Local Natives will be parting ways with founding vocalist, keyboardist, and songwriter Kelcey Ayer after their upcoming tour.
The announcement arrives shortly after Local Natives released their sixth album, But I’ll Wait For You, which served as a companion piece to their 2023 album Time Will Wait For No One. “A big theme of Time Will Wait For No One, But I’ll Wait For You is being there for one another, and part of that is accepting change. With that, we wanted to share that our latest album and its upcoming tours will be the last with Kelcey as a member of Local Natives,” the band wrote on Instagram.
“We started making music together when we were teenagers, our bond is so much deeper than just bandmates; we have a true family love between us. While we’re of course sad to see our very talented and wonderfully weird friend go, we’re supportive of his decision to step away from Local Natives to focus on other projects. We’re excited to see what lies ahead for Kelc and wish him nothing but the best.”
As for the future of Local Natives, the remaining members Taylor Rice, Ryan Hahn, Nik Ewing, and Matt Frazier are keen on keeping things alive: “Endings are also new beginnings. For the four of us, this next chapter gives us a chance to reimagine what it means to make music together, and ultimately has deepened our commitment to Local Natives. Any impasse or threshold in life can feel like you’re on shaky ground, but it can also be a creatively generative time. We’re working on new music, we’re psyched about the future of LN, and can’t wait to share the next chapter when the time comes.”
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Ayer confirmed the split on social media, writing, “Being in a band this committed and this intense comes with a lot. It’s your entire life, and just doesn’t leave a ton of room to build anything else.” He continued, writing that he’ll be resuming his solo project Jaws of Love as well as confirming his involvement on Local Natives’ upcoming tour. “Life is long, and who knows, maybe I’ll be LN’s John Frusciante, but for now I’ll say that this is not the end of Local Natives or the end of me.”
Local Natives are gearing up for their 2024 tour in support of But I Will Wait For You, which will be their last with Ayer. THe tour kicks off this weekend with a show at Redondo Beach, California’s BeachLife Festival, and continues through May with shows in Albuquerque, Oklahoma City, Louisville, Kansas City, and more. The tour ends with a May 23rd show in Santa Cruz, California, with more dates to come in the future. Get tickets to all Local Natives’ upcoming tour dates here.
As one of two lead vocalists in Local Natives, revisit some of Kelcey Ayer’s most memorable contributions to the band below.