Tensions are rising between former Fleetwood Mac members who are clashing over the real reason why Lindsey Buckingham was fired.
In a new interview, Buckingham, the band's lead guitarist and male singer from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018, has come forth and accused Stevie Nicks and ex-manager Irving Azoff for axing him from the group, but they say he has only himself to blame.
Things have been tense between Buckingham and Nicks since their infamously volatile relationship during the band's peak in the 1970s. They managed to set their differences aside for many years but Buckingham stirred things up again while speaking with the Los Angeles Times.
During the interview, the musician said he and Nicks clashed after she reportedly refused to delay the band's tour so that he could promote his solo music. Eventually, he claimed she gave him an ultimatum: either he leaves or she would leave.
"It would be like a scenario where Mick Jagger says, ‘Either Keith Richards goes or I go,’" Buckingham said. "No, neither one of you can go. But I guess the singer has to stay. The figurehead has to stay."
Buckingham further stated that Nicks wanted to "cut herself loose" from competing with him on stage.
"I think she saw the possibility of remaking the band more in the Stevie Nicks vein," he said. "More mellow and kind of down, giving her more chances to do the kind of talking she does onstage."
In response, Nicks dismissed his claims as "factually inaccurate."
"To be exceedingly clear, I did not have him fired, I did not ask for him to be fired, I did not demand he be fired," she told Los Angeles Times. "Frankly, I fired myself. I proactively removed myself from the band and a situation I considered to be toxic to my wellbeing. I was done. If the band went on without me, so be it."
Buckingham also accused Azoff of throwing him "under the bus" during negotiations with the band.
"Irving doesn’t need the money, but he’s still driven by the money," he said.
Azoff sided with Nicks, saying that her account of events "are factual and truthful."
"While I understand it’s challenging for Lindsey to accept his own role in these matters and far easier to blame a manager, the fact remains that his actions alone are responsible for what transpired," he said. "Frankly, if I can be accused of anything it’s perhaps holding things together longer than I should have. After 2018 when Fleetwood Mac evolved with their new lineup, my continued work with the band was due entirely to the fact I’ve been aligned with Stevie Nicks in thought and purpose from the earliest of days."
Azoff added that, while financial gain was not a motivator for him, "it was a delightful bonus that the band scored their highest grossing tour ever without Lindsey."
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Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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