The Truth About David Lee Roth's Retirement From The Entertainment Industry
Tickets are on sale for five upcoming Van Halen shows — and they're the last shows David Lee Roth will be playing with the band.
On October 1, Roth announced the news. "I am throwing in the shoes. I'm retiring," he told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "This is the first, and only, official announcement ... You've got the news. Share it with the world." Roth is ending his career with five Van Halen shows in January 2022 at the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay, per People.
The musician explained to the outlet that even though these are his last performances, he's going to give them all he's got. "I know that when I am in the audience, whether you come out with a ukulele or a marching band, all I ask you give me everything you've got to give," he said. "That's what I did for the last 50 years."
David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen didn't see eye-to-eye
David Lee Roth was an original member of the infamous Van Halen. Known for his eccentric, unconventional performances, Roth was a staple in the band. But the group had many personality conflicts that arose, even publicly at times.
In fact, Roth reportedly didn't get along with one of the founders of the band, Eddie Van Halen. According to The Washington Post, the album "1984" was the last one with Roth as the main singer. After the release, he would venture into his solo career, and Van Halen would hire Sammy Hagar to replace him.
While the band went on to score its first number one album, "5150," with Hagar, it wasn't long before Roth would return to the band. It seemed the music mattered more to Roth and Van Halen more than their disputes. In 2015, Van Halen told Billboard, "I think it's now built into people's DNA, that it just won't be Van Halen if it's not Roth's voice."
David Lee Roth remembers Eddie Van Halen before his retirement
In 2007, David Lee Roth returned to the group, the same year they were initiated into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. From there, the band went on their most lucrative tour, and they played to almost one million people, per Billboard.
From 2007 on, Van Halen continued to tour with Roth as the group's leading man. But now, the curtain is closing on concerts with Roth as Van Halen's singer. When announcing his impending retirement to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Roth said (via People), "I'm not going to explain the statement. The explanation is in a safe. These are my last five shows."
Roth did, however, mention the death of his bandmate Eddie Van Halen and his own health concerns. In October 2020, Van Halen died at 65 of throat cancer. Roth said to the Review-Journal, "I am encouraged and compelled to really come to grips with how short time is, and my time is probably even shorter," Roth said. He continued, "I thought I might have been the first, frankly ... me and my doctors, my handlers, compelled me to really address that every time I go on stage, I endanger that future." But no matter what, Roth plans to give it all he has in his last five shows, "I've given you all I've got to give. It's been an amazing, great run, no regrets, nothing to say about anybody. I'll miss you all. Stay frosty."