Primus reveal John Hoffman as new drummer

After an extensive search that saw well over 6,000 auditions, Primus have officially named John Hoffman as their new drummer. Hoffman, known for his YouTube and social media presence, steps in as Tim “Herb” Alexander’s official replacement. The band’s audition process featured a highly competitive final round, with drummers such as Thomas Pridgen (Fever 333, ex-The Mars Volta), Nikki Glaspie (The Nth Power, Snarky Puppy), and Thomas Lang (stOrk). Tickets to the 2025 Sessanta trek can be found here.

On Friday (7), Primus confirmed Hoffman’s addition via a brief statement on social media, stating, “Hoffington!!! Welcome aboard!”

Les Claypool shared a note he received from Hoffman on Instagram, stating:

“Thought Id share a note from Hoffer. Great guy:
Morning brother! Things are so good. Just tripping out at this reaction. I can’t believe (1) how massively viral this is and (2) how incredibly positive and supportive the fan base is being about you choosing me. I’m overwhelmed. Thousands of comments from complete strangers ” yes, I was rooting for him all along”, “Primus made the right choice”, “I can’t wait to hear Primus with this guy on drums”…so unbelievable, I’m just humbled and shocked….and I cannot friggin wait. Les, I mean it, this is the most incredible thing that has ever happened to me. The only day that compares to this is the day I married my amazing wife.
And the ENTIRE city of Shreveport is losing its mind right now. It’s like I just won the damn Super Bowl
Someone proposed to the city council that Feb 7th in Shreveport becomes “John Hoffman Day”
This is amazing, and I’m just so unbelievabley excited to be a part of this.
You’re the man, Colonel Claypool”

Yesterday (9), Hoffman expressed the following via Instagram:

“After having a few days now to process and ground myself a little bit, I can finally gather enough thoughts to make this post. The rumors are true, as they say. Through impossible and seemingly insurmountable odds, after surviving a virtual gauntlet of some of the literal greatest drummers walking planet Earth, I somehow, some way, remained the last one standing…..and am now a member of one of my all time favorite bands in the history of music, the one and only @primusville.

Just know that everyone of you who dug SO deep in supporting me along the way if even through a positive comment, I see you and appreciate you all. Each of you who has been in my corner, I literally share this with all of you. Every one in our community, the City of Shreveport, and the State of Louisiana, I brought all of you into that room with me whether you realize it or not. The most thanks goes to my wife Courtney, who kept me going many times through this process when I felt like I was flat on my face and wanted to give up. Her love and support kept me from throwing in the towel more than once throughout these last couple very emotional months. For that and many other reasons, I love her and thank her so much for carrying me through when I needed it most.

I will speak more on everything soon, but for now I just want to reiterate my love and thanks to you all, as well as the other monstrous and unbelievably talented drummers who were involved in this audition process, some of whom I made friends with along the way. And of course, extra special thanks to @lesclaypool, @lerlalonde, @timsoya, Brad, and the rest of the Primus team for seeing something in me, trusting in me, believing in me, and inviting me into this amazing family. I promise, I will not let you down.

Can’t wait to see you all at Sessanta.

Much love.

-John #primus“