David Ellefson has opened up about the sex scandal that led to him being fired from Megadeth.
In 2021, allegations against the former Megadeth bassist surfaced after several explicit screenshots and videos – which Ellefson said were “some private and personal conversations and interactions” – were shared on social media with some claiming that he’d groomed an underage girl.
Ellefson denied any wrongdoing at the time saying explicit text messages were between consenting adults and that the woman was not underage at the time.
That same year, he filed revenge-porn charges against the person whom he alleged illegally leaked a video and screenshots that prompted the allegations against him, and he met police in Scottsdale, Arizona, pursue the charges.
The situation has now been resolved and the ex-bassist took the time to reflect on the incident. “There’s two sides to it. One: when you bare it all, you’ve got nothing to hide. Fuck it, now you can truly be yourself,” he told Metal Hammer.
He continued: “We all come into the world with our birthday suit on, so what are we ashamed of? What I feel the worst about is the embarrassment that it caused some people, like my family, who didn’t deserve it. Out of respect for them, I’m going to keep the family dynamic off the table [during interviews]. That’s at their request.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Ellefson explained that Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine did not leave an opportunity for him to return to the band later on after the scandal.
“Dave, his manager and his lawyer [called me after the scandal]. There was a sentiment from one of them saying, ‘Let’s step back, let Ellefson deal with it. It leaves the door open for him to come back.’ Dave didn’t want that. He made his decision and it is what it is,” he said.
Ellefson currently continues to tour in a solo capacity. Speaking about his Bass Warrior tour, he said: “I’ve approached my career as that of a musical warrior, always accompanied by my bass guitar. I eagerly anticipate bringing these songs back to the stage, while sharing introspective and entertaining anecdotes about their creation. It’s been a wild ride of low notes and high stakes.”
In other Megadeth news, the band is set to play this year’s edition of HellFest alongside acts such as Foo Fighters, Queens Of The Stone Age, Royal Blood and more. The rock and metal festival is due to take place from June 27-30, 2024 in Clisson, France.
