Foo Fighters Just Revealed Their New Drummer—and Fans Spot a Wild Coincidence originally appeared on Parade.
The Foo Fighters officially welcomed drummer Ilan Rubin to the band on Wednesday, July 30 – and fans immediately noticed a bizarre coincidence.
Rubin will be replacing Josh Freese, who joined the group in 2023 as Taylor Hawkins‘ successor. Freese confirmed his departure in May, writing on Instagram that the band had chosen “to go in a different direction with their drummer,” and added, “I’m not angry—just a bit shocked and disappointed.”
Soon after the band announced Rubin’s addition, fans caught an interesting detail. Before joining Foo Fighters, Rubin was the longtime drummer for rival rock band Nine Inch Nails. Freese had previously been Nine Inch Nails’ drummer from 2005 to 2008, before Rubin ironically replaced him. Now, after nearly two decades, Freese is set to rejoin Nine Inch Nails.
Essentially – Foo Fighters and Nine Inch Nails swapped drummers.
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Fans of both bands took to X to comment on the wild coincidence.
“If that’s true, it’s absolutely mental – did Nine Inch Nails and the Foo Fighters actually just switch drummers?” wrote one fan. “it’s insane that nine inch nails and foo fighters basically just traded drummers.” said another.
“So Ilan Rubin left NIN for the Foo Fighters, who recently fired Josh Freese – who then went back to NIN?? Be still my percussion loving heart. What a day.” added a third.
Rubin played with Nine Inch Nails from 2008 to 2009, and again from 2013 until now. He’s the youngest living musician to have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, having been inducted at age 32.
The drummer switch comes just a week before Nine Inch Nails kicks off a North American tour. Meanwhile, Foo Fighters returned with the new single Today’s Song at the beginning of July, and will play a few overseas shows beginning in October.
Foo Fighters Just Revealed Their New Drummer—and Fans Spot a Wild Coincidence first appeared on Parade on Jul 31, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 31, 2025, where it first appeared.
