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Artist News
Sacked Megadeth bassist David Ellefson says he’s “perfectly content and happy”
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 19 October 2021
Former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has given his first interview since being fired from the band earlier this year, saying that he is “perfectly content and happy where I am right now”.
Where he is right now – or at least where he was when he said that – was on a Zoom call with the members of his new band The Lucid, speaking to YouTube show Aftershocks TV. The band, which also features members of Fear Factory and Sponge, released their debut album last week. A pretty quick turnaround, given that Ellefson was only turfed out of Megadeth five months ago.
“When you’re young and your back’s against the wall and you don’t have any other options, that’s a great motivator to really lock in and kick ass”, Ellefson said. “And I think we all needed that when we were younger. I think now to be able to do it because we like doing it, and to maybe be a little bit more selective of the things that we do, is kind of the freedom that you’re allowed because you spent those earlier years nose to the grindstone”.
“It’s fun to create for creation’s sake and not because it has to be motivated from anything else”, he went on. “So I guess I’m kind of glad to just be right where I’m at. To be honest, I’m perfectly content and happy where I am right now. I’m not gonna lie – it’s perfectly fine. So I’m all good”.
Ellefson was fired by Megadeth in late May following allegations that he groomed an underage girl into taking part in sexual activity on a video call – allegations he denies. In a statement at the time, the band said: “While we do not know every detail of what occurred, with an already strained relationship, what has already been revealed now is enough to make working together impossible moving forward”.
Sexually explicit text messages and video clips featuring Ellefson and an unnamed woman, whom some claimed to be underage, had emerged online earlier in May. The musician admitted that they were real, but denied that the woman had been underage and insisted that everything that happened was consensual.
In a statement following his dismissal, Ellefson said: “Recently, a very private video was illegally posted on the internet and false allegations were made against me. The actions in the video were between two consenting adults and were recorded without my knowledge”.
“I am working with Scottsdale Police Department in their investigation into charges regarding revenge pornography to be filed against the person who posted this video”, he added. “Also, my lawyers are preparing a defamation lawsuit to be filed against this person. This person will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law”.
Watch the full interview with Ellefson and The Lucid here:
