Demi Lovato appeared on SiriusXM Jose Mangin’s Metal Ambassador Podcast to talk about her upcoming album Revamped. During the interview, Demi Lovato told the story of the first moshpit she experienced and her dream collaborations.

SiriusXM’s Metal Ambassador, hosted by Jose “Metal Ambassador” Mangin is available now on the SXM App. Video clips below, courtesy of SiriusXM Jose Mangin’s Metal Ambassador Podcast.

Demi remembers her first moshpit at 14...

Jose Mangin: "Let's go back to the first moment you heard real heavy metal. Not rock music, because we've all heard classic rock, but when was the first time that you heard metal? Who was that person that introduced you to this music? And let me thank them now in advance."

Demi Lovato: "Yeah, let me thank them too. I actually had a boyfriend when I was 14 and I had been listening to, you know, the emo bands and I started listening. I moved into screamo music and then I started listening to, he turned me on to metal music and was like, 'Have you ever listened to death metal or black metal?' and I was like, 'What's the difference?' and he taught me the difference and from then on, I just had this love for it where I was like, and the reason why I have this love for it is because in metal music, the vocalists do things with their voices that I can't do and I can do a lot with my voice, but I cannot do that. The drums, you know, the double bass, like I can't imagine how people do that. The guitars, you're absolutely shredding. Everybody is shredding in the band, and I just had this affinity for it where I was like in awe of the music and so I started listening to bands that he would turn me on to and we'd go to shows and it was fun."

Mangin: "Is he the dude that took you to the Dimmu Borgir / Unearth show?"

Lovato: "Yes, he was."

Mangin: "Oh, so tell me about that show."

Lovato: "Oh my God, so I was 14 at that show and I was probably about 90 pounds and I decided to go into the middle of the crowd and so I'm in the middle of the crowd and all of a sudden people start moshing like really moshing and I had been in pits before that weren't as intense, but this was so intense and I was like, 'I gotta get out of here', so I literally, I just jumped up and crowd surfed to the front of the stage and that was my first time crowd surfing and I was like, 'I lost a shoe. It was so much fun.' My neck was sore from headbanging the next day and actually, my neck is sore from head banging yesterday too."

Mangin: "Bonus points. Great answer, Demi. So I know that you've mentioned in a bunch of interviews over the years, the Arizona band, I'm from Arizona, Job for a Cowboy."

Lovato: "Yes."

Mangin: "I know that they are working on some new music right now. It's their first new music in a long time, but yeah, you've mentioned them a lot. What is it about Job for a Cowboy and who turned you onto them and what's your favorite track from those guys?"

Lovato: "It was that boyfriend that I had."

Mangin: "Yeah. He's awesome. I mean, I don't know. I don't know what he did. I'm sorry."

Lovato: "Oh, no, no, no. He was totally fine. There was no hard feelings."

Mangin: "Okay, good. Okay, perfect."

Lovato: "I just like moved out to LA and had to, you know, break up with him."

Mangin: "Move on. Yeah."

Lovato: "Yeah, move on, but yeah. "Entombment of a Machine" is what started me on Job for a Cowboy and I just, there was something just like the guitar riffs, the scream in that song when it hits really hard. It was the first song that I realized metal music, in a way, can be catchy without being a pop song because, you know, you listen for the guitar riffs, you listen for that certain part of the song, the drop and yeah. I just fell in love with it and that song is what did it for me."

Demi asks Corey Taylor, Knocked Loose for collaboration...

Lovato: "Someone I've always wanted to work with is Corey Taylor and, you know, obviously working with bands like Knocked Loose would be sick too, so I think it's something that's on my wish list but hopefully I'll have some collaborations for Revamped. We're still working that out though."

 

Meanwhile, Lovato has released “Sorry Not Sorry" (Rock Version) featuring Slash. Listen here, and below. The release comes alongside the announcement of her upcoming album, Revamped, featuring rock versions of her hit songs, out September 15.

“Sorry Not Sorry" (Rock Version) features energetic new vocals and updated production from Warren ‘Oak’ Felder, Keith "Ten4" Sorrells, and Alex Nice, turning the iconic hit into an electrifying new smash. Legendary guitarist Slash of Guns N’ Roses, often heralded as the greatest guitarist of all time, provides razor sharp guitar riffs and a high-intensity solo fit for the revamped version of the song.

“Sorry Not Sorry” was originally released six years ago as the lead single from Demi’s sixth studio album, Tell Me You Love Me. The song became Demi’s fourth top 10 hit and highest charting single on the Billboard Hot 100, and has since been certified 5x platinum.

(Photo - Maro Hagopian)