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David Ellefson on his legacy with Megadeth: “My DNA is all over that”

Ellefson was dismissed from the band earlier this year.

David Ellefson

Image: Dave Kotinsky / Getty

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Founding Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has given his first media appearances since being fired from the band, following the appearance of sexually explicit videos of him on the internet. He has discussed his pride in the band’s legacy, as well as the circumstances that led to his dismissal.

Talkin to SiriusXM’s Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk, Ellefson discussed how he dealt with the unfolding situation, which saw him accused of paedophilia and grooming. The leaked videos showed Ellefson masturbating on a video call with a young fan, however, the woman involved, Ellefson and a police report have all confirmed her age to have been 19 at the time of the calls.

“I ran toward the bullets and dealt with it right away. The night [of the leak], a couple of people said, ‘Hey, don’t say anything.’ The Megadeth camp didn’t want me to say anything. But my legal team then said, ‘Hey, I think you should say something. I think some people have done some really shitty things here and made some false allegations about you, you have every right to defend yourself.’ And I did.”

“That led to my dismissal from Megadeth. But I have every right, as anyone does, to defend myself, especially when somebody is making false allegations about you like that. So I dealt with it that night, and quite honestly, that was it – it was over, and it was really kind of done.

“But then, as the Megadeth camp, in particular, jumped in and had addressed it… that pretty quickly led to them making the decision to part ways with me and to move away from it.”

Ellefson then asserted his friendship Megadeth remains, his well-wishes were sincerely meant and that he’s proud of what he has accomplished in the band and of the mark he left on metal. “Ironically, things are fine… We parted ways, and they took their road. And there’s no ill will between us, believe it or not. And I think, the fights and those things, they were 20 years ago, the lawsuits and all that crap.

“I wished them well in my statement to them, and I mean it. It’s a group I helped form almost 40 years ago, and the songs that are on the radio are songs that I had a part in, and we built a big legacy. I still consider them family, and my DNA is all over that. I don’t think you build something of that size together and then suddenly you’re just out and that’s it,” he concluded.

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