Duran Duran’s Roger Taylor steps down as drummer after tinnitus diagnosis
Duran Duran drummer Roger Taylor is stepping down from the band after a worsening tinnitus diagnosis, the group announced on 12 November 2026.
Press Photo Duran Duran, Roger Taylor on the right
Duran Duran drummer Roger Taylor is stepping down from the band and retiring from playing drums, the group announced on 12 November 2026, citing a worsening of his recently diagnosed tinnitus.
Speaking from his home in the U.S., Taylor called it one of the hardest decisions of his life: “This is one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make. Playing drums in this band has been the joy of my life, and I’ll never be able to properly thank the fans for the love they’ve shown us over the years. But the truth is that my tinnitus has been getting steadily worse, and I’ve reached the point where I must now listen to my body and my doctors.”
He described the timing against a run of recent highlights for the band: “Figuring out the timing of all of this has not been easy, but I’m going out on a real high. We’ve just returned from a hugely successful UK and European tour, which followed our second headline show at BST Hyde Park, our induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and a return to the studio with Nile Rodgers. I couldn’t have asked for a better final chapter, with so many special moments that I’ll treasure forever. I move on with enormous pride, and with nothing but love for Simon, Nick and John.”
Bandmates Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes and John Taylor responded with a joint statement: “Roger is our brother. His drumming helped define the sound of Duran Duran from the very beginning and having him back with us since 2001 has been incredibly important to all of us. We completely support his decision and wish him health and happiness. He will always be part of this family, while we continue exploring new and exciting projects with the band.”
The tour Taylor referred to ran through the UK and continental Europe in October 2026, opening in Oslo on 2 October and closing in Paris on 28 October, with a run of UK arena dates, including Glasgow, Belfast and Leeds, in between. It followed the band’s second headline appearance at BST Hyde Park in London on 5 July 2026, and came after Duran Duran’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November 2022. The band has also been working on new material in the studio with Nile Rodgers, who co-produced several of Duran Duran’s 1980s records, including “Notorious.”
Duran Duran’s two Roger Taylor eras
Taylor, born in Birmingham in 1960, was Duran Duran’s founding drummer, joining in 1979 before the band’s commercial breakthrough. He played on “Duran Duran” (1981), “Rio” (1982) and “Seven and the Ragged Tiger” (1983), and on the band’s 1985 Bond theme “A View to a Kill,” which became their second U.S. number one single. His final show with the original line-up was at Live Aid in Philadelphia in July 1985; he left the band the following year amid the pressures of fame, retreating to a farm in Gloucestershire, and recorded one album, “So Red the Rose” (1985), with bandmates Simon Le Bon and Nick Rhodes as Arcadia. He briefly returned in 1994 to record drums on two tracks for “Thank You” (1995) before rejoining Duran Duran full-time in 2001, when all five members of the “Rio”-era line-up reunited.
Since 2001, Taylor has written and played on six Duran Duran studio albums: “Astronaut” (2004), “Red Carpet Massacre” (2007), “All You Need Is Now” (2010), “Paper Gods” (2015), “Future Past” (2021) and “Danse Macabre” (2023). Guitarist Andy Taylor, who stepped back from touring with the band in 2006, revealed in November 2022 that he was battling stage four prostate cancer.
About Duran Duran
Duran Duran formed in Birmingham, England, in 1978, taking their name from a character in the film “Barbarella.” Singer Simon Le Bon and keyboardist Nick Rhodes anchored the line-up that solidified by 1980 with bassist John Taylor, guitarist Andy Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became one of the defining acts of the early MTV era, breaking through with the albums “Duran Duran” (1981) and “Rio” (1982), followed by “Seven and the Ragged Tiger” (1983) and the James Bond theme “A View to a Kill” (1985), a U.S. number one single.
Roger Taylor and Andy Taylor both left the band in the mid-1980s, with Le Bon, Rhodes and John Taylor continuing through albums including “Notorious” (1986), produced with Nile Rodgers, and into the 1990s and 2000s. The five members of the “Rio”-era line-up reunited in 2001, signing to Epic Records for “Astronaut” (2004) and its single “(Reach Up for The) Sunrise.” Roger Taylor remained with the band through five further studio albums – “Red Carpet Massacre” (2007), “All You Need Is Now” (2010), “Paper Gods” (2015), “Future Past” (2021) and “Danse Macabre” (2023) – while Andy Taylor stepped back from touring in 2006 and was revealed in 2022 to be living with stage four prostate cancer.
Duran Duran were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November 2022 and headlined BST Hyde Park in London for the second time in July 2026, ahead of a UK and European arena tour that October. With Roger Taylor’s departure, the band continues as a trio of Le Bon, Rhodes and John Taylor, with new material already underway in the studio with Nile Rodgers.
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