Rumours circulating around Dead & Company – the offshoot group of the Grateful Dead – have been cleared up by its de facto leader, Bob Weir.
A Rolling Stone article, published on Friday (April 8), speculated that the forthcoming Dead & Company tour of North America would be the group’s last. “While Deadheads have often speculated how many more tours the band would embark on, rumors had been circling among fans recently that this tour would be the last,” it read.
The article cited “sources close to Dead & Company” as their point of reference, as well as recent health issues for drummer Bill Kreutzmann.
However, upon seeing the article posted to Twitter the following day, Weir responded to it by tweeting: “News to me…” Kreutzmann then responded to Weir, quipping: “Whew. I thought you knew something that I didn’t!” View the tweets below:
News to me… https://t.co/Yjf1aCkwRA
— Bobby Weir (@BobWeir) April 8, 2022
Whew. I thought you knew something that I didn’t! #themusicneverstops #wewillsurvive https://t.co/Bqt0l0OxC6
— Bill Kreutzmann (@BKreutzmann) April 8, 2022
The article was then updated with a correction from Rolling Stone, saying that after Weir’s tweet “the same sources changed their tune and [said that] discussions continue about the fate of the band”. A one-sentence statement from the band themselves read simply: “Dead & Company has made no official decision as to this being their final tour.”
The band’s upcoming tour follows the cancellation of their Mexican festival Playing In The Sand earlier this year, which was derailed by Kreutzmann pulling out and guitarist John Mayer contracting COVID. The surge of the Omicron variant was also cited as a reason for the festival’s cancellation.
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