VAN HALEN singer David Lee Roth and the epic reunion of Stephen Pearcy and Warren DeMartini performing RATT hits will be the headliners of the 2025 edition of the M3 Rock Festival, set to take place May 2-4, 2025 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland.Pearcy had this to say about his special appearance with DeMartini: “Never say never, right? There was no question when the idea was brought up doing something with Warren again. It wasn’t even a thought/ It’s time, let’s do this. ‘Pearcy / DeMartini’ back in the cellar, let’s go! Let’s break the ice, with the utmost respect and do what we do best together, play RATT music. It’ll seem like yesterday instead of years when we’re back onstage regardless. It’s time to RATT n’ roll again, even if it’s a double shot. It’s about the band’s legacy.”Stephen continued: “I know what we can do as a team, and that’s writing great songs and kickin’ some ass onstage. It’s only appropriate that the first show in years is at M3 2025. It’s a great event. You’re getting ALL the RATT hits and more, let the ‘Invasion’ celebration begin,” referencing the fact that 2025 marks the 40th anniversary of RATT’s second album, “Invasion Of Your Privacy”.Confirmed performers:Friday, May 2SEBASTIAN BACHSNAKE OILSaturday, May 3DAVID LEE ROTHACCEPTWINGERSLAUGHTERSTEVEN ADLERCHILD’S PLAYRED VOODOOSunday, May 4STEPHEN PEARCY + WARREN DEMARTINI (performing RATT)ACE FREHLEYWARRANTGREAT WHITELITA FORDVIXENSPREAD EAGLETickets go on sale Friday, January 31 at Ticketmaster.Over the past 16 years, M3 has become more than a festival; it’s an ’80s arena rock experience. Drawing diehard fans from six continents, 30 countries, and every state, M3 has evolved into an annual pilgrimage for those who grew up with ’80s rock (a genre of music now referred to as the “new classic rock”) as well as for younger fans who embrace the fun and excitement of the glam metal era.M3 Rock Festival has become an annual pilgrimage for fans of 1980s rock, with up to 15,000 fans attending the event per day.”We have people come from all over the world,” director of operations Brad Canfield told WTOP in a 2021 interview. “We’ve had people from Australia, a lot from Europe. It’s the one place where if you’re into ’80s hair metal, you can see all these bands perform in one location.”He added: “It’s definitely a multigenerational event where parents, even grandparents, come to the festival and bring their kids. Their kids have listened to it in their parents’ car and get excited about the music and come, so we are noticing a new generation of fans that are younger and younger that have grown to appreciate this music.”Roth originally left VAN HALEN to pursue a solo career following the success of the band’s album “1984”, but he returned for a stint in 1996 and then took over as VAN HALEN’s frontman again from 2007 until 2020, although the band had not toured since 2015.In recent months, Roth has been releasing solo versions of several VAN HALEN classics, including “Jump”, “Unchained”, “Everybody Wants Some!!”, “You Really Got Me”, “Dance The Night Away”, “Panama” and “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love”. The tracks was laid down on May 3, 2022 during a session at Henson Recording Studio in Hollywood, California. Joining Roth in the studio were Al Estrada on guitar, Ryan Wheeler on bass and Francis Valentino on drums. A total of 14 songs were recorded in two hours. The music and the vocals were tracked live with “no samples” and without the pitch-correction technology Auto-Tune.In January 2022, Roth canceled the remaining farewell shows he was set to play in Las Vegas after he vowed to retire from performing live.In a statement, event organizers said the cancelations were made “due to unforeseen circumstances related to COVID and out of an abundance of caution for those working and attending the shows.”When Roth’s Vegas residency was first announced, organizers promised “a changing set of 26 instantly recognizable songs, including ‘Jump’, ‘Panama’ and ‘California Girls…'”In March 2020, Roth postponed the final six shows of his Las Vegas residency due to the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading across the globe.Roth’s last Vegas residency kicked off on January 8, 2020 with a 15-song set that included 10 VAN HALEN classics and five songs from his solo career. Backing the singer were lead guitarist