Roger Daltrey sets the record straight about Zak Starkey, calls his comments a ‘character assassination’

Roger Daltrey is setting the record straight about the events that led to The Who’s firing of drummer Zak Starkey.

Problems arose with Starkey during The Who’s Teenage Cancer Trust shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall in March, with Daltrey appearing to call out Starkey’s playing during “The Song is Over.” In an interview with The Telegraph, Starkey suggested that Daltrey was actually the one who “got it wrong,” and Daltrey was not happy about that.

In a new interview with the U.K. publication The Times, Roger called Starkey’s comments “kind of a character assassination,” adding that it was “incredibly upsetting.”

Daltrey says he wasn’t “having a go” at Starkey onstage at Royal Albert Hall, but was simply telling the guy controlling his monitors that he was hearing too much sub-bass. He added that the audience had “a complete misunderstanding” of what was happening.

Starkey was fired by The Who in April, but then rehired by the band, only to be let go again in May.

As for why they decided to go with another drummer, Daltrey says, “We wanted to branch out and that’s all I want to say about it. But [Starkey’s reaction] was crippling to me.”

Daltrey and Pete Townshend are getting ready to kick off what they say is their final U.S. tour. While Daltrey says his voice is “still as good as ever,” he does have some concerns, noting, “I can’t tell you if it will still be there in October.”

He adds, “There’s a big part of me that’s going, I just hope I make it through.”

The Who’s The Song Is Over North American Tour begins Aug. 16 in Sunrise, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at TheWho.com.

Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.