Metallica closed their Australia and New Zealand tour in Auckland with a moment created only for local fans. The final night delivered the expected firepower across a career spanning setlist, yet the highlight arrived when Robert Trujillo and Kirk Hammett delivered their tour-tradition Doodle. This version was built around the Split Enz classic I Got You, paired with Six60’s anthem Don’t Forget Your Roots. The Doodle placed two of New Zealand’s most important songs into the middle of Metallica’s global production, creating a rare cultural crossover in front of a sold out crowd.
The Metallica Doodle has become a fixture in recent tours, with Trujillo and Hammett using the break to honour local repertoire. Auckland received a unique combination that spoke directly to the country’s musical lineage. The choice of I Got You connected to the breakthrough era of Split Enz, a band formed in Auckland before shifting to Australia in the late 1970s. Their album True Colours rewrote Australasian chart history in 1980, propelled by the success of the Neil Finn penned single.
I Got You became the biggest selling single in Australian history by mid 1980, supported by its eight week run at number one in Australia and strong placements in Canada and the United Kingdom. The track captured the rise of Neil Finn as a songwriter, with a riff he once described as the only one he knew how to play at the time. The Doodle performance reintroduced this era to a stadium heavy metal audience, reinforcing the durability of its melody and structure.
The second half of the Doodle shifted decades forward with Don’t Forget Your Roots by Six60. Released in 2011, the track peaked at number two in New Zealand, becoming one of the country’s defining modern rock singles. Six60 later re recorded the track in te reo Māori for the Waiata Anthems project in 2019, with lyrics reinterpreted by Tīmoti Kāretu. The shift into bilingual performance pushed the song into cultural preservation territory, adding meaning beyond its chart metrics.
Metallica’s decision to spotlight both songs acknowledged two generations of New Zealand music. The performance linked the legacy of Split Enz with the national prominence of Six60. The crowd response confirmed the value of the moment, with tens of thousands singing the chorus lines usually heard in markedly different contexts.
Metallica structured the Auckland set with selections from across their catalogue. The performance included:
Creeping Death from Ride The Lightning
For Whom The Bell Tolls from Ride The Lightning
Fuel from Reload
Harvester Of Sorrow from …And Justice For All
The Unforgiven from Metallica
Wherever I May Roam from Metallica
Kirk And Rob Doodle featuring I Got You and Don’t Forget Your Roots
The Day That Never Comes from Death Magnetic
Moth Into Flame from Hardwired… To Self Destruct
Sad But True from Metallica
Nothing Else Matters from Metallica
Seek & Destroy from Kill ‘Em All
Lux Æterna from 72 Seasons
Master Of Puppets from Master Of Puppets
One from …And Justice For All
Enter Sandman from Metallica
The Auckland show marked the end of the Australia and New Zealand run. The next Metallica date is scheduled for Qatar on 30 November 2025, signalling the continuation of the 72 Seasons world cycle.
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