Five Finger Death Punch Address Former Label Selling Masters

According to a new Rock Feed interview with Five Finger Death Punch, the band’s album masters were recently sold without the group learning about it until after the move had been made.

During the discussion, guitarist Zoltan Bathory was asked about a recent sale of their masters and he quickly dispelled the notion that the group had anything to do with it.

“Not exactly,” said Bathory in response to the question about selling their masters.

“From the very beginning we had a personal partnership with the label. I don’t know if you remember a time when the bands used to get 360 deals and profit sharing sort of contract. You could produce the first record, deliver it and just put it out. So that’s the kind of deal we had. We owned the masters with the label,” he explained.

“So we are co-owners of the masters and the label sold it without telling us,” the guitarist continued though not naming the label in his response. “They sold it without telling us or giving us basically the option. Like we would have bought it. Like why? You know like it’s our masters, at least ask me.”

The “Taylor Swift of Metal”?

It was then suggested by Rock Feed that the band could end up being the “Taylor Swift of Metal,” which is a reference to the country-pop star’s battle with her record company when it changed ownership. Swift had reportedly tried to purchase her masters when the label sale seemed imminent, but was met with unfavorable conditions to do so.

When she butted heads with the new ownership, eventually the singer decided to re-record her old material and reissue her records using the “Taylor’s Version” moniker. The singer eventually moved on from the label once her contract was up.

READ MORE: Chris Kael’s Trick to Joining Five Finger Death Punch

So what does that context mean for Five Finger Death Punch? “We found out just as you found out. So we’re thinking about the response,” shared Bathory.

“Nothing’s off the table. Obviously that’s a response and that’s not off the table. We could technically do the exact same thing. We may be doing it, we may be not. I don’t know, but that would be an interesting response, wouldn’t it,” he continued. “It’s a chess game, business, life, it’s always a chess game. You know, I could be pissed and hit the board or they made their move, now we’re gonna make our move.”

Five Finger Death Punch Speak With Rock Feed

Five Finger Death Punch in 2025

While Five Finger Death Punch’s response to their masters being sold is something that the band is still sorting through, the group does have some more definitive plans in 2025.

At present, the band does have a handful of tour dates scheduled for this year. The first date comes July 17 at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum. There are also festival appearances in July and August at Rock Fest, Inkcarceration, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and Rocklahoma on the books.

All Five Finger Death Punch dates and ticketing info can be found through their website.