John 5 Breaks Silence on Relationship With Rob Zombie After Joining Mötley Crüe

John 5, the guy who’s jumped from Rob Zombie’s ship straight into the glam-coated arms of Mötley Crüe, apparently hasn’t had a real chat with Zombie since his departure. Yeah, no dramatic fallout, but also no heart-to-heart over coffee either. In a recent appearance on The Jasta Show, John 5 explained that while there’s no bad blood between him and Rob, they haven’t exactly been playing phone tag. According to him, Zombie wished him well with a simple “Go get ’em” when he took off to join Mötley Crüe. No fireworks, no tears, just a “seeya.” Pretty dry for a guy leaving a band after 17 years, but hey, rock ’n’ roll, right?

After packing up his gear and moving on, John 5 isn’t looking back too much. He’s got no plans to hang up his guitar anytime soon, stating that he’s “never gonna retire.” Good for him—at least one person on this planet is still fired up to work until the end of time.

When asked if he had anything to do with Mike Riggs stepping back into Zombie’s lineup, John 5 quickly shut that down. Apparently, after letting Rob know he was heading for Mötley Crüe, Riggs was already lurking around backstage at their next gig. John 5 didn’t seem to mind, even offered to help out in any way he could. But by the time Aftershock rolled around, it was Riggs strumming on stage instead of him. Cue the public confusion—because no one had a clue what was going on at the time. Yet John 5 insists everything went down smoothly. Sure, fans were scratching their heads at first, but the chaos was short-lived.

Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx chimed in on how the whole John 5 thing came about. According to Nikki, they didn’t even consider anyone else. He had known John 5 for ages—brought him in on Meat Loaf tracks, SIXX:A.M. songs, even worked together on some Netflix project involving a Johnny Cash cover. The second they knew Mick Mars was stepping back, John 5 was the guy. Nikki talks about the creative boost John brought to the band like he’s some kind of musical Red Bull. If there’s one thing Nikki knows how to do, it’s selling a band’s comeback narrative.

What’s funny is that, behind the scenes, there’s this bizarre Mafia-style negotiation supposedly happening between Nikki, John 5, and Rob Zombie. While it wasn’t Nikki’s decision to “steal” John 5, he admits feeling bad about the whole situation. John had been itching to try something new, and Zombie—ever the “rational guy”—understood. That’s the story, anyway.

John 5 has made it clear, multiple times, that he misses Rob Zombie. The texts, the chats—they’ve dried up. He seems genuinely bummed out that Rob hasn’t hit him back. It’s almost like a breakup where both parties claim there’s no drama, but deep down, one of them is waiting by the phone hoping for a “Hey, how’s it going?” message.

Meanwhile, Mötley Crüe keeps rolling, Nikki waxing poetic about how great things are now. The way he tells it, adding John 5 to the band has been like hitting the refresh button, reinvigorating their energy. New member, new tunes, same old arena rock machine. How long this honeymoon phase will last is anyone’s guess, but for now, the band’s creativity is apparently at an all-time high. Bold claims for a band that’s been through more ups and downs than a roller coaster.

In the background, though, there’s Mick Mars, who’s not exactly riding off into the sunset. After announcing his retirement from touring due to health issues, he’s filed a lawsuit against Mötley Crüe, claiming they tried to cut him out of the band’s business dealings. Messy stuff, but hey, after 42 years of drama, what’s a little more? Sixx, ever the PR guy, responded on Twitter, calling it a “sad day” and throwing some shade at Mick’s legal team. Because that’s what you do when one of your founding members sues you—tweet about it.

The circus rolls on, but for John 5, it seems life’s just getting started in this new chapter. Who knows if he’ll ever patch things up with Zombie or how long this ride with Mötley Crüe will last. Either way, he’s chasing his “experience everything” philosophy, and no one’s gonna stop him from doing just that—even if a few bridges are left smoldering in the process.