ANDREW FREEMAN On His Exit From LAST IN LINE: 'I Was Not Really Given Any Reason At All About What Happened'

In a new interview with MetalTalk editor Steve Ritchie, singer Andrew Freeman addressed LAST IN LINE drummer Vinny Appice's recent revelation that the band was looking for a new vocalist. Asked about his current status with the group which was originally formed by original DIO members Appice, Vivian Campbell (guitar) and Jimmy Bain (bass),Andrew said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "LAST IN LINE's not really doing anything. They haven't done anything in two years. I heard that they're looking for a new singer. But there's been no official announcement besides [Appice's] Eddie Trunk interview and a couple of other ones. But press didn't really pick up on it. So, who knows what's going on with that? He was also talking about chemtrails and some conspiracy theories as well. So, who knows what's going on with that?"

Andrew continued: "I am a free agent, as you would say. And I've always been a free agent. One thing [Vinny] did say [in the 'Trunk Nation' interview], which, I thought, was kind of complimentary, and maybe it wasn't meant to be, is that I'm my own thing. And he's right — I am my own thing, because when you work… We haven't done a gig in two years — literally two years this past weekend. We were working on a [fourth full-length] record, and that stalled. So I don't know. Anything that is going on with those guys could be settled with a conversation, as far as I'm concerned, because I was not really given any reason at all about what happened."

Freeman added: "After that many years, I kind of find it — I don't wanna say it the wrong way, but it's just not smart from a business standpoint, because you have established a brand over 14 years and you have brought a guy in who [got] accepted by your fans. So now, after all that time and three albums and an EP and all that touring and all that branding and promotion, and now you're gonna bring somebody else in, when you don't really work that much. So, again, I don't understand it. But I'm not really questioning it either. I've given up a lot of really good gigs to stay with that band and stay loyal to that band for a long time, at the loss of financial gain. And I've invested a lot of time and money into that project that doesn't really serve me, in a sense. It serves them, because if you read the articles, the interviews, the reviews, it's always about how great it is to hear Vivian and Vinny and Jimmy playing together, and I'm the side guy, basically. But I'm not the side guy; I'm an owner of the name and owner of the business. So it's gonna be difficult for them to do that. And the amount of time they invest in it is really not going to... If they invest the same amount of time they've been investing in it in the past six years, I'd say, and before that… It was even less the past six years, but before that it was minimal as well… In my opinion, they're not gonna do much, unless there's some grand plan that I don't know about. But as long as [Vivian's main band] DEF LEPPARD is a viable touring act, [LAST IN LINE] is good for about five to 10 shows a year."

After Ritchie noted that little had been heard from LAST IN LINE since the release of the band's latest album, "Jericho", which came out in March 2023 via earMUSIC, Andrew concurred. "Yeah," he said. "In that time, Viv got sick and had the cancer diagnosis and had treatment. In the two years that we've been down, he had a pretty intense cancer treatment and was out of commission for a while. And, obviously, we all agreed — his health comes first. And again, this is a side project, so we're not gonna push him. So, obviously we want him to be healthy. So I don't know. I don't know where to go with it. So, it wasn't all about, 'We're not working, we're not working.' Again, I don't see where it's gonna be a viable thing. If you have people in place that know what to expect, then maybe it would go. Who knows?"

Freeman was an original member of LAST IN LINE, which he formed in 2012 with Appice, Campbell and Bain — Ronnie James Dio's co-conspirators and co-writers on the "Holy Diver", "Last In Line" and "Sacred Heart" albums. LAST IN LINE's initial intent was to celebrate Ronnie James Dio's early work by reuniting the members of the original DIO lineup. After playing shows that featured a setlist composed exclusively of material from the first three DIO albums, the band decided to move forward and create new music in a similar vein.

The news of Freeman's departure from LAST IN LINE was shared by Appice in an April 2026 interview with the Denim And Leather rock and metal podcast. Speaking about LAST IN LINE's current status, Vinny said: "We're looking for a singer for LAST IN LINE. So, Phil [Soussan, current LAST IN LINE bassist], Vivian and myself, we're on the lookout and listening to different singers."

Asked if there are plans for LAST IN LINE to record a new album as the follow-up to "Jericho", which came out in March 2023 via earMUSIC, Vinny said: "Yeah. We have a deal in place with earMUSIC, but we're making this change. And we're gonna wait until we settle down with a new singer and write some stuff and then record it. And then do some dates."

Vinny first brought up the fact that LAST IN LINE was looking for a new vocalist during a March 25 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". He stated at the time about LAST IN LINE's current status: "We parted ways with Andy Freeman, the singer, and we're looking for singers, actually, right now. So we have a deal in place. And Viv's busy — he was busy with [DEF] LEPPARD and he's doing a lot of rally racing, so we're trying to schedule finishing our next record and then playing some dates. 'Cause we have a lot of fun playing. It's great to play with Viv again. It's awesome. So that's what we're doing right now."

After "Trunk Nation" host Eddie Trunk brought up the fact that Freeman is busy playing with "a couple of tribute bands", Vinny said: "He's playing a Dio show [with a band called] DIO RULES. He didn't really wanna play that stuff with us, which is — go figure — and now he's doing all Dio stuff. Crazy."

