Former Accept frontman Udo Dirkschneider has said the band existed for nearly eight years before guitarist Wolf Hoffmann joined, pushing back on the idea that the classic Accept lineup represents the band's true origin. Speaking to Rock Hard Greece, he noted that the Accept name dates back to late 1969, well before Hoffmann, Peter Baltes, Stefan Kaufmann and Jörg Fischer arrived in 1976, and said he still performs Accept material with his current project, Dirkschneider.

Dirkschneider has long expressed frustration over losing the rights to the Accept name, explaining that in 1981 he unknowingly signed paperwork, arranged by then-manager Gaby Hoffmann, that transferred ownership of the name to Wolf Hoffmann. He has previously accused Hoffmann's camp of "stealing" the name, though he maintains no personal ill will towards Hoffmann himself, calling him a great guitarist. Despite saying 11 years ago that he would stop playing Accept songs live, Dirkschneider continues to do so with both U.D.O. and Dirkschneider, while the current Accept lineup features only Hoffmann from the classic era alongside singer Mark Tornillo.