Geddy Lee says some drummers reached out after Neil Peart’s death in a way he found “distasteful,” while Rush prepare to tour again next month with Anika Nilles filling in for the late drummer.
When Rush announced they’d be back on the road for the first time since Neil Peart’s passing. the move was meant to be a careful return. not a grab for attention. For Geddy Lee, though, the reunion’s story didn’t start with rehearsals. It started with messages—some of them, he says, arriving at the worst possible time.
Prog giants Rush are set to hit the road for the first time since Neil Peart’s passing next month. Former Jeff Beck drummer Anika Nilles is set to sit in for the Professor.
Peart’s death, five years after his passing, left many assuming Rush were effectively finished. The band had previously retired in 2015 after the R40 tour, with Peart’s deteriorating health cited as the reason for their curtain call. But that assumption didn’t hold.
Nilles, the drummer now stepping into that “impossible seat,” was recommended to the band by a tech who had spent time on the road with Jeff Beck’s 2022 tour. Lee and Lifeson later approached her, after the band had already begun mapping out what a post-Peart future could look like.
What followed, Lee says, wasn’t only professional casting—it was also a test of timing and respect.
“People who are close to us – good friends that are successful drummers – would never infer something like that because they have too much respect. not only for Neil and for the situation. ” Lee says. “They were grieving as well, so they wouldn’t be so selfish as to say something inappropriate like that.”.
Then he draws a line between that kind of restraint and the messages that kept coming.
“However, he adds that ‘there were many other drummers who reached out to me in the aftermath of Neil’s passing that were pushing themselves, and that was most distasteful to me. It was completely inappropriate timing.’”
For Lee, the reunion wasn’t built on grabbing opportunity—it was built on first knowing where to begin, and then choosing the right person for a role that comes with emotional weight.
Lee says the link-up that helped spark the band’s return began in 2022. when he and guitarist Alex Lifeson joined Dave Grohl to play Rush songs at the Taylor Hawkins tribute concert. Two years later. they were back on stage again for a Gordon Lightfoot tribute show. and the rumor mill began spinning after Lifeson confessed the pair had been jamming.
Still, Lee insists that the reunion depended on more than timing in the spotlight. It depended on finding a drummer who could handle it—musically and personally.
“We didn’t really know where to begin to look,” Lee says. “We started with Anika because she had been recommended to me, and I had done some research on her. I loved her vibe and diverse style.”
“We didn’t have a list,” he adds. “When Al and I finally said, ‘Okay, I guess we’re getting serious. Who’s going to sit in that impossible seat? It’s daunting. We started with the name that was already on my mind.
“We called her up, she came, and we hit it off. She brought a lot to the table, but more than her chops, more than her guts, and her willingness to sit in that hot seat, she brought an intelligence and a story.”
Lee describes Nilles’s background as part of what made her fit. Born into a family of musicians. he says the 42-year-old—born between the Rush’s ninth and tenth albums—“doesn’t even remember the first time she picked up sticks. ” rather. “It’s who she is.” He credits her relative freshness as something that’s been vital in Rush’s second coming.
The band eased back into public view with a soft launch at the Juno Awards in late March. Their full-fledged return is happening next month at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, on June 7, where they played their final show with Peart 11 years ago.
Rush are also the cover stars of the new issue of Guitar World. Print and digital copies can be ordered from Magazines Direct.
Rush Geddy Lee Alex Lifeson Neil Peart Anika Nilles Kia Forum Taylor Hawkins tribute Gordon Lightfoot tribute Dave Grohl Juno Awards
Kinda messed up if they were messaging like that right after he died.
So Rush is touring again and the drummer situation is “careful return”?? Not gonna lie I don’t really get how messages can be distasteful when like… everyone just tries to help. But I guess timing matters. Five years later and people are still acting weird.
Wait I thought they were done for good after Peart passed. Now it’s a new drummer, same band, and apparently someone reached out at the worst time? Honestly that sounds like the kind of thing that happens when fame, like, overrules common sense. Also isn’t Anika Nilles like not even from Rush originally so why would anyone think they could “fill the seat” like that anyway lol.
Distasteful messages? I feel like people are gonna be disrespectful no matter what, even in a band’s “impossible seat” situation. Like if you’re a drummer and you reach out, how do you know what’s appropriate?? Maybe they meant well but didn’t read the room. Also “next month” tour… kinda surprised they’re not waiting longer, but I guess the R40 thing made it feel final. Idk, I’m just glad Neil’s legacy isn’t being treated like a promo.