Former Slipknot Drummer Jay Weinberg Opens Up About Being Fired From the Band

After a week of silence, Weinberg shared his thoughts on his firing from Slipknot in a lenghty Instagram post. Many famous fellow metal drummers showed their support for him.

It seems this is metal month at Concerty. Last week, we led our Trendy Artists column with a story about Avenged Sevenfold headlining the Download Festival in the United Kingdom. And now, we’re bringing a short story to you about drummer Jay Weinberg leaving the legendary heavy metal band based in Des Moines, Iowa, Slipknot.

The band released a statement on their website, announcing that they would be parting ways with Jay Weinberg due to a “creative decision,” and thanked him for his decade of service. Weinberg joined Slipknot back in 2014, after the original drummer and co-founder Joey Jordison left the band after health complications prohibited him from continuing his career as a professional drummer. He sadly passed away in 2021, at just aged 46, due to transverse myelitis.

Fans of Slipknot were surprised by the involuntary departure of Weinberg, and have been generally pleased with his performances for the band. The two Slipknot albums he played the drums on, “We Are Not Your Kind” from 2019 and “The End, So Far” from 2022, were both received well by fans and critics alike, and charted high as well.

After a week of silence, Weinberg decided to share his thoughts about his Instagram page. In a post, he wrote:

“I sometimes wonder what it would be like to pay a visit to my 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. 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. (...)

I love playing the drums. I’ll always love playing the drums. I’ll always have a passion for music, art, and creative expression. Nothing will ever change that. (...) This isn’t the end, and I’m thrilled to discover what the future has in store for us. Thank you.”

Many of his fellow famous metal drummers, such as Mario Duplantier from the French band Gojira, Brooks Wackerman from the aforementioned Avenged Sevenfold, and Korn drummer Ray Luzier as well, showed their emotional support in public for the recently fired Weinberg.