12 Rock + Metal Artists Wrongly Labeled As Satanic

There have been quite a few rock and metal artists who were wrongly labeled as Satanic over the years.

Heavy music has long been associated with Satanism due to evil references and symbols in the songs, artwork and stage performances. But a lot of the artists actually practiced various religions, or were Atheist or spiritual instead.

Black Sabbath were one of the first metal acts accused of practicing Satanism because of their name and the lyrical content of some of their music. Tony Iommi’s use of “the Devil’s interval” tritone gave the music a sinister twist, especially in their self-titled track.

However, the members were all Christians, and songs such as “After Forever” on Master of Reality showcased these beliefs.

Slayer are another example. Frontman Tom Araya admitted to us in an interview that the evil visuals were just meant to scare people — which they found humorous.

READ MORE: 14 Artists Associated With Witchcraft, Satanism + the Occult

“We used that more to be different from the Hollywood community,” he said. “It was to be different and to scare people. Because that stuff kinda scares people, and that’s kinda fun… We did that more to fuck with people.”

Scroll through the gallery below to see 12 rock and metal artists who have been wrongly labeled as Satanists.