Josh Freese Claims He Still Doesn’t Know Why He Was Fired As Foo Fighters Drummer, Trent Reznor Explains Why They Swapped Drummers

Photo credit: Marv Watson

In May of this year, it was announced that Josh Freese was let go from his position as drummer for the Foo Fighters, a rock band that formed in 1994. Freese was hired following the sudden passing of Taylor Hawkins, who had been the band’s drummer since 1997. In an Instagram post, Freese explains that he had been with the band for two years and hadn’t been given a reason as to why he was being let go.

Now, over seven months later, Freese still hasn’t received an explanation for why he was fired from the band. According to NME, Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor explains this drummer swap in an interview with Consequence. In his interview, Reznor said, “Ilan is great musician and had been a solid guy during his tenure in the band, but it presented a problem in terms of we knew there was another leg of the tour that we’re going to start in February [2026].” Ilan Rubin was formerly with the Nine Inch Nails; however, he joined the Foo Fighters this year following Freese’s release from the band, replacing him as the band’s new drummer. Once Rubin left the Nine Inch Nails for the Foo Fighters, Freese joined the Nine Inch Nails as their new drummer. This is why it is called a drummer swap. According to Consequence, Freese clarified that this was not an intentional drummer swap, rather it was just a funny coincidence.