licenses and became a an social engineer i work on a chain of multi engineering we work on a plan through conduct and take ownership and are involved from the beginning to the he said end i take a lot of pride. >> where you, you planning on uss this. >> at the top. >> at the top of interference. >> it's regarding i've been given more challenging projects working as a designer on smaller projects to tuvenl managing project i'm a huge go property of getting revolved in jerry, it is a field that month women don't know about the more educated they'll apply for college i love the professionals and the projects i work with its

very >> hi, everybody. i'm greg perloff, and what a pleasure it is to be involved in this celebration of metallica, and a metallica takeover of san francisco. >> that's right. that's right. that's right. >> you know, it all starts with the music, and the thing about metallica that makes them unique is their fan base and their fan club, and as the word of metallica has spread all these years, people from all over the world are coming to san francisco, staying in hotels, taking different forms of transportation, and it's a

really wonderful economic boost to the city. and one thing about metallica is that they've always been involved with whatever cause is happening, whether it's supporting food banks all these years or when there were the major fires in california. they raised millions of dollars when we supported the people who were devastated up north, and i'm just so pleased to have been able to represent the -- metallica. and i think what makes them big is their authenticity. they are the real deal, and they do what feels right to them. one day, they did a stadium on the green, and the other, they did a concert in petaluma.

whether they do the chase center, this amazing venue in san francisco, they've always been here for everybody. i know you don't want to hear me speak, so let me introduce our amazing mayor, mayor london breed. >> the hon. london breed: well, greg, thank you so much for all you do and what you do to bring entertainment and life to san francisco with so many great events. there is nothing more important to me than having a good time, as i'm sure some of you have noticed on occasion, and san francisco prides itself on being just this amazing space where incredible artists and incredible talent can come to life. and metallica, i feel they set

the stage for that. they set the stage for not only what it means to be extraordinary musicians, extraordinary people, but also how you become embedded in a community where you feel that part of what you owe is to be a part of the fabric of the community by continuously giving back. and so this plan that lars and robert really have for making san francisco shine, i can't ask for anything more from just really revolutionary artists like them, people that are known not just all over the country but all over the world because they have touched people's lives with their music for generations. my aunt saw us on the t.v. one time, and she's, like, did you

get a picture with lars? i've loved him for years? i've loved him since i was a kid. and that's just to say that this group has been just a part of the city of san francisco, and what they are doing not just here but all-around san francisco is going to be transformative. and i other thing i was going to say, i was on my home, taking the route of the divisadero, and i was, like, metallica was performing at the independent? i had to call my friend, mike, and say mike, was that really

metallica playing at the independent? and yes, he said it was really metallica at the independent. as part of this metallica takeover of san francisco includes supporting small businesses in our city. it includes doing a cleanup at the beach and really calling attention to a number of environmental challenges that we have as a city and a country. it calls attention to the need to support city and night life. and in san francisco, i'm proud that we've waived $5 million in fees for night life to see our artists perform all over san francisco. but the attention that metallica brings that takes this up to the next level is what's going to really make

this city shine. you know, we've been through a really tough time. it's been two years of wildfires, seeing the skies turn yellow, the protests and the skies for racial justice, the pandemic, kids who weren't in schools, people who couldn't see their family members. this global pandemic has tested us like nothing else, and what people need now more than ever is hope. hope for the future, hope for what we know is the very best of us, and today, we celebrate that with music, something that brought us together during the pandemic and will continue to bring us together and move forward. so i wanted to take the opportunity and thank metallica for everything that you've done, for your 40 years of

being together, for your commitment and love for this city. you, from my perspective you -- when you talk about san francisco is, you talk about san francisco, you talk about cable cars, and then, you talk about metallica. and on behalf of the city and county of san francisco, i want to officially declare today metallica day in san francisco. [applause] >> metallica day in san francisco bleed breed that means free parking. >> that's right. that's right. >> the hon. london breed: come on, guys. >> follow that friday. okay. >> the hon. london breed: free parking, free muni rides, get

into chase center free. >> that's right. >> the hon. london breed: just wear it on your chest. just tape it on your chest and say, it's my day today. >> that's right. >> the hon. london breed: and thank you so much for what you're going to do with us this weekend. valencia street will be closed this week for all the celebrations. cleanup on ocean beach. you'll have the location of all the festivities, but it is time for us to live. it is time for us to enjoy what i think is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and i can't think metallica enough for committing to san francisco and making this city shine, so thank you so much. >> thank you so much. [applause] >> san francisco's biggest export to the world, right here. god help us all. i want just to say thank you, mayor breed, thank you, greg, thank you everybody for showing

