On November 5, 2015 in Burbank California, Avenged Sevenfold announced that drummer Brooks Wackerman has joined the band. Wackerman was the main drummer for Bad Religion for more than 15 years and also played with Tenacious D for the last 10 years. In the past, he has performed with Blink-182, Mass Mental with Metallica’s Robert Trujillo, funk metal supergroup Infectious Grooves, and Korn.

Avenged Sevenfold members,  M. Shadows and Wackerman, made the announcement on Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast, which aired on the morning of November 4 on PodcastOne

Reports say, former Avenged Sevenfold drummer Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan died on December 28, 2009 from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs and alcohol. 

New drummer, Wackerman says, “Jimmy [‘The Rev’ Sullivan’] and I always had a mutual respect for each other’s drumming styles. He was always amazing and innovative, and it’s an honor to play his parts live. I look forward to recording this new record with A7X, a band that I’ve always respected for their creativity and diversity in sound.”