Former Nirvana drummer and current Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl has opened up about the reason that Josh Freese departed the band two years after first joining. Freese, who has previously drummed for Devo and Nine Inch Nails, took over the Foo Fighters gig following the tragic death of Taylor Hawkins but was fired in 2025 ahead of the band’s next worldwide tour.
In a recent interview, Grohl has now spoken publicly for the first time about why the band moved on from Freese and replaced him with another former Nine Inch Nail drummer in the form of Ilan Rubin.
Dave Grohl Explains Why the Foo Fighters Went in a New Direction
At the time when the Foo Fighters first announced that Freese had been let go, the drummer shared a message on Instagram, revealing that he had allegedly not been given an explanation for why he had been fired.
Freese said, “The Foo Fighters called me Monday night to let me know they’ve decided ‘to go in a different direction with their drummer.’ No reason was given. :(.”
He continued, “Regardless, I enjoyed the past two years with them, both on and off stage, and I support whatever they feel is best for the band. In my 40 years of drumming professionally, I’ve never been let go from a band, so while I’m not angry—just a bit shocked and disappointed. But as most of you know, I’ve always worked freelance and bounced between bands, so I’m fine.”
In an appearance on “The Zane Lowe Show” to speak about their upcoming 12th studio album “Your Favorite Toy,” Grohl attempted to provide the reason why the band moved in a new direction.
“This didn’t happen overnight, it was six or seven months,” Grohl said. “In those six or seven months, we, as a band, talked about what to do next and new direction. We thought, ‘Ok, let’s call Josh and let him know that we’re gonna move on with a different drummer.’ All of us called, it wasn’t just me. We called Josh, and we were like, ‘Hey man, that was awesome, that was such a blast, thank you so much, but we’re gonna move on and find another drummer.’”
He then went on to explain why the band felt it was important to find a new drummer, saying, “I think Josh said it best [in a New York Times interview] when he was, like, he didn’t feel like our music really resonated with him. And that’s really important. We found that now with Ilan, and it’s, like, we feel like a band again.”
Pat Smear Misses Early Part of Latest Foo Fighters Tour
Foo Fighters guitarist and long-time Grohl collaborator Pat Smear has also had to miss the early part of the Foo Fighters’ latest tour. The band revealed at the start of 2026 that he had injured his foot and wouldn’t be able to perform while it healed.
Sharing the news on Instagram, the band posted a humour message in the style of a breaking news post to keep fans updated on exactly what had happened.
The caption reads, “In the classic tradition of rockstars having bizarre gardening accidents, Pat Smear has apparently rung in the new year by smashing the [expletive] out of his left foot.”
It continues, “This means he’ll unfortunately be missing a few shows while the multiple broken bones in his foot heal. We’ll miss our beloved Pat as much as you will, but we want him fully healed and back on his feet as soon as possible.”
“Beck and St. Vincent guitar wizard Jason Falkner will be filling in for Pat while he’s on the mend.”
