After being fired and then hired back by The Who, Zak Starkey has said that he will no longer be playing drums for the band.
In April, a group spokesman said that “the band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall,” which were two gigs the month before. This was the start of Starkey’s membership problems. A story from those shows said that singer Roger Daltrey had stopped a few songs in the middle of performing because he couldn’t hear the band over the drums.
Later, Starkey said in a statement that the news had left him “surprised and saddened.” However, guitarist Pete Townshend later said that Starkey was back in the band after “communication issues” were resolved.
Fans were excited to say “meet the new boss, same as the old boss” when Starkey was reinstated, but it looks like the whole thing started over again when the band announced a new drummer before their final tour.
Townshend wrote on social media on May 18: “After many years of great work on drums from Zak, the time has come for a change.” “A sad time. I wish Zak the best with all of his new work. Scott Devours will join The Who for our last few shows. He has worked with Roger’s side band before. “Please make him feel welcome.”
After hours, Starkey reacted to the news on social media, making it clear that he had not decided to leave the band.
“Two weeks after being reinstated, I was fired and asked to make a statement saying I had quit the Who to pursue other musical projects. This would be a lie,” he wrote. “I love the who and would never give up.”
So I didn’t make the statement… quitting the who would have also let down the many wonderful people who stuck by me (thank you all a million times over and over again) during the weeks of chaos when I was going “in and out like a bleedin’ squeezebox x.”
Townshend and Daltrey also made a more official statement about Starkey’s firing on The Who’s website. They talked about Devours’ new role in the band and said that Starkey’s many other projects were the reason for the group change.
They wrote, “The Who are retiring, but Zak is 20 years younger and has a great future with his new band and other exciting projects.” “He needs to put everything he has into making it work.” We each wish him the best of luck.
Devours is 15 months younger than Starkey and just as busy as Starkey, even though The Who said Starkey was “20 years younger” and needed to focus on his other tasks.
Starkey is the son of Ringo Starr, the drummer for the Beatles, and Maureen Starkey. He has also had a successful career outside of The Who, playing with Oasis, Johnny Marr, Paul Weller, and Graham Coxon. As of right now, he plays in the brand-new band Mantra of the Cosmos, which also includes Shaun Ryder, Bez, and Andy Bell from Oasis and Ride.
“None of this has ever stood in the way of The Who and was never a problem for them,” Starkey wrote on social media. “I quit the who, but I didn’t. That was a lie.” “I love the who and everyone in it.”