Al Estrada from the VAN HALEN tribute band ERUPTION, rhythm guitarist Frankie Lindri, bassist Ryan Wheeler, keyboardist Danny Wagner and drummer Mike Mussleman.Roth explained that he chose Vegas as the place to debut his new band because “this is where you come to celebrate and do the victory dance, whatever that means to you.”In a February 2020 interview with StarTribune, Roth openly wondered whether his first tour since VAN HALEN completed its 2015 run of shows would be the last time he would perform.”I’m calling it ‘The Last Tour’,” he said at the time, “and then underneath it in parentheses: ‘Unless It Isn’t’. … At my age, everything is a possible farewell tour.””It’s been a long great trip, a long great run,” he continued. “But this kind of music requires the kind of energy that people in their 20s bring. You know what NFL stands for: Not For Long. It’s similar in rock. I remember the days when we would stand around and say, ‘Let’s go have a cigarette.’ And that’s what we did: Four guys having one cigarette. I remember those days. They go by fast, so enjoy them while you’re in them.”In February/March 2020, Roth performed as the opening act for the North American leg of KISS’s “End Of The Road” farewell tour.During a February 2024 appearance on “The Hook Rocks!” podcast, Pearcy was asked how much it bothers him that he and the other surviving members of RATT’s classic lineup can’t reunite one more time to perform for their fans. He responded : “A lot. But you know what? It just goes to show who really has integrity. I mean, Jesus, I think… Put it this way, Bobby Blotzer, the drummer of RATT, he’s ready to go. Carlos [Cavazo, former RATT and QUIET RIOT guitarist], who isn’t an original member, he just jammed with me recently at the Whisky [in West Hollywood]. But I can’t settle for less, and with a bass player who doesn’t even look like the same guy, who’s really… If you’re not into it, you’re not into it. And I can only have respect for Warren for not wanting… He doesn’t need to. None of these guys do. I don’t need to. It’s just a matter of what your drive is, I guess. I have a different drive than my guys, and that’s where the buck stops. I can’t force them. I can just go, ‘You know this is called business.’ Now it’s business. Forty years later, you should be very fortunate. It doesn’t matter how deep your pockets are. It’s the integrity you have for what you created, what you were a part of. That’s what pisses me off. It’s not the, ‘No, I don’t wanna do it anymore. I’m fine.’ It’s not that.”When we released the box set [‘The Atlantic Years: 1984-1991′ in 2023] , it was so cool. Besides looking great and it’s a great fucking package, it was due. It was about time, ’cause that’s it — that was the real RATT right there. ’84 — well, the EP could have been in there — but ’84 to ’90, ’91, that was it. After that, no matter who we had in the band, it just wasn’t RATT without [late RATT guitarist] Robbin [Crosby]. And it wasn’t gonna be, whether it was [Michael] Schenker or whoever. It wasn’t gonna be. And that’s why it never really flew the second time, although it could work now. But you don’t have all the elements, the proper elements. Like, say, MÖTLEY bringing in John 5 — no disrespect — that’s not MÖTLEY CRÜE. RATT without Robbin — I said it when he wasn’t playing, ‘This isn’t gonna work. We can do anything we want, we can try as hard as we want. It’s not gonna be the same.’ And it never was, and never will be.”Regarding the fact that he still goes out and performs the RATT classics with his solo band, Stephen said: “I go out because I’m the only guy — I’m the singer guy, I write the songs. I have every reason to go out there. I have integrity for the fucking band I created. So I’m out there having a great time seeing these people. I mean, I’m telling you, the meet-and-greets [at my solo shows] are fucking nutty. It’s like going to a Halloween party. It is 1984, and I love it. We embrace it. It’s, like, fucking tell me the stories, number one. I see these old photos and just go, ‘Man, explain that to me.’ I just don’t go, ‘Hey, take a picture. All right, thank you. Get the fuck out of here.’ No, we hang out and talk and sign. You want a tit signed, you want this signed — whatever. And nothing’s changed. These people, they go right into 1984 mode.”Earlier in February 2024, Pearcy told This Day In Metal about the possibility of a RATT reunion: “I’ve reached out, and I’m pretty much done reaching out, to get the guys [from the classic RATT lineup] together, whether we bring in Cavazo again or Michael Schenker, another guitarist. [They’re] still not gonna fill Crosby’s shoes ever, ever, ever, ever, but we can actually go out and do something cool for our fans, and that would be okay. But I’ve tried, and that’s about all I can do.”Look, I created this monster with Robbin as my right-hand man, who’s no longer with me to slap people around,” he continued. “All I can do is enjoy what we did, what we created, and that’s why this box set [last year’s ‘The Atlantic Years: 1984-1991’] is very important. It’s important to me, because it’s our 40th year. I’m still here doing it. The other guys might not wanna do it, and some do, some don’t. My plans are this year and next year to establish a few entities under the moniker ‘1980s Sunset Strip Experience’, and we’re developing some great stuff, a concert series and a residency, and we’re gonna keep the torch, pass the torch, keep it going, whether it be with original bands who are still around [from] the ’80s, ’cause inevitably you’re gonna get older, you’re gonna fuckin die. We’re all droppin’ like flies, unfortunately, due to the decade of decadence. And then even KIX is callin’ it quits, [RATT’s] Atlantic labelmates. I love those guys; I played with them all the time. So, here you go. What’s gonna be left is you’re gonna have all these tribute bands. So I’d rather be in charge of the tribute bands representing the RATT brand. Because there’s tons of ’em — the MÖTLEYs [CRÜE], the [DEF] LEPPARDs, the RATTs. It’s amazing. So there’s a lot of fun stuff in store.”Last year, Pearcy celebrated the 40th anniversary of RATT’s classic debut album, “Out Of The Cellar”, by performing it in its entirety and in sequence for the first time.RATT exploded on to the national scene in 1984 with the release of “Out Of The Cellar”. Featuring an undeniable hook and legendary music video, lead single “Round And Round” hit No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, while “Out Of The Cellar” reached No. 7 on the Billboard Top 200 and was certified triple platinum. Two more charting singles followed with “Back For More” and “Wanted Man”. RATT started the tour as an opening act, but by the end of the tour had climbed to arena headliner.RATT returned in 1985 with its second full-length album, “Invasion Of Your Privacy”. Certified double platinum and also reaching No. 7 on the Billboard 200, “Invasion Of Your Privacy” also featured the classics “Lay It Down” (No. 40 on Billboard Hot 100) and “You’re In Love”.”Dancing Undercover” followed in 1986 as RATT toured North America with a then-brand new Los Angeles band called POISON as the opening act. Lead single “Dance” hit the Billboard Hot 100 and spawned another music video hit with “Slip Of The Lip”, while “Body Talk” was featured in a key scene in the Eddie Murphy film “The Golden Child”. “Dancing Undercover” became RATT’s third consecutive platinum album and reached No. 26 on the Billboard 200.1988’s “Reach For The Sky” saw RATT return to the Top 20 of the Billboard 200 album charts, peaking at No. 17. Driven by the bluesy hit and MTV favorite “Way Cool Jr.”, “Reach For The Sky” was also certified platinum and became RATT’s fourth album in a row to move well over a million copies. “I Want A Woman” was also a successful single and the video captured the excitement and energy of RATT live.RATT released its last full-length record of the Atlantic era, “Detonator”, in 1990. Music was changing, but “Detonator” was still a success, peaking at No. 23 on the Billboard 200 and going gold. It was the first RATT album to feature major outside songwriting contributions (Desmond Child, Diane Warren) and guests (Jon Bon Jovi, Michael Schenker). Lead single “Lovin’ You’s A Dirty Job” hit No. 18 on the rock chart while the power ballad “Giving Yourself Away” reached No. 39.In 1991, they released the single “Nobody Rides For Free” from the hit film “Point Break”, starring Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze.In January 2021, Pearcy told SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk” that he was open to the idea of making a new RATT album with all the surviving members of the band’s classic lineup.RATT hasn’t released any new music since 2010’s “Infestation” LP.