metalhead

Metalhead is a colloquial term used to describe a person who is a fan or devotee of heavy metal music and its associated subculture. The label can refer to an individual, a person’s identity within the scene, or the broader community of listeners who identify with metal. It is informal and its use varies by region, context, and speaker, sometimes used self-referentially and other times as outside description.

The term emerged alongside the rise of heavy metal in the late 1970s and 1980s, in close association with practices such as headbanging and fashion including leather jackets, denim, band patches, and long hair. While initially more common in English-speaking contexts, the term has traveled with metal’s global expansion. It generally encompasses fans across diverse subgenres, from classic metal to thrash, death, black, and non-mainstream variations, reflecting a broad identity rather than a single style.

Culturally, metalheads often participate in live music scenes, attending concerts and festivals, collecting records and band merchandise, and engaging in online communities and forums. The subculture emphasizes loyalty to bands, collaborative community, and a shared vocabulary, though tastes and values can differ widely between individuals and subgenres.

In popular culture, the word appears as a label or character name in various media. For example, Metalhead is also the name of a fictional robotic turtle in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise, illustrating how the term can cross into fictional contexts beyond music fandom.

Overall, metalhead denotes affiliation with and enthusiasm for heavy metal’s diverse music and culture, reflecting a long-standing, global fan community that spans many subcultures within metal itself.