Metallica frontman James Hetfield has gotten a new tattoo with the ashes of Motörhead's Lemmy Kilmister inside it.
His new ink features the Iron Cross and Spade imagery that Kilmister was typically associated with. It has been tattooed over his middle finger on his right hand.
"With the steady hand of friend and tattoo artist [Corey Miller], this tattoo. A salute to my friend and inspiration Mr. Lemmy Kilmister. Without him, there would be NO Metallica," he wrote.
While the tattoo itself may seem normal, it was created with some of Kilmister's ashes, making the singer a permanent part of his finger.
"Black ink mixed with a pinch of his cremation ashes that were so graciously given to me," Hetfield explained in the caption. "So now, he is still able to fly the bird at the world."
Kilmister passed away in 2015 at 70-years-old after a battle with prostate cancer, cardiac arrhythmia, and congestive heart failure. Motörhead's official social media channel announced his death, stating that he had only been diagnosed with cancer two days before.
Hetfield has said in interviews that he looked up to Kilmister as a "father figure," commenting that he was "unafraid" and he "respected that so much, Blabbermouth reports. He did his own thing to the last breath. No matter who you are, how could you not be inspired by that?"
Metallica paid tribute to the rocker on their 2016 album Hardwired... To Self-Destruct, which was released less than a year after his death. The LP includes a song called "Murder One," named after Kilmister's amplifier, Hetfield told a radio station.
"I loved being murdered every night by that thing, man. He was just such an icon, such an inspiration to us as a band. There's certainly no way we'd be around if there was no MOTÖRHEAD. And, you know, to see your idol, your immortal one, actually be mortal, it hit us pretty hard. So I felt, lyrically, it makes sense to acknowledge him and how much he's meant in our lives."
Kilmister was also open about his respect for Metallica. The singer and bassist told Metal Insider in 2011 that he was honored to have been an influence to them, reminiscing on the time they have spent together.
"You can't top Metallica. They're really a f-ing excellent band. I'm delighted that they said that I was one of their influences. Like, they have all of their influences, and you can't hear the influences in them, which is great. They've become their own people, and that's great. I like them a lot. I've spent a lot of time with those boys."
Following his death, Kilmister's ashes were turned into bullets and given to his friends. Aside from Hetfield, others who received a portion included Whitfield Crane, Doro Pesch, Michael Monroe, Rob Halford, and Riki Rachtman.
A custom urn containing his ashes are held in a columbarium in Hollywood's Forest Lawn Cemetery, permanently displayed for metal fans who choose to pay their respects. The rest of his remains were scattered into the mud at the Wacken Open Air music festival.
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