Lars Ulrich Expects It Will Be At Least A Year Before Big Concerts Return

While there have been glimmers of good news in the fight against COVID-19, the U.S. continues to lose ground overall against the novel coronavirus, as it infects more and more Americans every day, filling up hospitals around the country with sick patients.

As many state and local governments impose new restrictions on gatherings in hopes of stemming the spread of the virus, financial losses continue to mount in the live event industry, which has been largely shuttered since March.

In a recent conversation with CNBC, Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich said he doesn't think a return to "normal" is closer than a year away.

"As we unfortunately have to come to grips with, the last thing that will happen are big concerts, you know 20,000 people in an arena, 50,000 people in a stadium," he said, before predicting that "slightly more orderly" live sporting events will probably be permitted again before concerts.

Concerts will likely signal that "COVID, as we know it now, is over," he surmised.

While there are ways for musicians to make it work in the meantime, Ulrich worried that livestream concerts and drive-in shows have a "burnout factor" that will prevent such events from becoming commonplace.

The drummer said he would be surprised if there's a major shift in restrictions on gatherings before next fall.

Metallica is putting on a livestream 'Helping Hands' acoustic concert fundraiser this weekend for its All Within My Hands foundation.

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