Slipknot Drummer 'Blindsided' By Sacking

Former Slipknot drummer Jay Weinberg has opened up about his departure from the band, recalling feeling “blindsided and heartbroken” after receiving the phone call from his bandmates on Sunday, 5 November.

Posting an enthusiastic photo of himself playing the drums to Instagram, Weinberg opened the lengthy caption by wondering what it would be like to revisit his “wide-eyed, 10-year-old self — falling head over heels in love with a new and exciting sound and culture — and tell him all about the last 10 years. Even on the hardest days, I’d like to think he’d be stoked about the adventure that was in store for him.”

“I was heartbroken and blindsided to receive the phone call that I did on the morning of November 5th; the news of which, most of you learned shortly after,” Weinberg wrote on Sunday (12 November). “However, I’ve been overwhelmed by — and truly grateful for — the outpouring of love and support I’ve received from this incredible community I consider to be my creative and artistic home.”

He continued to write that this wasn’t the end of his musical journey, “not by a long shot.” Weinberg has found comfort in the fact that ten years after joining Slipknot, fans and the wider music community know his name.

Weinberg added, “I don’t know how, and I don’t know when, but I look forward to creating loud, passionate, and heartfelt music that we enjoy together again. Until then, please know it’s been the joy of a lifetime to spend the last 10 years with you, sharing in our love for this special corner of the music and art world.

“This isn’t the end, and I’m thrilled to discover what the future has in store for us.”

You can read Weinberg’s full statement below.

His post received enormous support, including comments from his father and longtime drummer for Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band, Max Weinberg, Dream Theater’s Mike Portnoy, Green Day’s Tre Cool, and many more.

Slipknot announced the departure of Jay Weinberg last week on social media but deleted the statement not long after. The band cited a “creative decision” for the drummer’s removal.

Following the departure of Joey Jordison in late 2013, Weinberg joined Slipknot in 2014 and played on three of their studio albums, 2014’s .5: The Gray Chapter, 2019’s We Are Not Your Kind and 2022’s The End, So Far.

Jay’s departure from Slipknot follows a turbulent period for the band, in which Craig Jones, the group’s keyboard player and sampler of the last 27 years, left the band.

The shock announcement arrived hours after Shawn 'Clown' Crahan revealed that he was taking some time away from live gigs as he needed to be with his wife, who was dealing with unspecified health issues.

Joey Jordison passed away in July 2021.

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