The Who part ways with drummer Zak Starkey, Ringo Starr’s son, after nearly 30 years

The amazing journey is over: The Who have parted ways with their longtime drummer Zak Starkey, who is the son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and his first wife Maureen Starkey.

“I’m very proud of my near thirty years with the Who,” Starkey, who joined the band in 1996, said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. “Filling the shoes of my Godfather, ‘uncle Keith’ has been the biggest honor and I remain their biggest fan. They’ve been like family to me.” (The band’s founding drummer, the late Keith Moon, was one of Starr’s closest friends.)

The decision comes months after Starkey, 59, went through an unexpected health scare. “In January, I suffered a serious medical emergency with blood clots in my right bass drum calf,” he said. “This is now completely healed and does not affect my drumming or running.”

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“After playing those songs with the band for so many decades, I’m surprised and saddened anyone would have an issue with my performance that night, but what can you do?” Starkey said. “I plan to take some much needed time off with my family, and focus on the release of ‘Domino Bones’ by Mantra Of The Cosmos with Noel Gallagher in May and finishing my autobiography written solely by me.”

He concluded, “29 years at any job is a good old run, and I wish them the best.”

EW has reached out to representatives for the Who for comment. However, a rep for the band told Rolling Stone that “the band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall.” They added, “They have nothing but admiration for him and wish him the very best for his future.”

Starkey’s departure from the group comes after lead singer Roger Daltrey publicly expressed his displeasure with the drummer’s performance at their Royal Albert Hall gig on March 31. 

According to the U.K. news outlet Metro, the 81-year-old rocker paused the concert during their final song of the night, the seldom-played “The Song Is Over,” telling the audience, “To sing that song I do need to hear the key, and I can’t. All I’ve got is drums going boom, boom, boom. I can’t sing to that. I’m sorry, guys.”

Starkey appeared to confirm that his dismissal from the band was linked to the concert in an Instagram post earlier this week. 

“Heard today from inside source within whose horses nose that toger daktrey [sic] lead singer and principal songwriter of the group unhappy with zak the drummer’s performance at the albert hall a few weeks ago is bringing formal charges of overplaying and is literally going to zak the drummer and bring on a reserve from ‘the burwash carwash skiffle ‘n’ tickle glee club harmony without empathy allstars,’” he wrote. “This has been confirmed by whose long time manager willya youwontyouknow.” 

In addition to playing with the band, Sharkey also appeared on the Who’s 2006 studio album Endless Wire and 2019’s Who.