Legendary Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen has taken aim at some of the vocalists he worked with during his solo career, accusing them of attempting to profit from his iconic brand.
Malmsteen, who has collaborated with a string of renowned singers including Jeff Scott Soto, Mark Boals, Joe Lynn Turner, Göran Edman, Michael Vescera, Mats Levén, and Tim “Ripper” Owens, recently addressed the issue on his social media. Nick Marino has most recently handled some of the vocal duties for Malmsteen‘s live shows.
“So it has come to my attention that these hired and paid singers that I hired for my solo records are all trying to capitalize from my brand!” Malmsteen wrote on X yesterday (December 18).
“Let’s be clear: performing on MY SOLO records does not equal ownership, authorship, or legacy. Writing a line here and there doesn’t make someone a songwriter, and singing my material doesn’t make it theirs. They were merely given a salary (work for hire) to put down MY written parts, just like the keyboard player, bassist, drummer etc.
“If the only way you can tour or get attention is by leaning on my brand and using my name and album titles and my SOLO catalog, then you’ve already answered the question of who actually built something. And -What have they recorded/created the last 30,40 years?”
While Malmsteen did not specify a particular trigger for his comments, it comes shortly after Mats Levén announced that he will perform two shows in Japan in May 2026, focusing heavily on material from the 1997 Yngwie Malmsteen album Facing The Animal, the only solo record Levén appeared on.
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