This is the first time Metallica has won the Polar Music Prize
American thrash metal giants Metallica will be honored for the first time with the Polar Music Prize, Sweden's most prestigious music award.
The announcement was made this Wednesday, the 14th, at Stockholm City Hall, the capital of Sweden, by Alfons Karabuda, president of the Polar Music Prize committee.
Lars Ulrich, drummer for Metallica, said, “Receiving the Polar Music Prize is an incredible thing. It’s a great validation of everything Metallica has done over the last 35 years. At the same time, we feel we have good years ahead of us .” James Hetfield, vocalist, added, “I feel very honored… Both I and Metallica are very grateful that this is part of our legacy, of our history .
The Polar Music Prize has previously been awarded to Elton John, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin, Bruce Springsteen, and others. Each year, two artists are awarded the prize to "Celebrate music in all its forms," Afghanistan National Institute of Music will also receive the award .
The prize is worth one million Swedish kronor, about 125 thousand dollars, and will be donated to the All Within My Hands Foundation , an organization the band created dedicated to helping and enriching the lives of community members, supporting the fight against hunger, education, and other critical services.
In the statement announcing Metallica, the Polar Music Prize committee said, “Not since the emotional turmoil of Wagner and the cannons of Tchaikovsky has anyone created music so furious, yet so accessible. With virtuoso musicians and accelerated tempos, Metallica has taken rock to places it has never been before.”
