Judas Priest’s Rob Halford Has a Bullet with Lemmy’s Ashes Inside
Earlier this year, news started trickling out that late Motörhead mastermind Lemmy Kilmister, who died in December of 2015, had asked shortly before his demise for his ashes to be put inside some bullets to be given out to his friends. The revelation went public via former Headbanger’s Ball host and Cathouse co-owner Riki Rachtman, who posted a picture of the bullet he got on social media:
It also came out around that time that retired professional tennis player Pat Cash, Ugly Kid Joe frontman Whitfield Crane and metal singer Doro Pesch also received Lemmy bullets.
While the four previously known recipients were somewhat surprising, except perhaps for Doro — those are the people who were closest to Lemmy?? — this one definitely isn’t: Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford also got one.
Halford revealed on the SpeedFreaks podcast that he’s got a Lemmy bullet, making him the fifth known owner of one. He explained of the experience of getting a mystery package in the mail that turned out to have Lemmy’s remains inside:
“When Lemmy passed away, I had this beautiful opportunity to speak at his memorial. We had a great get-together; all of us musicians from all over the world, we met in Hollywood and we talked about Lemmy and his great life and the things that he’s left us. And then, not too far back, I get something in the mail from the Lemmy people; Lemmy’s office, his manager and everybody still work tirelessly to keep his name with us, as he always will be. They sent me — it’s a bullet [laughs], it’s a bullet with some of Lemmy’s ashes inside of it.”
“This is nuts. This is the kind of thing that Lemmy would have loved to have done. However you choose to interpret what I’ve just said, that’s entirely up to you. But to be thought of, to be brought into this small circle of friends where you actually own a little bit of Lemmy’s ashes and you wear it around your neck on a pendant and he’s close to your heart in the truest sense in terms of his mortal remains, that’s just mind-blowingly powerful. To use an object like that to carry his remains is just so Lemmy — it’s provocative, it makes you think, it makes you talk. But as far as having a beautiful part of Lemmy physically with me right now in my house, that’s just magical.”
The topic of who owns a Lemmy bullet is quickly becoming one of metal’s great mysteries, and what’s crazy is that it took more than five years for the public to even learn about it. How many are there? Who else is in possession? I have a feeling we’ll be hearing about these reveals for years to come, but we may never fully know the extent of it.
You can watch the chat with Halford below.
