Guitarist Zoltan Bathory of Five Finger Death Punch joins Audacy host Jason Bailey this week to discuss not just his tenure with 5FDP amid their current opening duties for Metallica, but also his recent inclusion in Call Of Duty Season 5.
LISTEN NOW: Zoltan Bathory of Five Finger Death Punch
Sure, rocking with 5FDP while providing opening duties on Metallica's M72 WORLD TOUR has been just as epic as it sounds, but how do you take that rockstar status to the next level? We're pretty sure getting your likeness into the latest Call Of Duty video game counts. "Until it happens, you don't realize how big it actually is," Zoltan tells Jason. "You know how many people play video games, especially this is the most successful first-shooter game in the world," he explains. "A massive, massive franchise, you don't know it until you're in it. Like, 'Holy cow!' I mean, obviously, we live the life already. We play in front of a lot of people touring the world, so this is not new to me to have that much attention on us, but man -- this is surprisingly huge."
For Jason and Zoltan, both coming from gaming backgrounds which began in the early days of Tetris, Pac Man, and Excitebike, seeing the evolution of video games over the years into the major cinematics of the most recent Call Of Duty titles has been a thrill. "It's getting better and better," says Zoltan. "Beyond thought, actually."
His inclusion in the game he believes comes from a combination of being in the right time and right place, as well as his well-known background as a bad a** martial artist. "Like everything in life, you get to a point," he says, "but you get to a point for a reason. You arrive at the crossroad because you are traveling that path, right?" He explains that what started as a running joke within his circle of friends who had already been operators in the game based on his hectic 24 hour schedule of training and being in a band. After he was invited to some of their photo shoots, he says things progressed naturally from there. "It's a very secretive process.. I had to keep it under wraps for over a year. Even my band members didn't know... not until a week ago."
Sixteen years after the release of Five Finger Death Punch's debut, Zoltan says he owes the band's longevity and incredible album sales (which rival current tourmates Metallica's sales over the last two decades) to the idea of never putting a limit on how far a dream can go. "The only person who can limit you is yourself, " Zoltan says. "It's kind of the same thing like with a fight, let's say a competition... If I lost the fight in my head, if I don't think I can win it, then I will not. This is the same thing with any career you're going after. If your dreams are not insane, they're not big enough."
"You have to dream of insanely huge things," he adds, "You have to set goals that, in your current stage, seem unachievable. Because it's not how far you can go... it's who's gonna stop you?"
Five Finger Death Punch's ninth studio album, Afterlife, is out now -- and get ready for the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III Worldwide Reveal, set for Thursday, August 17.
Listen to Jason Bailey's full interview with guitarist Zoltan Bathory above, and stay tuned for more conversations with your favorite artists right here on Audacy.
Browse and follow more of Audacy's awesome Rock stations like Ripchord, Masters Of Metal, IndustriALT, Don't Metal In My Affairs, Venom, Greatest Guitarists, Greatest Drummers, Arena Rock, Wake Up and Rock, and The Roots of Rock for those who crave the early days.
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