The Foo Fighters announced the name of the man taking the throne as their new drummer Sunday: Josh Freese.
The fifty-year-old longtime touring and recording artist drummer has been playing professionally since the age of 12, according to Ultimate Classic Rock. The appointment fills the void of the band’s longtime drummer, Taylor Hawkins, who died unexpectedly March 2022 in Colombia while the band was in the midst of a world tour.
BREAKING: Foo Fighters have revealed Josh Freese as their new live drummer. https://t.co/wVaPgw9hPr pic.twitter.com/5HamZ2e38f
— CONSEQUENCE (@consequence) May 21, 2023
The news was released to the public during a Sunday live performance livestream event showcased via Veeps.com:
Tune in TODAY for a FREE global streaming event at 8pm BST / 3 pm EST / 12 pm PST and available on demand for 72 hours, exclusively on @Veeps. https://t.co/hzz5G9nmA6 pic.twitter.com/CDfKes5VQF
— Foo Fighters (@foofighters) May 21, 2023
INDIO, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 23: Josh Freese performs with 100 Gecs on the Sahara stage during the 2022 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival on April 23, 2022 in Indio, California. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Coachella)
Members of the band noted how other big name drummers also auditioned for the role, including Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, as well as Tommy Lee from Mötley Crüe, to name a couple. Those accomplished drummers evidently didn’t make the cut. (RELATED: Rockstar Drummer Jim Gordon Who Was Jailed For Life For Killing His Mother Dead At 77)
Freese has also played the percussion instrument with popular music and rock n’ roll heavyweights such as Guns N’ Roses, Weezer, Nine Inch Nails and Devo, to name a few.
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 31: Josh Freese of Devo performs in concert at the Greek Theater on October 31, 2006 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Karl Walter/Getty Images)
He first started practicing drums at a young age by playing along to songs by Van Halen, the Police and Queen, eventually taking lessons. Besides assuming a childhood paper route, Freese has said being a pro drummer is the only job he has ever had.
A member of the group from shortly after its 1995 inception, Hawkins had played with the band since around 1997 for 25 years straight before passing away at the age of 50, steadily touring with the group on top of being featured on eight of their albums. At the time of his death, Hawkins reportedly had “10 psychoactive substances and medicines, including marijuana, opioids, tricyclic antidepressants and benzodiazepines,” in the drummer’s system, according to Treatment Magazine. (RELATED: Bachman-Turner Overdrive Co-Founder Tim Bachman Dead)
SANTIAGO, CHILE – MARCH 20: Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters perform during day three of Lollapalooza Chile 2022 at Parque Bicentenario Cerrillos on March 20, 2022 in Santiago, Chile. (Photo by Marcelo Hernandez/Getty Images)
With their updated line-up, the famous rock outfit are expected to tour throughout the remainder of 2023.
Foo Fighters founding member and front-man Dave Grohl first found fame behind the drum kit as a heavy hitter for the 90’s grunge sensation Nirvana — a position which brought him international stardom that ended abruptly after the band’s founding-member, primary songwriter and guitarist, Kurt Cobain, took his own life by way of a shotgun wound to the head at his Seattle home. The band abruptly disbanded after Cobain’s 1994 death. (RELATED: Legendary Rocker David Crosby Called Estranged Former Bandmate Graham Nash To ‘Apologize’ Just Before Passing Away)
What is your favorite Nirvana song? pic.twitter.com/FK9DJZ04J2
— Classic Rock In Pics (@crockpics) May 16, 2023
After that, Grohl took to songwriting as well as the six-string and went on to form the Foo Fighters, which boasted instant success from the outset of their debut self titled album released but a year later. Some hit songs released by the band throughout the years include, “All My Life,” “Everlong,” “My Hero,” “Best of You,” “Monkey Wrench.”