Joey Jordison‘s former Slipknot bandmates have paid an emotional tribute to the late drummer after his death was confirmed yesterday.
- READ MORE: Joey Jordison – the NME obituary: founding Slipknot member who held the key to the band’s success
A representative for his family said that he died peacefully in his sleep on Monday (July 26). A cause of death has not yet been confirmed.
“Joey’s death has left us with empty hearts and feelings of indescribable sorrow,” a statement from Jordison’s family read. “To those that knew Joey, understood his quick wit, his gentle personality, giant heart, and his love for all things family and music.
“The family of Joey have asked that friends, fans, and media understandably respect our need for privacy and peace at this incredibly difficult time.”
Paying tribute to their former bandmate, Slipknot’s Corey Taylor, Jim Root and Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan all posted a single black tile on their social media pages.
— SHRED DJENT REDEMPTION (@CoreyTaylorRock) July 27, 2021
— M. Shawn Crahan (@MShawnCrahan) July 27, 2021
Jordison was the drummer for Slipknot from their original formation – when they called themselves the Pale Ones and later Meld, before Jordison suggested they change their name to Slipknot in 1995 – until his departure from the band in December 2013. That same year, he formed heavy metal band Scar The Martyr, which he was the drummer for until they disbanded in 2016.
A few years after leaving Slipknot, he said the reason he exited the band was a neurological disease. “I got really, really sick with a horrible disease called transverse myelitis, I lost my legs,” he told the audience at the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards in 2016.
“I couldn’t play anymore. It was a form of multiple sclerosis, which I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I got myself back up, and I got myself in the gym and I got myself back in fucking therapy, to fucking beat this shit.”
Other tributes have also emerged from Metallica, Papa Roach and Skunk Anansie.