up. the sun is shining, the storms have passed. it's a beautiful thursday. it is metallica day in san francisco. as i'm listening to your wonderful words, i'm thinking about the history. both of you said 40 years. of those who know metallica well, you hear me say this all the time, but we're just getting started, okay? and all our best years are still ahead of us, and we may even actually turn professional soon, so we've got that going for us. and i'm thinking back to those who now our story, and feel free to boo for one second at least. but we didn't start in san francisco, we started in southern california. we came up to san francisco for the first time in 1982, in september, and played at the stone, and subsequently played at the old waldorf a couple of

times, and we had done six, nine months in los angeles, and we did not belong. the reason we all wanted to be in a band was to fit into something greater than ourselves, and we absolutely did not fit into anything in los angeles, the sunset strip, any of that. we felt like complete outsiders. when we came up here in september 1982, and we started playing, we played four shows that fall, like i said, at the stones, at the waldorf, and at the gardens. and we were taken in, and we felt so loved up here, and there was a sense of community, of music community for people like ourselves who felt like outsiders, things that were not in the mainstream, and that has obviously been a significant part of san francisco's history. so coming up here in 1982,

standing on san francisco's culture, and the beat poets, and the hippy culture, and bill graham and everything that san francisco represented, we just felt so loved and, finally, like we belonged someplace. and it's been 39 years of feeling that sense of belonging, to not just a geographical place, san francisco, the bay area, whatever you want to call it, but it's also a state of mind. you belong to what san francisco represents, and to me, we often talk about this, you know, over a glass of wine at night or whoever you're sharing a good time or tall tales with, but, you know, san francisco also is significantly a state of mind. what it represents, as, you know, the most western city in america before you get out to the ocean and sort of the wild

west mentality and independence and freedoms and equality and justice and everything that san francisco has been through since 1849, give or take. we have been so proud to be here, and we have just shouted it from the hill tops into every microphone and magazine through the years, that san francisco gave us a sense of belonging. we fly the flag of san francisco proud. on our t-shirts, made in san francisco, born in san francisco, metallica, whatever version it says, we are so proud of our connection to everything that san francisco represents and to all the wonderful people, to obviously

the great physical and geographical elements here, and the history and the cable cars and the giants and the warriors, and the list goes on. but i just want to say, on behalf of the band, how proud i am for that connection and how much it's just really given us a sense of identity. and those of us who know our story know that we've been fortunate enough to travel all over the world. we've played all seven continents, and there are many, many wonderful places on this planet where music, compared to where we started -- latin america, southeast asia, places that you wouldn't expect 30, 40 years ago that you can bring rock and roll to that have embraced us, but our hearts and our sense of belonging will always be san francisco, and

metallica and san francisco will always be two words that are synonymous with each other. thank you for the two sides of this. and like i said, the important part, we're just getting started. all our best years are still ahead of us. [applause] >> before rob speaks, in true metallica takeover fashion, we've got these cards of just so many events that everyone out here has been working on, and mary, and so if you want to see all the things that are going on, they're not just playing in an arena, they're adding to every district of the city, night life and economic development, and being in the community, so i just want to know you know those.

robert? >> thank you. it's an honor to be here, and thank you, mayor breed, and thank you, greg. metallica, for me, it's just totally surreal. to sit here where the warriors play -- when i used to see metallica, they played where the warriors played, and to actually be here in the venue when the team is doing so amazing is amazing for me as a warrior fan. and lars is right. the creative energy in the city is so important. i remember, back in the day, i played in a band called suicidal tendencies, and we weren't allowed to play in l.a. for seven years because there was some violence there or

whatever. and san francisco took us in and actually became our second family, and i know this also happened with a lot of the skate board community because they were also part of our tribe when i was a part of suicidal tendencies. so the skate boarders from san francisco would stay with the skate boarders from l.a. and vice versa, and in my mind, there's always been a connection. there's the outlaws, the creative types, this connection. and when i joined metallica, it was a perfect fit. the mindset, the level of creativity, everything about it, and it's just almost 20 years ago for me. i'm happy to sit here with lars and celebrate this moment with you all. thank you for having me. [applause]

