Former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has never lost sight of why he picked up an instrument in the first place — and in a new interview, he made it clear that joy, not obligation, still defines his relationship with music.
Speaking with “Carlos Alberto Velazquez,” Ellefson reflected on encounters with fans at shows and festivals, explaining that his approach has always been shaped by mutual respect rather than distance or ego.
He said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth):
“I think you get out what you put back, or you get back what you put out. If you come in with your posse and your security and this whole wall of ‘f**k you’, that’s what you’re gonna get back. You’re gonna get aggression. If you put out aggression, you’ll get back aggression. As you see, I can go — I keep some security people around, of course, but I try not to surround myself with that armor of the ‘tough guy’ thing. Because look, first and foremost, I’m a fan — first and foremost.”
That fan-first mindset, he said, traces all the way back to his childhood inspirations. Long before gold records and Grammy nominations, Ellefson was just a kid discovering the magic of rock music.
“It started for me with Sweet and Kiss and all this kind of stuff back when I was just a kid, a 10-, 11-year-old kid. And then I got into playing the bass. The bass found me, is how I say it. I didn’t find the bass; it found me in rural Minnesota. And then I knew my pursuit was to go do what I saw my heroes doing.”
Even after becoming a full-time professional musician, Ellefson says staying connected to that original sense of wonder has been essential. Losing it, he believes, can drain the soul out of the craft.
“So, as much as I became a professional and then sort of had to change that mindset from fan to professional during my formative years, I think when you lose sight of being a fan of the music, a fan of seeing a show, getting that excitement, to me then the magic’s gone, and then it just becomes kind of a really hard job with a lot of long hours.”
One way he keeps that perspective intact is by maintaining a direct connection with listeners around the world — something he still treats as sacred.
“So for me, I’m always thankful. I get fan mail. I answer all of it. That keeps me grateful, that people all around the world, they care, they notice. And that stops me in my tracks, because my days are busy, like everyone’s are. And when people are thinking about me, they send me something for me to sign, ask for an autograph, usually they accompany a letter or some kind letter, that just stops me to go, ‘Wait a minute, David. Time out. Just pay attention,’ that I had an impact in someone’s life. I may have changed their life, hopefully for the better, but my songs, my music, my craft, my talent that the Lord gave me has created an impact for somebody.”
For Ellefson, that realization puts everything else into perspective — including how he defines his career.
“I mean, what else is there? That’s the best job in the world. And that’s why I hate when people call this work. It’s, like, dude, we play — we don’t work; we play. And I’ve noticed, over the years, when people go from the joy of playing to this sort of laborious task of work, it changes the whole joy of the whole thing. Hey, look, there’s work, there’s obligations, there’s appointments, there’s things we have to be responsible for, but I’m just saying the overall thing.”
Ellefson co-founded Megadeth in 1983 and went on to become the band’s longest-serving member, helping shape one of metal’s most influential catalogs. Over his four-decade career, he has earned multiple gold and platinum records, twelve Grammy nominations, and a Grammy win in 2017 for Dystopia.
Today, Ellefson remains deeply active in the metal world through projects including Dieth, The Lucid, Ellefson-Soto, and his legacy-focused touring outfit Kings of Thrash — all while continuing to approach music with the same gratitude and enthusiasm that first pulled him in as a kid.
