Judas Priest Frontman Rob Halford Considering Very Surprising Covers Album

08-24-2025

Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford says in a new interview that he would like to cover legendary crooner Tony Bennet and he has reached the point in his career that he can get away with pulling off something so far outside of the metal that he is known for.

"There's so many musical things I want to do. I was singing Tony Bennett in the shower the other day and I listened to my voice and I'm going, 'Do I dare to consider something like this?'," he told UCR. "And then I go, 'I'm an old man, I can do what I f***ing want!' And I love Tony Bennett. I was sad, like a lot of us were, when he passed. He was an icon and a beacon.

"I love all kinds of singers. My love for what the voice can do is always so attractive to me - the ideas, the imagination, like Lady Gaga doing her thing in Vegas when she does the jazz side of stuff.

"So, yeah, I'd love to do that. I don't know how I would go about it, but I better get a move on if I'm going to do something like that."

Halford then explains that a project like this would not have been possible for him earlier in his career. "I wouldn't have dared to have done this back in the day. Your label said, 'No, this is who you are. Don't deviate!' Management said, 'No, this is who you are. Don't deviate!!'

"Now you can do whatever you want, regardless of where you're at. I think we're in a beautiful time where there's acceptance of music and understanding the joy of music, without barriers. It's wonderful."

If Rob does follow-through with covering Tony Bennet, it would not be the first time that he ventured outside of metal. In 2019, the Metal God released a Christmas album entitled "Celestial".

He said at the time, "The great thing about heavy metal is it's got these kinds of multiple dimensions," explains the rocker. "I think when you look at it from an outside point of view - if you're not really familiar with the metal scene - it can look pretty intimidating And it is a very strong, powerful experience. But it comes at different levels. I think the music that we've made on Celestial, for example, gives a display of that. Metal maniacs - as we call ourselves - are just as ready for the holidays as everybody else. And what we've tried to do with this music is to reach out to as many of those metal dimensions as we possibly can."

"I think the holidays for any family are a mixture of fun and excitement and apprehension of the whole event," Halford adds. "The magic of it more than anything else. It's just a beautiful time of year - which a lot of us wish would be for every day of the year. It's a beautiful thing as far as bringing families together. So, what better way to celebrate it than with your family, friends...and music. You must have music at Christmas time."