Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Jay Weinberg, the drummer of "Slipknot" !!!
(Photo: Jay Weinberg)
= He was born on September 8, 1990, in New Jersey to Max and Rebekah and has a sister named Ali.
= His father is Max Weinberg, the famous drummer of the "E Street Band" Bruce Springsteen's backing band, and also the drummer of the TV shows "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" and "The Tonight Show".
= He was the one who exposed Jay to different styles of music and introduced him to different bands from the rock world, in a cosmic way he knew his future. When Jay was 9 years old his father took him to the Ozzfest festival and there he saw and even met the band "Slipknot" backstage, Even then he knew what he wanted to be when he grew up! Over the years Jay kept in touch with the band's manager and with some of the band members.
(Photo: Facebook)
= As a child, Jay was a talented ice hockey player as a goalkeeper.
= Although his father is a talented and famous drummer, the first instrument that Jay learned to play was the guitar, at the age of 9. At the age of 13, he learned to play the bass guitar, and only at the age of 14 did he start playing the drums. He received a few basic lessons from his father and learned everything else on his own.
= Apparently his first band was a local metal band called "Chaosis".
= After that he played in a punk rock band called "Sadie Mae" and even performed several times with the punk rock band "The Used".
= In 2008 after graduating from Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School he moved to New York and joined the punk rock band "The Reveling". They released one album and an EP.
= That same year, when he was only 18 years old, Jay got to replace his father in Springsteen's performance of the song "Born To Run" in one of the shows on the Magic Tour. It turns out that this was the starting point because less than a year later, due to the busy schedule of "The Tonight Show", Max had to be absent from the Springsteen tour.
= And so it happens that in 2009 Jay got to fill the role of drummer for more than half of Springsteen's "Working on a Dream Tour" and this, of course, only after he received the approval of the other members of the band and Steve Van Zandt in particular. Jay gets love and support not only from the band but also from the audience, he gets the nickname "Spark Plug" because his young look with long hair and his playing style very reminiscent of Dave Grohl brought a youthful spirit to the adult stage.
(Photo: Durmeo.com)
= In addition to the aforementioned tour, Jay continues to fill in when his father could not perform and at the same time he continues with his band "The Reveling". Jay said that this duality was very exciting, on the one hand playing in stadiums with Springsteen and on the other hand playing in small clubs with his band.
= In 2010 Jay joined the old punk rock band "Madball". He recorded with them their seventh album "Empire" which was released that year and was part of the tour to promote the album. After less than a year in the band, Jay left due to "incompatibility in lifestyle".
= At the end of 2010, Jay joined the punk rock band "Against Me!" When he fills in for drummer George Rebelo. After a few months with the band, Jay became a permanent drummer and began participating in the recordings of the band's next album. The romance didn't last long and at the end of 2012 Jay left the band when he informed them of his departure through Twitter, the band members did not stay obliging and published a picture of a drum machine!!
= After several years on the road performing with various bands around the US, Jay decides to go back to school and begins studying at the Stevens Institute of Technology. In his final year, during the final exams, Jay receives a call from his manager who asks him to come to Los Angeles for auditions. Jay who didn't know what it was about but never said no to the chance to play, takes a flight and arrives in Los Angeles.
= Jay arrives in Los Angeles and enters a rehearsal room, the venue manager brings him to the drum set and then tells him:
"Alright, there's a drum set. We'll bring in Slipknot in, like, 20 minutes. That cool?"
Needless to say, Jay answered in the affirmative and the adrenaline levels in his blood jumped to unimaginable values!!
= Jay said that Shawn "Clown" Crahan asked him if he knew any of the band's songs and he answered yes and they started playing 'Before I Forget' and 'Duality', these were the first two songs that Jay played with "Slipknot". When they played the songs Jay said the whole vibe in the room took a turn and electrifying energies began to envelop all the people in the room. The band members were shocked not only by Jay's abilities and talent but also by the musical connection that, like a lightning strike, happened powerfully and in one moment with the other members.
= They continued to play, another song and another song and another, in that session they played 20 songs, all of which he played from memory. Jay said that the last time he played "Slipknot" songs was in 2014 and everything he played in that audition he played from memory, his muscles remembered the notes to the songs!! Needless to say, after the session, the band members gave him the OK.
(Photo: altpress.com)
= Jay entered "Slipknot" in a difficult period of crisis after they lost their bassist Paul Gray who died in 2010 and fired their phenomenal drummer Joey Jordison in 2013. Shawn decided that he was giving him a baptism of fire, after all, "Slipknot" is not a normal band, it is a collection of talented psychopaths.
He flew with him to Paul's grave in IOWA and brought him to stand in front of the grave for many minutes in order to pay respects and recognize Paul's value and contribution to the band, In addition, he also explained to him what the band's plans are and how he sees him fitting in (really an entry interview for the position).
= From there they flew together to the recording studio in Los Angeles and for several weeks in a row, Shawn and Chris Fehn (Shawn's percussionist friend) gave Jay a "Sylphnote Course", tough mentors.
They stood in front of him and screamed at him for hours every day, trying to challenge him, make him scramble, get him out of his comfort zone,and hone his talent and abilities.
= At the end of the "apprenticeships" the rest of the group entered the studio but did not immediately start working, it was very difficult for them to let go and feel normal in the studio. The same group of people who were unbridled without traces and barriers suddenly looked like a group of yeshiva students waiting for the rabbi to arrive. Corey Taylor said it took a while for them to feel free enough to create in light of Paul's loss. Shawn decided that in order to be inspired but also to pay homage, he places Paul's Ibanez guitar in the recording studio with his mask hanging over it as if he is co-creating and present in the studio.
(Photo: knotfest.com)
= Jay said that as a fan of the band, he really liked Joey and admired his musical talent, but he does not intend to try and step into his huge shoes, but instead take the music to his place and express himself in the band's composition.
(Photo: rare-gallery.com)
= In October 2014, the band "Slipknot" released its fifth album "5: The Gray Chapter", Jay's debut album with the band.
= Despite the attempt to maintain anonymity, "Slipknot" does not publish the name of the new band members until it officially announces them, Jay's name leaked out. Quite surprisingly, since Joey's departure was not pleasant, Jay was received with love by fans and critics alike. He immediately becomes one of the most famous drummers in the world!!
= In 2019 "Slipknot" released their sixth album "We Are Not Your Kind". One of the most intriguing talked about and biggest albums in 2019. The album of course snatched first place on the Billboard chart, was a crazy global success, and launched a tour of the biggest concerts in the world.
= In 2022 the band released their seventh album "The End, So Far". This was the band's final album to be released through Roadrunner, whom the band signed with in 1998. It is the first studio album to feature percussionist Michael Pfaff, who joined the band in 2019 a,nd is their final studio album to feature sampler and keyboardist Craig Jones before his departure in 2023.
= Jay won many titles including "Best Metal Drummer" by MusicRadar magazine in 2019,
And Modern Drummer magazine, he won the title "Metal Drummer of the Year" in 2020 and 2022
And Drumeohe won the title "Metal Drummer of the Year" in 2021.
= He plays on a set made by SJC company with which he does many collaborations, the most prominent of which is the snare drum named after him, he has drumsticks named after him with VATER company and he is a presenter for the electronic drum company Roland.
= He finds his peace of mind in painting, he said that with the painting he balances himself against the intensity and aggressiveness of "Slipknot". In 2022 he created his first exhibition as a painter called "A Hollow Realm".
