Dave Mustaine has had a long and successful career as the leader of Megadeth. So, if you ask him, there are three key things that all aspiring metal musicians need to consider before embarking on a music career.In a 2023 interview, Mustaine shared advice for aspiring metal bands, saying, “there’s a technique, there’s preservation, [and] there’s education” that they need to have. “You know, if you’re going to be a vocalist and you’re singing somebody else’s lyrics, hey, no big deal,” he said, then noting that it’s different “if you’re writing your own stuff.”Mustaine then offered an interesting recommendation to watch for inspiration. “There’s a movie called Purple Rain that would be a good movie to watch,” he said, “because it talks about Prince writing lyrics that only he understood.”“One scene in particular, he’s in a club, and the manager of the club comes up and says, ‘No one understands your music but yourself.’ Man, I don’t want to be that guy,” Mustaine said, “because the whole thing about music is to give something to someone to carry with them as they go throughout life: a melody, a line, a lyric, a beat… and that’s the key to life.”Megadeth released their final album in January 2026If anyone knows about the craft of heavy metal songwriting, it’s Dave Mustaine. Over the past four decades, he’s likely written hundreds of songs. Dozens of which made their way onto Megadeth’s 17 studio albums. The band’s seventeenth and final record was released on January 23, 2026. The album came in on top of the Billboard 200, marking Megadeth’s first album to do so.Next up, the band will continue their final world tour, which is scheduled to head to South America in April. Find a full list of dates below.(opens in a new window)MegadethMegadeth 2026 Tour(opens in a new window)Available at StubHubBuy Now(opens in a new window)4/23 Lima, Peru Costa 214/26 Bogotá, Colombia Movistar Arena4/27 Bogotá, Colombia Movistar Arena4/30 Buenos Aires, Argentina TBD5/10 Ciudad de México, México Arena Ciudad de México5/11 Ciudad de México, México Arena Ciudad de México5/13 Guadalajara, México Arena Guadalajara5/2 São Paulo, Brasil Espaço Unimed5/4 Santiago, Chile Movistar Arena5/5 Santiago, Chile Movistar Arena5/8 Monterrey, México Arena Monterrey6/10 Hradec Králové, Czechia Rock For People – Park 3606/11 Luxembourg, LUX Rockhal6/14 Ferrara, Italy Ferrara Summer Festival – Piazza Ariostea6/15 Zurich, SWI Halle 6226/16 Vienna, AUT Gasometer6/2 Hanover, Germany Heinz von Heiden Arena6/23 Istanbul, TUR KüçükÇiftlik Park6/26 Helsinki, Finland Suvilahti – TUSKA6/28 Almaty, KAZ Spartak Stadium6/7 Gelsenkirchen, GER Amphitheater8/29 Toronto, ON Scotiabank Arena8/30 Toronto, ON Scotiabank Arena9/11 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live9/12 Charlotte, NC PNC Music Pavilion9/15 Hershey, PA Hersheypark Stadium9/19 Shakopee, MN Mystic Lake Amphitheater9/22 Tinley Park, IL Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre9/25 Los Angeles, CA BMO Stadium9/26 Los Angeles, CA BMO Stadium9/29 San Antonio, TX Alamodome9/3 Montréal, QC Parc Jean-Drapeau9/5 Harrison, NJ Sports Illustrated Stadium9/6 Harrison, NJ Sports Illustrated Stadium9/9 Boston, MA TD GardenThe post 3 Key Things Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine Says All Aspiring Metal Musicians Need to Consider appeared first on VICE.