>> are we going to take questions? >> sure. just not from that guy. [indiscernible] so i work a lot with local musicians, and any time you talk about the music scene in the bay area was when metallica was coming up. what was the spark of magic that made that time so special, when all of these bands were big, and how can we bring that spark into now? >> that's a great question. actually, i came up here a

couple of times before metallica came up here. my dad was a tennis player, and he would play over at the berkeley tennis club. we would stay at the former celli's, and i would go to tower records and rasputina and the people's park and was just fascinated with the energy of that spot. and i heard -- i was standing in front of tower records -- this was about 1979, and i heard something loud walking my way, and it was a guy with a boom box on his shoulder, and i recognized, he was playing a motorhead song. so he -- i asked him, you're playing the song. it's incredible, and we became best friends, and he -- his name was richard birch, and he

ended up with the coat on the back of "kill them all." he was kind of in the gateway, you really had to dig for people that were of the same breed as you, and at that time, i was introduced to dozens and dozens of kids, all 17 years old, who viewed the world the

same as i did. i was an only child growing up, and it just gave me a sense of identity. and so when the band came up here -- and stayed in touch with all of these guys and girls. so when the band came up here a year later, that was the beginning of the scene, you knee, and all these kids, you know, most of them ended up in bands. you know, the exodus' of the world, the forbiddens, the lost rockets, and there was just a scene up here. now, that scene was rooted, i think, in acceptance, in tolerance, in open-mindedness, again, going back to everything you associate with san francisco. here, you don't have to apologize. you don't have to try to fit in. nobody's going to judge you, nobody's going to look down on

you and all that kind of stuff. so we all just feel free up here, and we could just be ourselves, and we didn't have to apologize for who we were as 17, 18, 19-year-old disenfranchised kids. obviously, that's 38, 39 years ago. i can't tell you that same opportunity exists today. i would love to tell you, but the world is a different place that we don't need to get into. the sense of loving, the sense of mystery, the sense that all these bands belong to my group, and the internet, which has done countless amazing things has also turned some of that stuff upside down. so i don't know if all of those possibilities exist today, but i'm always hopeful, and i would

encourage any 15-year-olds, ten-year-olds, eight-year-olds -- i can see it in my kids -- i would encourage them to be authentic and just be yourself, and there's no better place to be yourself than just the whole bay area. >> one of the great things that's happening this weekend is basically our kids, our sons have bands, and they're performing in the city. that's a dream come true as part of in experience. >> part of the takeover. >> yeah, and for us, it's

celebrating the live music venues exactly how we came up, and that hasn't happened in a long time in this city, and hopefully, everybody will recognize that and go out and check the music out. i talked to james' son and his band, and i get so excited to see the look in their eyes when they're creating. >> hopefully your sons will be as successful as del curry's sons. >> the hon. london breed: and i'd just like to add, the city has made too things way too

complicated for musicians to just be free to do exactly what we're talking about, which is one of the reasons why, you know, we in the city have made some changes to make it simple for live music at certain businesses. if you want to do a pop-up right here, the process that you have to go through is too extensive, and so we've cut that red tape. we're trying to make it as easy as possible, and i really appreciate your perspective, and also, what that reminds me of is we have to make it better for the next generation of artists in this city to showcase their talent in various ways. >> lars, if i may, let me speak

as a fan [indiscernible] let me speak as a fan. back in the early 80s, when we watched these bands -- lars mentioned some of them. we understood two things occurred. one, metallica is a band, and they're great musicians. believe me, we put on so many bands that maybe are not the greatest musicians in the world, and the two things that you needed to separate yourself: great musicianship and passion and mania. you need leaders of the band that want it so bad and want to do the right thing, and, you know, there's a couple of bands in the world like that. so we'll take a few more questions. yes, sir.

>> thanks. thanks. i think some of this was covered in your last answer, lars and rob. i'm with the s.f. standard, trying to drill down a little bit deeper into thrash metal specifically. i was wondering if you could, without making everybody's eyes glaze over, or maybe not, but why this area was so fundamental. you could come over here and see one of your shows, and then go across the bay and capture a

g.b.h. show. why was there such a convergence of metal and punk in the area? >> it has to start with musical freedoms, and a license to be yourself, and a license to explore the things that turn you on without forfeiting who you are trying to fit in. so i think up here, i think everyone felt they were free enough to pursue their true calling. so if you want to get more technical about it, then obviously, you know, thrash metal was obviously a hybrid of the more extreme, the motorheads, and the british new wave metals, the iron maiden and the g.b.h. and all the punk

