If you’ve got a drumkit and a day job in a legacy rock band, it might be time to update your CV.
I mean, that’s at least the takeaway from Dream Theater’s Mike Portnoy, who has just sounded the alarm on what he calls “scary times for drummers.”
Appearing on Office Hours Live With Tim Heidecker, Portnoy riffed on the recent wave of big-name drummer sackings—Josh Freese out of Foo Fighters, Zak Starkey gone from The Who, Jason Bonham ejected from Sammy Hagar’s band, and Guns N’ Roses swapping out Frank Ferrer like a spare snare.
“If the spawn of Ringo and Bonzo aren’t safe, nobody is,” Portnoy quipped, before joking that he’s “scared for [his] life and career.” Not ideal when you’re juggling 15 projects at once. “The odds are very much stacked against me right now.”
He called Freese’s sacking from the Foos “shocking” and said he thought the guy was perfect for the role. He also weighed in on the growing fan theory that Taylor Hawkins’ son, Shane, might be stepping in—while also warning that bloodlines haven’t saved anyone so far.
As for Starkey, Portnoy didn’t mince words. “They downgraded him to an electronic kit, then blamed him when Roger [Daltrey] flubbed a verse. Fire the monitor guy, not the drummer,” he said, calling the situation “craziness.”
The vibe here? Even royalty gets booted. Whether you’re a living legend or the second coming of your famous dad, the throne’s got a trapdoor.
Portnoy’s currently on tour with Dream Theater, fresh off the release of Parasomnia, his first album with the band since his 2010 departure. Let’s just hope they don’t hand him a pink slip mid-fill.
If you’re a drummer in 2025, consider this your warning: keep your sticks close, and your side hustles closer.
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