Inspirations can often come from unlikely places. One inspiration that has never surprised me, however, is Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. You would be hard pressed to find a single musician working today who doesn’t owe Wilson some kind of gratitude for all he has done.
He completely changed modern music as we know it. We’re really starting to see the amount of people he influenced now that he has unfortunately passed away.
People have been coming from all parts of the music world to celebrate the man, but one of the more surprising ones is James Hetfield of Metallica. You wouldn’t expect the sweet, gorgeous harmonies of Wilson’s writing to have an influence on the thrash metal sound of Hetfield’s songs, but they did, and they inspired something deeper with him. Take a look.
@apnewsentertainment Metallica frontman James Hetfield is remembering Beach Boys leader Brian Wilson as “one of the most amazing songwriters on the planet.” #metallica #brianwilson #jameshetfield #beachboys #thebeachboys
♬ original sound – AP Entertainment – AP Entertainment
“One of the most amazing songwriters on the planet, not just American, but you know, all the stuff and trials and tribulations that he went through, for me, that’s a huge inspiration… not that I’m comparing myself, but we all go through our tough stuff mentally. I think ‘God Only Knows’ that song is like, one of the best written songs ever, and thank you Brian for that. May you rest in peace, we’re gonna miss you.”
You can see the impact Wilson had on the metal star. Fans were quick to leave their reaction to this connection across genres in the comments.
“Respect.”
“Brian was a musical genius. Look at all of the musicians across different genres coming out to say the impact his music had on their lives. 🎶 🥰”
“‘God Only Knows’ is the only Beach Boys song I ever enjoyed. Just beautiful.”
I’m sure we’ll hear more and more about the impact Brian Wilson left on the music industry in the days to come. He certainly deserves all the recognition in the world.
Related: Bob Dylan, 84, Makes Beautifully Heartfelt Tribute to Brian Wilson
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