YNGWIE MALMSTEEN Wants You To Get Shredded

Yngwie Malmsteen has been making headlines this week because he started selling his own branded protein powder. Of course the talk wasn’t so much about the quality of the powder, rather a series of questions starting with “why is a Swedish guitar phenomenon selling branded protein powder?” Allow me to break this news to you all – Yngwie Malmsteen has a whole line of health-related stuff on his website, and this is nothing new.

While Malmsteen is best known for revolutionizing metal with his lightning-fast fretwork and baroque-influenced compositions, he also wants you to be shredded (and able to shred) in more ways than one. Malmsteen‘s official webstore quietly rolled out a full line of health and fitness products, including protein powder, pre-workout supplements, probiotics, a yoga mat, gym apparel, and the previously released “Force” multivitamin gummies.

In an interview this past March with SiriusXM’s Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk, Malmsteen addressed the unexpected pivot to wellness: “Well, in order for you to be in good health, you need to take supplements. And I’ve always done that. And so the reason I put my line out is because I want other people to do it too. And it really works. I highly recommend it.”

When Trunk pointed out that Malmsteen‘s health-conscious product line was a departure from the standard rock-star branded booze or weed, the guitarist doubled down on his philosophy: “Well, because that’s what I do. I don’t drink. I don’t do drugs. I don’t believe in it. Listen, if you wanna do that, go ahead. Be my guest. But I prefer not to do it. And also I think it’s great to let people know — take your vitamins, and it really works.”

While this might sound like an elaborate meme, the guitarist is entirely serious. His clean-living ethos and longtime supplement use offer a sharp contrast to many of his peers — and now he’s inviting fans to join him in the gym as well as to fight dragons or whatever Malmsteen does in his spare time these days.