Rush Co-Founders Say No New Music, Focus on 2026 Reunion Tour
Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson have taken the question of new material once and for all: the Canadian progressive‑rock trio will not record again in the coming years. The announcement comes as the band gears up for its 2026‑27 “Fifty Something” headline tour, which will feature drummer Anika Nilles and keyboardist Loren Gold.
The decision is rooted in the band’s limited touring window. In a recent interview, Lifeson explained that the pair had mapped out a rehearsal schedule that would culminate in May 2026. “We laid out what our rehearsal schedule was going to be, with an end date in May 2026, that we had to get everything done by then,” he told Radio Futuro. “And 14 months, at the beginning we thought, ‘Oh, that’s plenty of time. We’ll get it done!’ The last couple of weeks were, like, ‘Oh my God, we gotta really focus on this and really put it together!’”
Rehearsals were intense, especially for Nilles, who is filling the role of late drummer Neil Peart. Lee noted that Nilles had to learn roughly 43 Rush songs in a year—a task he described as “not easy drum parts to learn.” “She was working as hard, I think, as she's ever worked on anything,” Lee said. “She would work really hard on her own, then she would come to Toronto sporadically and we would work really hard.” Lee added that the band’s chemistry helped Nilles adapt: “I think she found it much easier to work with us in person, because there’s a chemistry that we have, and we can reassure her, ‘This part is right, this part is this long, and no, you have to play this part this way.’”
During the final month of rehearsals, the band pushed its limits. Lee recalled a demanding run of shows: “We played a full show 24 nights out of 27 days. We’ve never worked that hard in our entire lives.” The effort paid off on opening night, when the group delivered a set that included 24 songs from across its catalog.
When asked whether Rush plans to record new music, Lee was unequivocal. “No. We have enough to do. We’re still trying to remember the old songs and play them!” He also reflected on his own physical limits: “I’m ecstatic that we’re playing so well and that the musicians that we've chosen to join us on stage have jelled the way they have. I’m not pretending when you see me smiling up there. It’s a joyous moment for me, and I know there are only so many gigs left in my body, so I’m going to enjoy them while I can.”
The “Fifty Something” tour marks the first time the core of Rush has performed together in 11 years. The lineup—Lee on bass and vocals, Lifeson on guitar, Nilles on drums, and Gold on keyboards—will play a setlist that spans the band’s 42‑album catalog. The tour will visit 16 countries and includes 69 scheduled concerts, beginning at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. Rush’s return follows the death of drummer Neil Peart in 2020 and the band’s 2015 dissolution. The 2026 tour is the first full‑band tour since the 2015 “R‑U‑N” tour, which was cut short by Peart’s retirement.
The band’s decision to focus on live performance rather than new recordings reflects both the physical demands of touring and the legacy of Rush’s extensive catalog. With the “Fifty Something” tour set to run through 2027, Lee and Lifeson have signaled that the band’s future will be defined by the stage rather than the studio.
