“Don’t Tread on Me” was released to rock radio promotionally but not as a commercial single from Metallica.
The song appears on Metallica’s 1991 album and takes its title from the “Don’t Tread on Me” motto associated with the Gadsden flag. Its lyrics use patriotic imagery and references to the American Revolution, making it thematically distinct from the album’s more personal songs.
Metallica promoted the album with five commercial singles: “Enter Sandman,” “The Unforgiven,” “Nothing Else Matters,” “Wherever I May Roam,” and “Sad but True.” “Don’t Tread on Me” was sent to rock radio, but it did not receive the same commercial single release.
This distinction matters because radio promotion and commercial single release are separate parts of music marketing. The song is part of the original album sequence, but it was not one of the five commercial singles used to drive the album’s sales campaign.