Metallica donates £20,000 to city foodbank with 'empty shelves' after sell-out gig

Heavy metal legends Metallica have donated £20,000 to a city foodbank, buying 9,000 meals for people in need.

The American rockers donated the money to the Cardiff Foodbank charity ahead of their gig at the Principality Stadium on Sunday evening.

The donation came through Metallica's charitable foundation, All Within My Hands.

"We had an email saying 'This isn't a scam, please get in touch with the foundation'," said Rachel Biggs, CEO of Cardiff Foodbank. "They said 'We are going to donate £20,000 to you'."

Two weeks ago, the foodbank had appealed for donations on social media, saying they were "very worried" because they had never seen the "warehouse so empty".

"It's an incredible amount of money which will make such a difference and replenish our empty shelves," said Rachel.

Cardiff Foodbank supports 20,000 people a year and has eight centres across the city, as well as a mobile service delivering pre-packaged bags.

One third of those the charity fed last year were children.

Taylor Swift donated to Cardiff Foodbank in 2024 after her own performances at the Principality Stadium, one of a number of donations she made to foodbanks during her Eras Tour.

The charity said Swift's donation had allowed them to buy one-and-a-half articulated lorries full of food.

It described the latest donation from Metallica as their "largest celebrity donation".

"What's great for us [is] it helps raise the profile and what Metallica are doing is mobilising their fans, mobilising the local community," said Rachel.

She estimated the charity's running costs for this year would be £700,000 but said donations were down while demand is just as great.

"The number of people needing us is the same as last year, but our food donations have dropped by 27% and we've seen that reflected in the empty shelves.

"When this donation arrives in our bank account we'll be able to put in a bulk order and replenish stock and knowing the rest of the year we'll have the support of the community.

"The cost of living impacts all of us, it also impacts our running costs and we know our donors are generous, but we know the cost of living is pinching their pockets too."

Metallica and its management launched the All Within My Hands foundation in 2017 to give a proportion of its ticket sales to local and national charities.

It has since supported foodbanks across the world.

As part of the foundation's work, the heavy metal veterans also collaborated with the Welsh Blood Service ahead of their Principality Stadium gig to encourage fans to donate blood and plasma.

Dedicated blood donation sessions ran across Wales last week ahead of their concert on 28 June.

Foodbank volunteer Eddie Cawston is a big Metallica fan who had tickets for the concert on Sunday.

"It shows that people who can make a difference are prepared to make a difference," he said.

"They'll make a phenomenal amount of money from the tour and they're giving to us and other foodbanks as the tour goes along. It's brilliant."

"They're thinking about people less fortunate than themselves," said Vivian Horwood, who also volunteers at the food bank.

"Metallica are helping people in the community to stay well and this donation shows they are sharing and caring."