What happened between Sammy Hagar and Alex Van Halen? Rock band Van Halen's lead vocalist reveals the drummer hasn’t spoken to him in over 20 years

American singer-songwriter and guitarist Sammy Hagar is opening up about his long-standing feud with former bandmate Alex Van Halen. According to a report from Rolling Stone, the two haven't spoken in 21 years.

Sammy Hagar and Alex Van Halen, the drummer of the rock band Van Halen, are still dealing with the animosity between them that reportedly began more than two decades ago. In a recent interview with the news publication, Hagar, 77, revealed that Alex’s inability to perform as he once did is the reason behind their bad blood.

Sammy Hagar opens up about his differences with Alex Van Halen

The 77-year-old, in a Rolling Stone article published on April 29, 2025, revealed that he is not on the best of terms with his former Van Halen bandmate, Alex Van Halen.

“He’s not a singer. He’s not a guitar player. He is not really a band leader. He seems like he doesn’t want to play drums or can’t play drums anymore, and he can’t go write a new record.”

Alex, who suffers from a spinal injury, was the co-founder of the band, which formed in 1973. Notably, as per another Rolling Stone interview from October 2024, his injury has affected his ability to play the drums. Speaking of Alex’s part in the now-disbanded rock band, the musician added:

“Alex wasn’t the songwriter in the band. He was the drummer. Eddie and I wrote the songs. Dave and Eddie wrote the songs, and so we can go out and do them.”

While Sammy Hagar joined Van Halen in 1985 after David Lee Roth, the original lead singer, left, he was a part of the rock band from 1985 to 1996 and from 2003 to 2005. He noted in his interview that Alex is bothered that he and the band’s bassist, Michael Anthony, are still out there “doing it.” He added:

“I would feel bad. If I put myself in his shoes, I would feel terrible if I couldn’t do it anymore.”

Meanwhile, Sammy and Alex’s late brother and band co-founder, Eddie Van Halen, also had some disagreements, but the two reportedly reconciled before the latter died in October 2020. Sammy Hagar, in his interview, also noted that he is making “money,” selling Van Halen records, keeping the band’s name and their music alive.

“Al, you’re fine. Just leave me alone. I’ll leave you alone. Everything’s good."

Sammy Hagar is featuring Van Halen songs from his era on his nine-show Las Vegas residency, "Best of All Worlds," which begins on Wednesday, April 30, 2025. The musician also released a new single on April 24, 2025, titled Encore, Thank You, Goodnight.

In a previous interview, Hagar also noted that he wrote his new single after Eddie Van Halen visited him in his dream.

“He had a guitar around his neck and we were having a lovefest since we hadn’t seen each other in a long time.”

Noting that Eddie visiting him was one hundred per cent a "communication from the beyond,” he added:

“There is no question about it. I dream about Eddie all the time, quite honestly.”

Van Halen was a rock band founded in 1973. It disbanded after Eddie Van Halen died in the year 2020. Throughout their run, the band produced a total of 12 studio albums, two live records, and 56 singles.

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