Former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth has cancelled the remaining dates of his current tour, prompting a surprise olive branch from Sammy Hagar.
- READ MORE: Eddie Van Halen, 1955 – 2020: a colossus who turned guitar solos into a firework display
Roth’s North American tour kicked off back in April, but now, all but one date – an August 7 show at Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota – have been axed. Roth’s camp have not yet shared the reason behind the cancellation, but many have speculated sluggish ticket sales could have been a factor.
Van Halen’s other former frontman, and Roth’s longtime rival, Hagar, reacted to the news with an earnest video message posted to social media. “I just got a call from Michael Anthony about your tour getting canceled, and I wanna say from the bottom of my heart, I’m sorry,” Hagar said in the video.
“I hope you’re well. I hope there’s not a physical problem. Honestly, Mike and I love the fact that you’ve been out there doing it, supporting the greatest band in the world that we were both part of. And, yeah, I’m really sorry.
“That’s fucked up. Supporting what we did in this band to keep this music alive. You and I, Mikey, Al, Ed cannot be replaced, so, when you’re ready to carry on, you go, brother. Mike and I support you.”
i’m looking rough, but who cares I’m serious with this post. I hope the news about Dave is not AI!!!!! if it is, my post is still coming from my heart and soul. It is so important that this music carry on especially with the AI music out there. those of us that can still go out… pic.twitter.com/UYiX5OqwvW
— Sammy Hagar (@sammyhagar) July 24, 2026
Hagar then said something incredibly unexpected, and invited Roth to join him at his upcoming ‘Sammy Hagar: The Best of All Worlds’ Las Vegas residency at Dolby Live.
“Come to Vegas for the residency in September. Come on, join us,” Hagar said. “Sing a couple songs, MC the damn show. Come out and just do what the fuck you do – which is pretty damn entertaining! Anyway, hope you’re well. I really do. God bless, brother.”
Last year, Hagar took part in NME’s Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! quiz, and was asked if there was any chance of touring in some form with the surviving members of Van Halen.
“No. I don’t have any hope to play with Alex. When you sell all your equipment and are walking around on crutches, you’re not going to tour,” he said at the time. “And Dave, I could care less. I’ve no problem with Dave, but I wouldn’t want to tour with him again. We did it in 2002, and he was miserable. He’s no fun. He’s not what he appears to be, he’s always playing mind games. Needless to say, we’ve all heard that he’s struggling with his voice, and I wouldn’t want to bring him out with the ticket price it would be and have to apologise to people.”
“I’m happy with my ‘Best of All Worlds Band’. I’ve got guitarist Joe Satriani, who is as close to Eddie as you’re going to get, and [longtime Van Halen bassist] Michael Anthony who is as much a part of Van Halen’s sound as anybody, and the legendary drummer Kenny Aronoff. This is the best band I’ve been in since Van Halen.”
