Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted has given fans an update on his long-in-the-works memoir, revealing he’s been quietly building the book for around five years and already has 130 chapters written. By his own account, though, it won’t be the usual rock autobiography.
Speaking with Spin magazine, Newsted was asked whether he’s writing a book. He confirmed the memoir is his top priority, ahead of several other projects already finished.
“I have a few lined up, but I have to do my memoir first as far as release. I have my poetry and lyric book done. I have the one that I did all the drawings. But I have to do my memoir and get the ball rolling. I’ve actually been working on it for about five years. I’ve got 130 chapters. Some are one page and some are five pages. It’s that kind of a read. More internal things and photos and fun vibe told a page at a time,” he said.
Newsted made clear he has no interest in rehashing tales that have been told to death over the years, instead promising a more personal, behind-the-curtain read.
“I don’t do any kind of beaten-to-death redundancy with stories that have already been told a whole bunch of times. I’ll do my view on a couple things that people might not have known about a certain famous gig or a certain famous event or award show or something, but I don’t go over and over all the s**t that everybody’s already told. A lot of more inside personal things and stuff. No mudslinging or that s**t. None of that stupid drug story stuff or anything other than factual things about painkiller addiction.”
One of the personal threads the book will cover is his decade-long battle with painkiller addiction, which he has said was the real reason he left Metallica in 2001. Newsted has admitted that revisiting those years has been emotionally tough, part of why the project has taken so long. He’s now on his third self-edit, having handed back a couple of publisher advances over the years.
“I’ve tried to work with a couple of different authors. I sent back an advance or two. I just wasn’t ready yet. Now I’m just doing it myself so it’s all just going to be my hand, in my language,” he said.
The memoir update comes during a major comeback chapter for Newsted. Last year, the 63-year-old, who played with Metallica from 1986 to 2001, was diagnosed with throat cancer, keeping it private until May 2026.
Newsted underwent surgery for the cancer in May 2025 and received his “free and clear” in April 2026. This summer he returns to the road with The Chophouse Band, the charitable collective he founded in 1992, joining a North American run in support of Blackberry Smoke beginning July 1.
