"Mama Said" is a country rock ballad by American heavy metal band Metallica from their sixth album, Load, with music and lyrics by James Hetfield (music credited to Hetfield/Ulrich).
The lyrics represent a man or boy who is learning to find his own way in life away from his mother. The song is directly written about Hetfield's difficult relationship with his mother, who died of cancer when he was 16 years old.
The song is a departure from the band's classic sound; its genre-blending style incorporates country, blues, and hard rock. "Mama Said" begins with acoustic guitar and, during the chorus, becomes flush with a country-flavored vocal harmony and steel guitar. Toward the end, the song features power chords on electric guitar.
"Mama Said" has never been featured as a part of Metallica's live setlist. Hetfield has performed this song live, however, using a single steel-stringed acoustic guitar with no drum or bass accompaniment. He also performed it along with country singer Jessi Colter on CMT's Outlaw Concert, along with Hetfield's cover of Waylon Jennings's "Don't You Think This Outlaw Bit's Done Got Out of Hand."