In the cover story for the latest issue of Modern Drummer, Josh Freese has opened up about his abrupt 2025 dismissal from Foo Fighters, two years after stepping in following the death of Taylor Hawkins.
Freese, a veteran of countless high-profile gigs, was asked if he's gained any clarity on why he was let go in May 2025. The short answer is "no."
"The Foo Fighters are such a big, mainstream band that everything I say gets taken out of context, reposted, and blown out of proportion," he said. "People created headlines from one quick, simple comment I made on a podcast not long ago, it's crazy. I've got to be careful about what I say about it. But I've got a lot to say about it and I've been just trying to figure out how and when, to go about really articulating it."
Freese admitted he has "a couple small theories" about the split, though he declined to elaborate.
"I have a couple small theories [as to why I was let go], but I can't really go into them right now. I did really enjoy the two years I spent with those guys however, and they were good to me… until they weren't."
Despite the sting, his respect for frontman Dave Grohl remains intact. "I liked playing with them. And I loved having Dave as a bandleader. I truly respect him so much as a drummer first and foremost. To me, he's a drummer first and everything else is second. I've listened to him on all the great records he's played drums on more than I've listened to any Foo Fighters stuff."
"It really was cool being in a band where the leader is a phenomenal drummer that you respect… That's really fun… We basically came from the same era too and could relate to one another."
What makes the dismissal harder to process, Freese suggested, is how sudden it felt. "I enjoyed being around those guys, they were generous and good to me… and that's what makes the whole thing even more of a mystery.
"I think I'm a pretty good read on people, and I did not see that coming. One day it was nothing but laughs, we're on stage and Dave's looking at me every night like, 'You're killing it, dude!!!' And then it was just — over."
When Freese first announced his firing in May 2025, he revealed on Instagram that the band had called him earlier that week to say they had decided "to go in a different direction with their drummer." He added pointedly: "No reason was given."
Adding another layer of intrigue, Ilan Rubin — formerly of Nine Inch Nails — stepped into the Foo Fighters drum seat shortly after Freese's departure. Meanwhile, Freese returned to Nine Inch Nails, reuniting with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.
Speaking last December on SiriusXM's Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk, Freese was quick to dismiss the idea of a calculated drum-trade.
"As far as the drummer swap thing, it's funny because it's just coincidence the way it worked out. It's not like there was a purposeful drum swap," he said. "If Ilan… left Nine Inch Nails to go join — pick a band — Muse, I don't know, Trent would've called me."
He continued: "It's not like it was an intentional swap. It's like when Trent needed a drummer, when Ilan split, he was, like, 'Well, I'm gonna call Freese.' And he called me and I was, like, 'Hell yeah.' Because I missed working with Trent and I loved working with him the last time I did it back between '05 and '09."
"And it just so happens to be he needed a drummer because his drummer was going to join the band that I just was let go from. So it was just completely coincidence… It wasn't premeditated, it wasn't worked out by anybody. It was just kind of, like, 'Well, I need a drummer. Sure, I'll call Josh. Oh, how funny.'"
