Song · Metallica
“King Nothing” by Metallica
From the album Load (1996)
“King Nothing” by Metallica appears on 26 radio countdowns from 11 stations between 1997 and 2026. It was first released in 1996 on the album Load. Its best result is #2 on the WRCX Top 103 Songs of 1997. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #292 alternative song of 1997 and #3,244 alternative song of all time.
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"King Nothing" was the fourth and final single pulled from Load, Metallica's sixth studio album, arriving in January 1997, and it's a slab of heavy, grinding swagger. It kicks off on a bass riff from Jason Newsted that swells into the main riff, with guitars and bass tuned to E-flat. James Hetfield wrote the words and sings them, Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and Kirk Hammett wrote the music, Bob Rock produced it with Hetfield and Ulrich, and Randy Staub mixed it.
The closing line winks back at "Enter Sandman" from the album before. It came with a video, and the US single paired it with a live take of "Ain't My Bitch". On Billboard it climbed to 6 on Mainstream Rock and scraped in at 90 on the Hot 100.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
Classic Rock
Hard Rock & Metal
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 29 | 97.1 The Eagle Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | KEGL The Eagle's Top 97 Songs of 1997 | 97 |
| 1997 | 66 | 105.7 The Point St. Louis, MO | 105.7 The Point Top 105.7 of 1997 | 106 |
| 1997 | 2 | WRCX Rock 103.5 Chicago, IL | WRCX Top 103 Songs of 1997 | 103 |
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