CKY bassist Mike Leon has posted a scathing statement, revealing he has left the band due to frontman Chad I Ginsburg’s “toxicity”.
CKY have found themselves in drama yet again as bassist Mike Leon has quit the band due to frontman Chad I Ginsburg’s “toxicity”.
The former Soulfly bassist would post a lengthy statement on social media today, calling out Ginsburg over alleged unprofessional behaviour.
His full statement would read:
“I want to let you know that my time with CKY has come to an end. Growing up, I was a huge fan of the band, and getting the opportunity to play with them was a dream come true. I genuinely enjoyed my time there, and it was fun… until it wasn’t.
“For full transparency, I will not be participating in the band’s upcoming shows. As unfortunate as this is, given the circumstances, I believe this was the right move to make. The differences regarding logistics and business decisions, primarily driven by the actions of the band’s leader, created internal issues that made an already stressful environment increasingly difficult to work in.”
“This unprofessionalism and lack of accountability was known well before I joined, and persisted throughout my time with the band, making day-to-day operations a constant challenge. The love I had for the band blinded me to the red flags my peers and the band’s previous history had warned me about, especially surrounding the frontman, yet I chose to believe things would be different.”
“In all of my years of working in this industry, I have never experienced this level of toxicity from an individual, and it stings extra having been perpetrated by the very band that first inspired me to start my career as a musician.”
“Music should be a source of joy, but the environment became a source of stress that ultimately outweighed the positive aspects of being part of the band I grew up loving.
I will continue creating music, and I sincerely thank all of you for your unconditional support.”
Ginsburg would share his own response to Leon’s post via the frontman’s Instagram Story, claiming that the bassist was actually fired for hating dogs.
“I don’t know what Mike Leon is talking about in his post,” he’d say (via Stereogum). “However, I do know the facts and the facts are, Mike, and you know them too, is that we fired you last night because you hate dogs and you didn’t want to tour with the dogs and you wanted more money and you weren’t happy with anything ever. So unfortunately it’s not working out, Mike. But what you wrote is f***ing crazy, dude. Like, prove any of that fu**ng sh*t.”
This isn’t the first time a touring member would cite Ginsburg’s behaviour as problematic. Last year, BLACKGOLD would pull out of their supporting CKY on tour due to the frontman’s “narcissism”.
In 2024, Ginsburg would strike Alien Ant Farm‘s Dryden Mitchell while the band was touring Europe. Ginsburg would later claim that he “felt a physical threat” and that “If I hadn’t acted, I would have been assaulted”. CKY would be dropped as support and would be replaced with Drowning Pool during the Australian leg of the tour.
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