Metal bands and fans have historically isolated themselves within their own inner circle, unlike other genres who frequently collaborate with each other and bring fans from multiple places together. But in 2019, heavy music started opening itself up. Sure, some artists like Hatebreed vocalist Jamey Jasta firmly believe metal should stick to itself after complaining about Chvrches being booked higher than Gojira on Deftones' festival, but others are learning to branch out.
This year kicked off with Bring Me The Horizon (pictured) collaborating with art-pop singer Grimes and beatboxer/rapper Rahzel, but from there, more and more artists crossed genres in both their music and their live performances. Marilyn Manson performed at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival as the only non-rap artist, and worked with country singer Shooter Jennings; hardcore act Jesus Piece toured with SoundCloud rapper Ghostemane. and A Day to Remember collabed with EDM producer Marshmello, to name a few crossovers to happen in 2019.
Take a look below for the five best examples of heavy metal acts collaborating with artists from other genres in 2019.
Post Malone, Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott
"Take What You Want"
Whether you consider Post Malone a rapper or simply a singer, his influence on modern music is undeniable. He's one of the world's most popular artists at the moment, but he's always been open about his love of heavy metal and finally got to show that side of him on his latest album Hollywood's Bleeding. Post brought none other than the Prince of Darkness to guest on his track with Travis Scott. and introduce a younger audience to Ozzy, who has now gone on to work with Post's producer Andrew Watt on his upcoming record.
Bring Me the Horizon and Grimes
"nihilist blues"
Bring Me the Horizon have long been a driving force in changing the norms in metalcore and they took it a step further on amo. They pushed into a softer alt-rock direction that progressively cleaned itself up over the course of several albums, and the payoff comes in a bass-heavy synth-pop thump on "nihilist blues" that feels more at home on a Grimes record than a metal album.
Kid Bookie and Corey Taylor (Slipknot)
"Stuck In My Ways"
Slipknot helped start the big rap metal boom, but as they've gotten further into their career, their hip-hop vocal stylings have appeared less and less. Vocalist Corey Taylor still has those skills though, and got to flex them with London rapper Kid Bookie on his track "Stuck In My Ways," which takes modern hip-hop beats and gives them a metal tinge to match the ultra aggressive vocal styles of the duo.
Injury Reserve, JPEGMAFIA and Code Orange
"HPNGC"
The industrial leanings of hardcore act Code Orange have caught a lot of attention among heavy music fans but their collab with hip-hop trio Injury Reserve and JPEGMAFIA sees them taking their sound to an entirely different world. The band lent a hand on production for "HPGNC," which draws out unsettling metallic sounds over lo-fi beats for the MCs to rap over.
Devin Townsend and Chad Kroeger (Nickelback)
"Hear Me"
Nickelback are the punching bag of the music industry, but fellow Canadian and prog metal master Devin Townsend doesn't hate the band like the vast majority of the metal scene does. Townsend apparently wanted to make his new album Empath as a pop record, but Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger convinced him otherwise after befriending him through his praise of the much-loathed band over Twitter. Kroeger also has a subtle guest spot in the chorus of the track "Hear Me" and gave his input to Townsend whenever he was stuck on writing parts of the album.
This year kicked off with Bring Me The Horizon (pictured) collaborating with art-pop singer Grimes and beatboxer/rapper Rahzel, but from there, more and more artists crossed genres in both their music and their live performances. Marilyn Manson performed at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival as the only non-rap artist, and worked with country singer Shooter Jennings; hardcore act Jesus Piece toured with SoundCloud rapper Ghostemane. and A Day to Remember collabed with EDM producer Marshmello, to name a few crossovers to happen in 2019.
Take a look below for the five best examples of heavy metal acts collaborating with artists from other genres in 2019.
Post Malone, Ozzy Osbourne and Travis Scott
"Take What You Want"
Whether you consider Post Malone a rapper or simply a singer, his influence on modern music is undeniable. He's one of the world's most popular artists at the moment, but he's always been open about his love of heavy metal and finally got to show that side of him on his latest album Hollywood's Bleeding. Post brought none other than the Prince of Darkness to guest on his track with Travis Scott. and introduce a younger audience to Ozzy, who has now gone on to work with Post's producer Andrew Watt on his upcoming record.
Bring Me the Horizon and Grimes
"nihilist blues"
Bring Me the Horizon have long been a driving force in changing the norms in metalcore and they took it a step further on amo. They pushed into a softer alt-rock direction that progressively cleaned itself up over the course of several albums, and the payoff comes in a bass-heavy synth-pop thump on "nihilist blues" that feels more at home on a Grimes record than a metal album.
Kid Bookie and Corey Taylor (Slipknot)
"Stuck In My Ways"
Slipknot helped start the big rap metal boom, but as they've gotten further into their career, their hip-hop vocal stylings have appeared less and less. Vocalist Corey Taylor still has those skills though, and got to flex them with London rapper Kid Bookie on his track "Stuck In My Ways," which takes modern hip-hop beats and gives them a metal tinge to match the ultra aggressive vocal styles of the duo.
Injury Reserve, JPEGMAFIA and Code Orange
"HPNGC"
The industrial leanings of hardcore act Code Orange have caught a lot of attention among heavy music fans but their collab with hip-hop trio Injury Reserve and JPEGMAFIA sees them taking their sound to an entirely different world. The band lent a hand on production for "HPGNC," which draws out unsettling metallic sounds over lo-fi beats for the MCs to rap over.
Devin Townsend and Chad Kroeger (Nickelback)
"Hear Me"
Nickelback are the punching bag of the music industry, but fellow Canadian and prog metal master Devin Townsend doesn't hate the band like the vast majority of the metal scene does. Townsend apparently wanted to make his new album Empath as a pop record, but Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger convinced him otherwise after befriending him through his praise of the much-loathed band over Twitter. Kroeger also has a subtle guest spot in the chorus of the track "Hear Me" and gave his input to Townsend whenever he was stuck on writing parts of the album.