Jeff Scott Soto has recently responded to Yngwie Malmsteen’s public warning aimed at former singers who reference his name. Soto clarified his stance during a statement shared on Artists on Record with Stefan Adika, after being asked about Malmsteen’s recent online remarks concerning singers using his name for promotional purposes.
“My phone was blowing up for two days,” Soto said. “Everybody thought he was talking about me again and he wasn’t. He was talking about two other former singers that are going out and doing shows based on tribute to Yngwie or tribute to the time that they spent with Yngwie.”
According to Soto, those singers were actively promoting tribute-style performances, which ultimately led to Malmsteen’s public response.
“And I guess that they were promoting that and he caught wind of it and that’s where that came from,” he continued. “Nothing to do with me. I’m not doing anything where I’m going out doing based shows or trying to capitalize on his name or his legacy. Not at all.”
The former Malmsteen vocalist then explained how he personally references his past work.
“All I do is I post things online to celebrate my involvement,” Soto said. “Celebrate the things I did with them because it’s I have a legacy too in my own world, however you want to call it. That’s it’s part of my history, too. So, I celebrate that. I’m not trying to, you know, tow the line. I’m not trying to do anything and trying to get anything from him in those terms.”
Soto’s comments followed a statement Malmsteen posted on X, in which the guitarist criticized former singers for capitalizing on his brand and stressed that performing on his solo albums does not grant ownership or legacy rights.
The situation has once again highlighted long-standing tensions between Malmsteen and some of his former collaborators regarding creative ownership and legacy. Recent reporting notes that Malmsteen has consistently maintained that his solo records are solely his creations and that hired vocalists do not possess the right to claim legacy ownership of those works. His stance reflects deeper, ongoing disputes over songwriting credits and creative contributions tied to his past projects.
The renewed controversy has also drawn attention to Malmsteen’s history with well-known vocalists, including Jeff Scott Soto, Joe Lynn Turner, and others who contributed to some of his most commercially successful albums. Despite those collaborations, questions surrounding creative ownership have persisted decades later.
Additional coverage has included claims from former collaborators asserting they contributed significantly to certain albums, underscoring the ongoing complexity of these disputes. The disagreements highlight broader industry tensions between lead artists and hired musicians over recognition and creative credit.
Meanwhile, Soto remains active with various projects, including recent and upcoming live performances with Saigon Kick and other collaborations outside of the Malmsteen sphere. His continued work reflects an independent career path beyond his past association with the Swedish guitarist.
