James Hetfieldturned 51 years old on Sunday (August 3). TheMETALLICAsinger/guitarist's former bandmateDave Mustainetook toTwitterto wishJamesa happy birthhday, callingHetfield"my first real guitar partner" and adding, "We changed the world, brother!"

Born in 1963 in Downey, California,Jameswas the son of a truck driver namedVirgiland a singer namedCynthia.Hetfield's parents were Christian Scientists and strongly disapproved of the use of any kind of medicine or medical treatments, even whenCynthiawas dying of cancer in 1979. This upbringing inspired many ofMETALLICA's later songs, such as"The God That Failed".Hetfieldalso had two older half-brothers from his mother's first marriage and a younger sister.

Hetfieldtook up piano at the age of nine and began playing guitar at 14. He was in bands calledLEATHER CHARMandOBSESSIONduring his teen years. In October 1981 he answered a classified ad placed in a local paper calledRecyclerby Danish drummerLars Ulrich, andMETALLICAwas born.

HetfieldtoldThe Pulse Of Radiohe still recalls the group's first gig, with original lead guitaristDave Mustaine. "FirstMETALLICAshow was at Radio City in Anaheim. I remember the first song we played,Davebroke a string, and I was stranded up there. I was just singing, I wasn't playing guitar back then, and I was so uncomfortable, I was like, 'So, how's it going...' There were about 200 people. You know, your first gig, everyone shows up. Second gig, there's about 20, you know. [laughs]"

Solidifying the lineup with bassistCliff Burtonand lead guitaristKirk Hammett, who replacedMustaine,METALLICAsigned toMegaforce Recordsin 1983 and released its debut album,"Kill 'Em All", in July of that year, while also relocating from the Los Angeles area to San Francisco.

Pioneers and leaders of the underground speed metal movement,METALLICAsigned with major labelElektra Recordsin 1984 just as they released their sophomore album,"Ride The Lightning".

HetfieldtoldThe Pulse Of Radiohow the scene in San Francisco at the time exploded thanks toMETALLICA's success. "Well, I recall on the (1984)'Ride The Lightning'tour, after coming back, coming back home and feeling like the scene has grown so big. And, you know, we came back, we had our'Ride The Lightning'shirts and things are kind of going good for us, 'Yeah, we just went on our second tour,' and we come back and the scene has gotten so much bigger."

Weathering the death ofCliff Burtonin a tour bus accident in 1986,METALLICAbecame bigger and bigger, scoring their first gold album with 1986's"Master Of Puppets"and their first platinum disc with 1988's"!And Justice For All". The group became superstars in 1991 with the release of the self-titled "black album," which has sold over 15 million copies to become the biggest selling album of theSoundScanera of sales tracking.

It was during the late '90s that cracks began to show in bothMETALLICA's public image andHetfield's tough-guy demeanor. Always a heavy drinker, his alcohol intake reached toxic levels in 2001 just as the band was starting work on its eighth studio album.

He recalled the moment when he made the decision to get help for his problems with drugs and alcohol. "My wife threw me out of the house and I went to rehearsal, and she could not believe that I had done that, and said, 'You've got to check yourself in somewhere,' and I said, 'Nah, no way, I'm the singer forMETALLICA, I can't get help. I don't need help,'" he said. "A lot of denial. She was very adamant about me seeking the help and I went in, I think, for her and for my family."

Hetfieldsaid that entering rehab was one of the scariest times in his life. "I was just kind of really scared," he said. "I was dropped off into this place and at that point my family was in question. Basically the family had split up, or I was no longer in the house, and it was totally one of the most scary times in my life. It was really like the earth was shaking under me, there was no stability, it felt like a constant earthquake. I had no idea what I was doing, where I was going."

Hetfieldgot clean and sober in 2002, returning toMETALLICAto record the controversial"St. Anger"album and make the documentary"Some Kind Of Monster", which chronicled his struggle as well as the band's near-breakup.

HetfieldtoldThe Pulse Of Radioat the time that he was okay with people seeing that side of his life. "Connecting with people has never been easy for me. I think the more that people know about me and my struggles, the easier it will be to connect with people. I've put myself out there, and if they choose to stomp on my heart, or to embrace it, that is up to them."

While"St. Anger"received a mixed reaction from fans, the band came back full force with 2008's"Death Magnetic".HetfieldtoldThe Pulse Of Radioat the time that having gone through all its turmoil,METALLICAwas stronger than ever. "You know,'St. Anger', the'Monster'movie, all the stuff that we went through - once we got back together and started playing again, we knew that we were given some sort of gift to continue and not fall like many other bands have. So we've got to take care of this, and we're doing our extra best to do that."

Hetfieldand the band are staying, touring constantly, releasing a movie called"Metallica Through The Never"late last year, and getting to work on a new studio album for release in 2015.HetfieldtoldThe Pulse Of Radioa while back that he's never had to worry about coming up with material. "I can't turn off the creative part of me, which is - what a great gift," he said. "There's stuff coming out all the time, whether it's in the tuning room, in my hotel room, sitting at home with the acoustic, wherever. The stuff is coming out, and it gets recorded or written down or something, some way, and it'll come out at some point. Whether it's on this album, the next album, who knows."

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