bands that would come up from l.a. okay. l.a., the sunset strip, you're supposed to look like this, you're supposed to act like this if you want to fit in, and if you don't do that, you're not part of the scene. none of that existed up here, and that's why it not only felt so liberating but also so unique to this history. now if you want to talk about all of the beat poets and everything that happened in 1968, and all of these people and why did that movement start here, the grateful dead and

haight-ashbury, and this lineage has been talked about so much and all of that. but the one thing i want to remind people is when we talk about these types of questions is there always has to be the x factor, which is -- i call it the energy of the universe, and it's the aligning of the stars. so at that time, 1981, 1982, 1983, just because of what was going on in music because of, you know, a bunch of kids felt they had been given a voice and what was going on not just in the city but in the east bay and el cerrito, and all of that, there was a lot of stuff happening, but all of that couldn't have taken place without what i call the

x-factor or the energy of the universe. a lot of that is -- our publicist, steve, can set up an interview, and we can talk more about that in depth at some point. >> i have to say something that's really important, and people should also recognize that there was a heavy funk movement coming out of the east bay. sly and the family stone influenced prince. you know, michael jackson, and then, you get into grand central station, tower of power. seriously, that's another whole ingredient in this city that needed to be recognized, too. whether it's pop, r&b or anything, that had a huge influence and impact on that, too, and that came out of the east bay, so that's something also to think about. >> well, we are running a little bit over at this point -- [indiscernible] oh,

okay. one more question here. >> for lars and for robert. i just spoke with some fans outside, including a couple of guys, one's 25, one's 40. 25-year-old's from france, 40-year-old is from switzerland. they met at a metallica concert, and they travelled all over even with the pandemic, and now, they're connecting here. when you reflect over the course of 40 years and to hear generations that come together to travel the world to see your music, what does that mean to you? >> it's the reason we're here. it keeps us going. it fuels us, and it keeps us inspired and just invigorated.

the main word that i use is the word connecting. you know, we connect to people through music, and the main thing that we try to do is to breakdown that barrier that exists between a band and an audience. we break that down, and we can try to share a similar state of mind. two years ago, when we were fortunate enough to be asked to open this incredible venue, there was an unexpected thing that happened in the wake of the metallica s&m concerts, as they were call. unbeknownst to us, metallica fans from 65 countries -- just take that in for a minute. 65 countries -- descended on san francisco for that three or

four-day weekend, and to me, that is a culmination of what the metallica thing has reached in terms of a global thing that we touched upon earlier. it's not something we take ownership of, it's not something that we own, oh, look at how big we are, look at how great we are. it's something we want to facilitate, take you in, and we'll go all over the world and try to encourage that to happen. but we talked in the wake of the s&m concerts a couple of years ago about trying to do more things like that and bring people here to san francisco and bring that international audience to san francisco. and then, obviously, you know what happened for the next 1.5 years, so we're so appreciative and grateful for the fact that, now, 2.5 years later, we've had

the opportunity to again bring people in from all over the world and to descend upon san francisco, to take the music in, but to take everything else that san francisco offers, not just fisherman's wharf, but everything that san francisco offers and represents, and it is so amazing to just hear these stories all the time. but i'm more proud of how international our community is than anything else because it really proves that with all the craziness that are going on in the world and all the division and everybody jumping at the opportunity to find something that separates us, that at least through music, that there's some -- here's where one thing that's refrained from infiltrating, and the fact that

65 countries can be represented in a city like this, in a building like this, and the fact that something like this can happen in the middle of the shitstorm of the last few years, that is great. >> the hon. london breed: so lars, i have one last question. does that mean that this will be an annual event? >> i don't know if you all have plans in ten years, but why don't we meet right here in 2031 for 50 years? you'll be on your fifth term? >> the hon. london breed: i won't be here. you've got to be here next year so i can come back. >> we'll keep it going, and i just want to thank mayor breed and greg and everybody involved in making this san francisco takeover, our friends at

salesforce, and mary and vickie and everybody who's doing such an incredible job, dan, of getting this out and spreading the message of music and connectivity and hope. like i said, it's gotten a little nuttier in the last few days because of covid, and i know everybody's extra cautious. let's celebrate, let's be safe, but let's have an incredible four days, and metallica takeover of san francisco is in full effect. [applause] >> thank you all for coming.