The co-founder and guitar player of the pop-punk band Fall Out Boy took to the group’s Twitter page to tell fans he is taking a step back to prioritize his mental health.
Joe Trohman’s statement started with a reference to another musician and read, “Neil Young once howled that it’s better to burn out than to fade away,” the tweet reads. “But I can tell you unequivocally that burning out is dreadful.”
The musician continued: “Without divulging all the details, I must disclose that my mental health has rapidly deteriorated over the past several years. So, to avoid fading away and never returning, I will be taking a break from work which regrettably includes stepping away from Fall Out Boy for a spell.”
Trohman’s statement comes right after Fall Out Boy revealed a new album titled “So Much (For) Stardust” is forthcoming March 24 from Fueled by Ramen, a label distributed by Elektra Music Group. It’ll be the band’s first studio album since 2018.
Acknowledging the timing of his departure, Trohman said it “pains me to make this decision,” and said the project “fills me with great pride (the sin I’m most proud of).”
He mentioned the mental health break would be temporary and that he planned to return.
“So, the question remains: Will I return to the fold? Absolutely, one-hundred percent,” Trohman wrote. “In the meantime, I must recover which means putting myself and my mental health first. Thank you to everyone including my bandmates and family, for understanding and respecting this difficult, but necessary, decision.”
Trohman touched on mental health among a number of topics in his “None of This Rock” memoir published in September. The musician reflected on Fall Out Boy’s journey, spanning from four No. 1 albums to Grammy nominations and driving the “pop-punk explosion of the ‘00s,” PEOPLE reported.
Trohman said his daughter motivated him to take his mental health more seriously.
“I’m a mentally ill person. And I grew up with a mentally ill parent, and I want things to be so much better for them,” Trohman told PEOPLE. “So I hope one day if they decide to read this book, they don’t feel embarrassed by it. And that maybe it’s possible it allowed them to get to know me in a way that maybe they could have never gotten to know me just by being around me with me and talking.”
