Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl Talks About Parting Ways With Drummer Josh Freese

Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl is speaking for the first time about parting ways with drummer Josh Freese. Freese was let go in 2025 without explanation, which left fans searching for answers about his sudden departure.

Now, Grohl is addressing the change in the band's lineup before the release of Foo Fighters' 12th studio album.

In an interview on "The Zane Lowe Show," Grohl addressed a topic that has long intrigued fans: Freese's departure from Foo Fighters. The drummer joined the band in 2023 and parted ways with them two years later.

Grohl was all praise for Freese, describing him as a "consummate professional" who has extensive experience, working with the likes of Michael Bublé, The Offspring, Weezer, Sublime, and Nine Inch Nails. The decision to let go of him, according to Grohl, came after several months of talking about Foo Fighters' direction as a band.

The band members then called Freese, telling him that they were looking for a new drummer. The decision boiled down to Freese allegedly expressing that he didn't connect with the band's music. "I think Josh said it best when he was like, you know, he didn't feel our music really resonated with him, and that's really important, right?" Grohl said.

Freese joined the Foo Fighters in May 2023, a little over a year after the death of drummer Taylor Hawkins. As previously reported by The Blast, Hawkins died of cardiovascular collapse while the band was on tour in March 2022.

It was a devastating loss, and continuing the band was "complicated," as Grohl said, since, despite having worked with four drummers, Hawkins was with Foo Fighters for 25 out of their 30 years in the industry.

"Continuing on after Taylor was really complicated, not just for us, but for any drummer that was going to come in to like, you know, fill his shoes," Grohl explained.

Freese performed with the Foo Fighters during tribute concerts to Hawkins before being publicly announced as the band's new drummer.

The Foo Fighters released the album "But Here We Are" in 2023, but the recording was already done by the time Freese officially joined the band. Instead, Grohl performed the drum tracks on the album.

Freese went on tour with the band, which Grohl said went well. "We had such a blast, we had a great time. It was like a year and a half of touring, and the shows were great," he explained.

It was after that tour, however, that the band took the time to assess the direction they wanted to take, ultimately deciding to replace Freese with a different drummer.

In May 2025, Freese posted on social media, announcing that he had been let go from the Foo Fighters, claiming that he wasn't given a reason for the decision. Freese, who has been a drummer for decades, said he had "never been let go" in his career.

He also expressed his shock and disappointment, but said he wasn't angry. Freese wrote, "Regardless, I enjoyed the past two years with them, both on and off stage," adding that he supports the decision to do what's best for the band.

In an interview with Modern Drummer in February, Freese talked about his firing, but didn't go into detail for fear of his words getting "taken out of context." He did, however, say that he has "a lot to say" about it, but he still has to figure out how and when to best say his piece.

Despite being let go, he said he enjoyed Grohl as a bandleader, praising the Foo Fighters for being "generous" and "good" to him during his tenure.

Foo Fighters introduced their new drummer, Ilan Rubin, in September 2025. The band is now gearing up for their new album, a follow-up to their 2023 release.

The band has released the first single, "Your Favorite Toy," which is also the name of the album, with Grohl explaining that it encompasses the tone and direction of their new record.

"We stumbled upon it after experimenting with different sounds and dynamics for over a year," Grohl noted, adding that this particular song was the "fuse" to the "powder keg of songs" from the new album.

"Your Favorite Toy" is scheduled to be released on April 24.