In the world of metal and hard rock, 31 years is a long time. Although the genre has continued to survive, many of the artists who helped establish metal as a viable force have faded into or have completely disbanded. Yet others have changed their sound to try and stay on top of whatever the current trend is in music. Luckily, a five-piece from Atlanta, Georgia has remained true to its roots and since 1994 has released 14 studio albums, headlined countless tours and festivals, and has endeared themselves to their peers and fans alike.
Since bursting onto the scene with their self-titled debut in 1997, Sevendust have carved out their own path with their signature sound of thumping drums, driving distorted riffs and commanding vocals. Even more impressive is the fact that 31 years into their career, except for a brief period in the early 2000s, Sevendust maintains their core lineup. Drummer Morgan Rose, guitarists Clint Lowery and John Connolly, bassist Vinnie Hornsby and singer Lajon Withersepoon have been continuously breathing fresh life into the metal scene with critically-acclaimed albums and throwing it down with ferocious live shows that have garnered the attention and respect of almost all their counterparts who openly praise the way Sevendust delivers itself onstage.
In the middle of their tour supporting Disturbed, Sevendust finds itself headlining their own shows during the off dates including a show at The Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg, PA on March 16. In conjunction with Mark Hoover from Rock 107 WEZX FM in Scranton, PA, we recently had the chance to catch up with Witherspoon to discuss their tour, the possibility of new music and all things Sevendust.
LMNR: You guys recently wrapped up a tour celebrating the anniversary of your “Seasons” album. How was it going back to that album and performing all those songs again?
LW: “You know what, man? I think for me – I think for all of us – it was so nostalgic. That album was so cool; even recording that album back in the day with Butch Walker was amazing. So to go back out and have all that energy, and play that full set, and see the faces and memories that brought the people back to that era and whatever they were doing at the time that album was out, was incredible. Even though with some of those songs, I felt like we were in our “Night Ranger era” with our voices so it wasn’t as easy some nights. It was fun to do that album in its entirety, and what a celebration it was to be able to go out and play those songs and people still want to hear them. It’s incredible.”
LMNR: Along with your upcoming headlining gigs, you guys have dates booked where you will be joining Three Days Grace as you both open for Disturbed who will be celebrating 25 years of their “Sickness” album.
LW: “Yes sir. It’s gonna be a great tour. It’s funny how we grew up with Disturbed, and I remember meeting those cats when they first got signed out in Chicago. To be able to go back out on tour with them, and to be able to end this tour at Madison Square Garden – for me it’s a bucket list and I think for a lot of the guys, too. Not only to play Madison Square Garden, but to also play some of these big arenas like in Boston and some of these other places. I’ll tell you this – when they say ‘rock is dead,’ I don’t believe in that. At all. It’s here and it will never be dead.”
LMNR: How do you guys plan out set lists when you have to alternate between opening and headlining sets?
LW: “I’m gonna be honest with you guys. On the way here – I’m at the gym and I just walked in – me and Morgan Rose were on the text and I was complaining about the game and everything, and I said ‘call me first thing in the morning to talk about the Disturbed set and the headline set. He said ‘on it.’ He called me first thing in the morning; he called me ten minutes before I walked in here. I said ‘we still need to talk about these songs’ because we were talking about something else. He said ‘call me after you get off the phone call after the gym.’ So we have to talk about what the set list is gonna be because we still haven’t figured it out yet…We’ll get on the phone and talk about it like ‘alright, this is the Disturbed tour with Three Days Grace and we only have 30 minutes on that stage, and that’s a fact. So let’s go out there and ignite this crowd and have that energy. Between me and him, we’ll go back and forth. Sometimes we’ll pull other guys from the band in and they might say ‘I don’t ever want to do that song again,’ so there might be a little fight about that one so we’ll figure out what songs to do.”
LMNR: You guys have put out 14 studio albums over the last 30 years, which comes out to about a new album once every two years. Your latest effort, “Truth Killer,” came out in 2023. Is it safe to assume a new album might be in the works?
LW: “That’s another conversation me and Morgan were having today. Yes, all that stuff is true. Stuff is in the works. We’re already talking about bringing the band down to Kansas to my farmhouse and do a writing session and start focusing on the next step towards this new album. But, yeah, there will be a new album coming out. It’s a real exciting getting hard to work on these tours and we’re doing the Creed Cruise after that which will be super fun. Already we have music and songs together and we’re kind of picking through what we want to work with once we get together in a full setting. I feel like once we’re all in the same room with the instruments and everything, that’s when we write our best music – together.”
LMNR: Besides a brief period, Sevendust has maintained its core lineup for 30 years, which is basically unheard of nowadays. What do you attribute to the lineup’s longevity?
