Out of the Big Four of Thrash Metal, Megadeth is the band which had the biggest number of members over the decades. At the end of the day, it has always been Dave Mustaine’s band, so whenever he felt it was necessary to change the musicians who accompanied him, he did. Of course, some members also chose to leave of their own free will.
As a successful and highly praised band leader, Mustaine is frequently asked for advice by young musicians and he recently told Clash Music that one of the main lessons he has learned is simple: do not hire your friends.
Dave Mustaine tells why you shouldn’t hire friends for your band
“All of them were great (past members). When you have great musicians, the next thing that comes along is asking, ‘Are they great people?’ ‘Do you have a great friendship?’ I’ve never hired anyone that was a friend.
“I always say in interviews or meet-and-greets, when people ask me about what advice I’d give to new bands, I say, ‘Stay in school’, because you need to be smart,” he continued. “I tell people you need to stay in school but also learn certain things they don’t teach you, like check books and compound interest. The other thing I say is ‘don’t hire your friends’. Because if you have to let a person go, you’re going to lose a friend too.”
“I’ve always hired people and got into a business relationship and over time become friends with some. Then, when the work stops, it depends on where we are. Say you work in a restaurant; if someone leaves McDonald’s to go work in Taco Bell, I don’t think they spend a lot of time calling the guys in McDonald’s to say what’s up. But if you have a friendship or pre-existing friendship, it’s different,” Dave Mustaine said.
Over the past four decades, more than 30 musicians have played in the band alongside Dave Mustaine. The current line-up consists of James LoMenzo (Bass, 2006 to 2010 and since 2022), Dirk Verbeuren (Drums, since 2016) and Teemu Mäntysaari (Guitar, since 2023).