John Oates has lost that loving feeling for Hall & Oates. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, the artist said he has “moved on” from his longtime duo with Daryl Hall.
When asked about a lawsuit filed by Hall last year, Oates called it a “very boring business issue” and said he had already felt the desire to focus on his solo career anyway. “As far as I’m concerned, I’ve moved on,” he told Rolling Stone. “I feel like I have a new lease on my creative life.”
Oates continued by saying that he and Hall wanted to be seen as two separate artists from the beginning. “Daryl and I have always called ourselves Daryl Hall and John Oates, because we always wanted to be perceived as two individuals who work together,” he explained. “That was very important to us. If you look at the albums, you’ll see that on every album.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Oates said he was “always open” to repairing their friendship despite being at different places in their lives. “I would never say anything negative about him,” he said. “But we have a different strategy for our lives, and we have a different strategy for our business lives as well as our personal lives. And that’s that, so be it.”
For his part, Hall expressed similar thoughts in a 2022 interview with the Los Angeles Times, in which he said it’s “quite annoying” to be part of a duo and revealed he didn’t have “any plans” to work with Oates on a new record. “I’m more interested in pursuing my own world,” Hall added. “And so is John.”
This past November, Hall filed a lawsuit in Nashville Chancery Court alleging Oates had committed an “ultimate partnership betrayal” by attempting to sell his stake in their joint venture. According to Hall, Oates had “ambushed” him with plans to sell his half of their business to Primary Wave.
Over the past several decades, Hall and Oates have always taken time off for solo endeavors before reconnecting for shows. However, it appears that their handful of concerts in 2022 will be their last.
Oates is set to release a new album called Reunion on May 17th, and is currently touring behind the record. Get your tickets here.
Meanwhile, Hall will head out on a tour of his own with co-headliner Elvis Costello beginning in June. Grab your seats here.