. In my dream, my mom was able to come back to Earth and say one thing only, and that one thing was ‘I love you.’ I thought, ‘That would be great if I was able, when I go to heaven, to come back and say one thing to the people I love. I would want to say ‘I love you’ you know, I wouldn’t want to say, like ‘Don’t touch that’ you know, something stupid… I would rather you know it be something meaningful, so the song itself was very meaningful.'”
Regarding the choice to remove the song from MTV, he stated as follows: “Unfortunately, in Canada, there was some controversy around the song, but I handled it and I said I was not going to let that guy try and take my song away from the people I wrote it for. That thing kind of went away, trying to blame us for that. It was much like the Judas Priest thing that happened a long time ago. But I think the song’s a beautiful song people love it.”
James LoMenzo, a bassist, talked about the limitations that exist today on artistic expression as well. He said, “There’s so many people who are instantly cancelled for just having an erroneous idea that people aren’t really comfortable with. It’s a shame. … I can’t see any reputable artist who can keep from just saying their truth and their art and having people hear what’s inside their soul.”
Megadeth Was Banned In Malaysia
Megadeth suffered a significant setback in Malaysia in July 2001. The nation’s government forbade the group from playing live and directed that their brand-new album, “The World Needs A Hero,” be taken off the shelves of record stores. This move was a part of a larger government campaign against artistic expression and music that Malaysian authorities considered inappropriate. In 2001, Megadeth’s manager released a statement regarding the matter. He said:
“Megadeth is very disappointed that they won’t be able to perform for their fans in Malaysia. I’m sure [the] fans are equally disappointed. Hopefully, the political climate will change so that one day Megadeth may return to play for their fans who have waited a long time to see them in person.”
In 2017, Megadeth was able to return to Malaysia for a performance in Kuala Lumpur.
Mustaine Believes Megadeth Is Not Artistically Influenced By Outside Factors
Dave Mustaine discussed Megadeth’s creative independence in an uDiscover Music interview. He attributed Megadeth’s longevity and relevance to their steadfast adherence to their own principles and rejection of fads in favour of trying to blend in. He declared:
“We’ve never tried to follow trends, and it’s what’s kept us – I wouldn’t say better or above anybody – but having our own standards and not trying to fit in is what’s made us have that longevity.”
Then he declared that metal music was dying because of mainstream attention. He went on:
“I don’t know that real, credible metal ever had mainstream dominance because that is what ultimately killed metal – mainstream exposure. I think that’s one of the things that’s kept us relevant.”
The entire interview between Dave Mustaine and James LoMenzo for SPIN can be seen below.