18 Years Ago: Metallica Celebrated as MTV Icon With Unexpected Group of Guests. #Staind Nothing Else Matters. MTV ICON: #Metallica By lauryn schaffner Back when MTV was actually, you know, about music, they had an annual special called the MTV Icon. Each year from 2001 to 2004, the channel chose an artist to honor with a celebration, and Metallica were the stars of the 2003 segment. To commemorate the thrashers' legacy, a large event was thrown on May 3 of that year and was attended by a large v