On Saturday the climax for the Hall of Fame’s induction ceremony came when Metallica took the stage to play a medley of their hit songs.

The group was inducted by pal and fellow rock survivor Flea, bassist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers. With his hair dyed blue and wearing a vintage Metallica T-shirt under a green blazer, Flea recalled the first time he heard Metallica, in 1984 while on tour with the Peppers.

By the time drummer Ulrich got the podium, there weren’t many people left to thank, so he made sure to give a hearty shout out to the people in the balcony, a.k.a. the fans. “I think rock and roll is about possibilities and about dreams,” he said. “The fact that the six of us can be up on the stage tonight, snot-nosed kids, outcasts, loners who grew up in very different parts of the world, in very different situations and make it here tonight, to this wonderful night in front of all these people down here … Rock and roll truly is about possibilities. Look at us. Metallica’s in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! Can you f—ing believe that?”