Lzzy Hale has recalled invaluable advice given to her by the late Ronnie James Dio about how to treat her fans.
Hale and her Halestorm bandmates toured with Dio in the years before his death – and on the last night of one trek, the iconic vocalist imparted knowledge that Hale has never forgotten.
In the TeamRock Zone at the Download festival, Hale tells TeamRock: “One of the best things to ever happen to me was being able to share the stage with Ronnie James Dio. He made us feel like family.
“We’re hanging out backstage and it’s three in the morning, time to go home. He walked us to our door and said, ‘I’ll be right back. I just have to go sign for people.’
“We watched as he signed and took pictures with absolutely everybody as 3am in this parking lot. And he still came back to say goodbye to us, and he didn’t have to do that.
“I said, ‘Ronnie, dude – you could have just gone to bed. We understand.’ And he wags a finger in my face, and when Dio wags a finger in your face, you listen.
“He says to me, ‘Lzzy, it’s a moment in time where we are at now. You’re never gonna remember all of the faces that you see today, but those people are going to remember meeting you for the rest of their lives. So you make it good for every single one of them.’
“It’s something that we think about absolutely every day before we go out and sign for people regardless of how late it is or what you gotta do tomorrow. I want to treat people the way he treated me.”
Former Rainbow and Black Sabbath frontman Dio died of stomach cancer in 2010.
Halestorm appeared on the Lemmy Stage today (Sunday) at Download and will play the Metal Hammer Golden Gods tomorrow (June 13) where Hale has been nominated for the Dimebag Darrell Shredder Award.
TeamRock is at Download all weekend. Visit teamrock.com to keep up with all the news, reviews and interviews from the festival as they happen.
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Halestorm 2016 tour dates
Jun 15: Strasbourg La Laiterie, France
Jun 16: Zurich Plaza, Switzerland
Jun 17: Clisson Hellfest, France
Jun 18: Dessel Graspop, Belgium
Jul 14: Oshkosh Rock, WI
Jul 15: Waterloo McElroy Stadium, IA
Jul 17: Sioux City Battery Park
Jul 20: Southhaven Landers Center, MS
Jul 22: Kansas City Starlight Theatre, MO
Jul 23: St. Louis Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, MO
Jul 24: Fort Wayne Parkview Field, IN
Jul 26: Rogers Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion, AR
Jul 27: Tulsa BOK Center, OK
Jul 29: New Orleans UNO Lakefront Arena, LA
Jul 31: Austin Cedar Park Center, TX
Aug 02: Bossier City CenturyLink Center, LA
Aug 04: Nashville Ascend Amphitheatre, TN
Aug 07: Brooklyn The Amphitheater at Coney Island, NY
Aug 10: Columbia Merriweather Post Pavilion, MD
Aug 12: Gilford Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion, NH
Aug 13: Uncasville Mohegan Sun Arena, CT
Aug 14: Erie Erie Insurance Arena, PA
Aug 16: Chicago First Merit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island, IL
Aug 18: Detroit DTE Energy Music Theater, MI
Sep 01: Canfield County Fair, OH
Sep 07: Sao Paulo Maximus Festival, Brazil
Sep 10: Buenos Aires Maximus Festival, Argentina
Oct 06: Dallas Gas Monkey Live, TX
Oct 08: Colorado Springs Pikes Peak Center, CO
Oct 09: Salt Lake City The Complex, UT
Oct 11: Tempe The Marquee, AZ
Oct 12: San Diego House Of Blues, CA
Oct 14: Reno Silver Legacy Casino, NV
Oct 15: Sacramento Ace Of Spaces, CA
Oct 17: Spokane Knitting Factory, WA
Oct 21: Billings Shrine Auditorium, MT
Oct 22: Minot State Fair Center, ND
Oct 23: Duluth Pioneer, MN
Oct 25: Kalamazoo State Theatre, MI
Oct 26: Toronto Phoenix, ON
Oct 28: Montreal Metropolis, QC
