Jay Weinberg has revealed that he was not legally able to pursue side projects for a 10-year period starting roughly in 2013, a fact the drummer said made a creative part of him feel like it was dying.
While he doesn’t specifically call anyone out, 2013 was the year he joined Slipknot, a band he remained in for 10 years before being ousted in 2023 in favor of Eloy Casagrande.
In a new interview with Loyal to the Craft, Weinberg alluded initially to those limitations while being careful not to name Slipknot, saying, “Without giving too much attention to any kind of one situation, not having the legal ability to play music with other people was definitely difficult because I look at music, at least the creation and sharing of it, it’s that twofold thing.”
Reflecting on the balance of a major productive project inhibiting the ability to move more organically through projects, he said, “Although I was super intensely focused on one aspect of my creative life and happy to do so, like a little part of my creative self, it was dying for sure because this is stuff that means a lot to me.”
The rest of the interview largely focused on Weinberg’s overall creative life, especially in the wake of becoming a father earlier this year. This in turn seems to have sharpened his interest in the breadth of creative work, some of which he had been working on quietly since 2013.
The drummer continued, “These are songs that, still even 13 years later after initially coming up with a song, I feel passionate to put the effort into getting it across the finish line and it is emotionally gratifying for me to put out there. I’ve always considered that a healthy thing, to be able to play and create with people of all sorts of disciplines, all sorts of backgrounds and that’s certainly what I’m leaning into.”
Weinberg admitted earlier this year that his firing from Slipknot blindsided him and felt devastating, remarking, “It came without an explanation… If I’m perfectly honest, it remains confusing.”
Watch the full interview with Loyal to the Craft below.