LW: “I think just because we’re brothers and we love each other and get mad at each other like brothers do. I mean, we’re family. I feel like in my day right now, as an artist, I feel like if we hadn’t split everything equally, it would have been a different outcome. I feel like everyone has a fair share, and everyone has a voice. There’s not a leader in the band. There’s not like some dude in the band – and I hate saying it like this but I’m just putting it in perspective – there’s not like one dude pulling up in a Ferrari and another dude riding up on a bicycle saying ‘hey man. How you doing?’ There’s no tensions or anything like that, because a lot of times that can break up an energy within a band. So when we come in as equal men and partners, it’s like ‘I’m gonna listen to your idea, and your idea.’ It makes us work together. And like at the beginning at day one, this is a dream for us. For me it was a dream to be able to say we’re gonna do this and maybe one day we’ll have kids and wives that come out on the road with us. And all that stuff happened. And our wives don’t ever want to come out on the tour buses with us anymore, but at least when they did, we got that chance to do it. And our kids love to be at shows. I feel like I’m still able to live a dream, even though sometimes it’s a nightmare, but at least I get to do what I love.”
LMNR: A lot of the bands I’ve talked with always list Sevendust as a “must see” live act. One of the bands from our area – Breaking Benjamin – consistently raves about watching you guys from the side of the stage and saying you guys “do it right.” What do your live performances mean to you at this point?
LW: “First off, I love Breaking Benjamin. Ben (Burnley) and everyone in that band are incredible. Funny you say that. Me and Morgan we’re talking, and I said ‘man, I would love to write with Ben.’ So maybe we can make that happen. I don’t think we think about (performing) anymore because since day one, whenever we’re on that stage for 30 minutes, and hour, or however long, that stage, to me, is my serenity. That’s where I pour it all out. I’m not worried about the bills, and I’m not worried about the wife being mad at me, or ‘oh, God. What’s going on here?’ Or anything. That’s my sanity. I feel like that’s where we give it our all. At the end of the day, if we don’t do that every time, then we’re not doing the right thing. So we go out there and we just throw it down. We have to. I don’t even feel like we have to; I feel like the music makes us do what we do on that stage.”
LMNR: I’ve been loving asking musicians about the emergence of AI. What are your thoughts on AI and do you think it will be a good addition to music or will it create a sense of fakeness?
LW: “So you’re asking a guy about AI that still calls stuff Atari? Let me tell you gentlemen what I feel AI is. I find it very crazy, amusing, and interesting. But at the end of the day, we all need live music and we need the real thing. I mean, I don’t want to make anyone mad, but for me the realness is where it’s at…I think AI is incredible, and you have to move with the times, right? I like to keep it real and hopefully the artists that are out there are able to go out there and continue to be live performers in real life…we’re moving with the times. Sometimes I look at my kids and just wish everything would slow down, and guess what? You only get 18 summers with them and time continues. So you have to move along with the time and that’s what I’m trying to do. But hopefully it won’t be the way people think it will be with bands 20 years from now. Hopefully we’ll still be able to go out there and perform live and not have these AI visuals doing shows or whatever. Oh man, I wouldn’t go to that show, I’m just saying. I barely go to shows now. I ain’t going to a show with a fake band.”
LMNR: Lastly, how would you best describe what’s in store for the people that come see you at The Sherman Theater on March 16, and other stops on the tour?
LW: “Man, just a great night of great energy and excitement. Just to be back out on the road and in that environment is going to be great, man. It’s a new year and we’ve been off for a little while. It’s a celebration and I look forward to the high energy and having a great night. I wish that we were there with Disturbed and Three Days Grace, but it’s still going to be a great show with Sevendust and the other guys out there with us.”
Official website: https://sevendust.com/
Thu, FEB 27
with Disturbed
Denver, CO
Fri, FEB 28
The Truman
Kansas City, MO
Sat, MAR 1
The Castle Theatre
Bloomington, IL
Sun, MAR 2
with Disturbed
St Louis, MO
Tue, MAR 4
with Disturbed
Milwaukee, WI
Thu, MAR 6
with Disturbed
Minneapolis, MN
Fri, MAR 7
EPIC Event Center
Green Bay, WI
Sat, MAR 8
with Disturbed
Chicago, IL
Mon, MAR 10
with Disturbed
Detroit, MI
Tue, MAR 11
Mr. Smalls Theatre, Funhouse & Café
Millvale, PA
Wed, MAR 12
with Disturbed
Louisville, KY
Fri, MAR 14
with Disturbed
Boston, MA
Sat, MAR 15
Tropicana Showroom
Atlantic City, NJ
Sun, MAR 16
Sherman Theater
Stroudsburg, PA
Mon, MAR 17
with Disturbed
Washington, DC
Wed, MAR 19
with Disturbed
Montreal, Canada
Fri, MAR 21
with Disturbed
New York, NY
Sat, MAR 22
Peabody’s
Virgin Beach, VA
Sun, MAR 23
House of Blues Myrtle Beach
North Myrtle Beach, SC
Tue, MAR 25
Mars Music Hall
Huntsville, AL
Wed, MAR 26
CLUB LA
Destin, FL
Fri, MAR 28
The Hall
Little Rock, AR
Sat, MAR 29
Gillioz Theatre
Springfield, MO
Fri, APR 25
Pima County Fair 2025
Tucson, AZ
Sat, APR 26
SUBSTANCE
Las Vegas, NV
Sun, APR 27
Grand Theater
Reno, NV
Thu, MAY 8
Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival 2025
Columbus, OH
Sun, MAY 18
Welcome to Rockville 2025
Daytona Beach, FL
Jul. 18 – 19, 2025
Summer of ’99 and Beyond Festival 2025
East Troy, WI
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