Hellyeah Officially ‘On Hiatus,’ Drummer Roy Mayorga Confirms
Hellyeah are formally "on hiatus" for the time being, as drummer Roy Mayorga explained in a recent interview. The confirmation comes as no surprise — lead vocalist Chad Gray is returning to a reunited Mudvayne, and guitarist Tom Maxwell previously expressed doubt about another Hellyeah album.
Mayorga, also a Stone Sour member, stepped in for late Hellyeah drummer and Pantera icon Vinnie Paul after the heavy metal supergroup released its first album following Paul's death, 2019's Welcome Home. On Sunday (May 9), Mayorga (who's also played in Soulfly, Ministry and more) appeared on a podcast about New York City hardcore punk to talk about the area's underground music history and his performing career.
During the interview, the drummer was asked if Hellyeah is still a functioning band, as Blabbermouth reported.
"Not right now," Mayorga responded, "'cause Chad is on his way to go do [the] Mudvayne [reunion]. So those guys are on hiatus for right now."
When broaching the topic last year, Gray, who also has solo music in the works, didn't rule out future Hellyeah but was honest about a lack of material: "Everybody's just in a holding pattern right now," the singer said. "I don't have any new music. I've been telling Tom to get me some riffs so I can write because right now is a great time to fucking write. So we'll just have to see."
Mayorga, who also confirmed over the weekend that he would be returning to Ministry for their touring this fall, cut his teeth with Northeastern punk rockers Nausea starting in the 1980s. The drummer's talent eventually led him to occupy the kit for acts such as Amebix, Black President, Channel Zero, Thorn and more, in addition to his later memberships in Hellyeah and Stone Sour.