Asked what happened between Freeman and the rest of LAST IN LINE to cause the singer's departure, Vinny said: "Yeah, [there was] a lot of tension between us, and the last show, one of the last shows [we played], [at] the M3 [festival in Maryland in 2024], there were things he commented to the audience, and people were scratching their heads, going, 'What's up with that?' He's his own thing. So finally we just said, 'It'd be a lot smoother to find another singer.' So that's what we're doing."

As for whether LAST IN LINE already has "any prospects" in mind as a potential replacement for Freeman, Appice said: "No, we don't have any prospects. If you know anybody, you could text me, that might fit the bill. We're gonna have to set something up. Maybe we can get some videos and stuff. Kind of like SKID ROW did — they set something up, and people are sending in videos, singing and all that. We have a couple of guys, but we're waiting to see if that's gonna work out. But we'll see."

Last November, Freeman was asked about LAST IN LINE's status in an interview with the Talkin' Bout Rock With Rob Edwards podcast. He said at the time: "I don't have any information, honestly. I wish I could tell you more. We started working on a record [in 2024]. So, that's kind of where we're at. It's a side project. [There is] not a lot of information there right now. So [we're] just working on a record."

Andrew continued: "It's not a place where you can make a living, that's for sure. Again, it's a side project, so you try to facilitate it when it comes.

"For me, I was put in a position, [with] the original DIO band getting back together and me being at the helm of it was quite an honor, for me as a fan of that band," Freeman added. "So, I just kind of feel like I have an obligation to facilitate it for as long as it goes. So if I can do that and try to do gigs around it and make it make sense when it makes sense, we'll continue on. But, honestly, it's all about what Vivian wants to do, if he wants to continue on, if he's got the time to continue on. He's a race car driver now too, so between his day job and his race car driving, there's really not a lot of time to do anything."

In June 2025, Freeman disputed Campbell's claim that LAST IN LINE's fourth album was already written. He said in a social media update at the time:  "LAST IN LINE, as previously reported by one of the members of the band, he said we have a whole record done. Well, we don't have a whole record done. We have four songs that we've done. I know that we don't have a whole record done because I haven't fucking wrote it yet. So, yeah, we have four songs done. We're working on an album."

Andrew continued: "Obviously, Viv was sick for a while [battling Hodgkin's lymphoma] and recovering from his bone marrow transplant and all of that stuff. So he is a hundred percent now, from what I understand, and is going to be going back out with DEF LEPPARD. And we had decided that we were taking a break and his health was the most important thing — obviously — which I fully support. So the guy needs to be better and well, and we are obviously a side project to his bigger job, which is why I am doing a lot of other things. So, when those guys are ready to go and make it happen, I'm in. But, obviously, the man's health comes first, and we're not gonna rush it."

Freeman added at the time: "That's the beauty of LAST IN LINE, is that we can do it whenever we want. It's a cool gig and I'm really happy to be a part of it and proud to be a part of it, to be able to enable that thing to happen with those dudes. They're the classic [DIO] lineup. This thing has roots way back into some of the greatest bands in rock history, so it's an honor for me to do it. But we don't have much happening. As far as [LAST IN LINE] gigs, there's not gonna be any gigs this year, and there might not be any next year. But, again, working on an album, and when those guys are ready to go, I'm ready to go. So we'll keep you posted on that."

During a June 11, 2025 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Vivian confirmed that he and LAST IN LINE bandmates were working on material for a possible fourth studio album. Asked what was going on with LAST IN LINE, Vivian said: "Not a lot, actually. There hasn't a lot been going on. Our last show was the first week of May last year at the M3 festival in Baltimore. Then right after that, I went touring with LEPPARD all through the summer, and, obviously, right after the summer tour with LEPPARD, I was dealing with [undergoing a bone marrow] transplant [as part of Vivian's battle with Hodgkin's lymphoma] and the chemo and stuff. So it's basically my fault [we haven't done more]. [Laughs] I've gotta kind of schedule things and get us back up and started again."

He continued: "But the short answer is we probably won't do anything this year. We're working on a record. We actually wrote the songs so long ago, I've practically forgotten them, but we do have an album written. We have four master tracks that we're currently working on. And the ball is in my court. I've gotta do guitar on those tracks. I've only done one so far. So once those four are finished, we'll probably release 'em, actually. I mean, we did write an album's worth of music, but I'm not sure if we'll put it all out as one thing. We might release it piecemeal, because getting back to albums and stuff, when you put out a record, it's just got such a short shelf life nowadays. So maybe it might be more beneficial for us to release two, three or four tracks at a time. And hopefully next year we'll get back into doing some shows. But it's been rough since our last show. We lost our road manager, roadie guy. It's not like DEF LEPPARD. We travel in sprinter vans and we have one roadie. And his name was Mark Weber, and, unfortunately, he passed away last July. And so next time we do go play, we'll be playing without Mark."

Campbell added: "It's been a rough ride with LAST IN LINE with the attrition rate. We lost [original LAST IN LINE bassist] Jimmy Bain to cancer on the eve of the release of our debut album. And we lost our manager, Steve Strange, three years ago to cancer. And now we lost Mark. But having said all of that, it is very, very cathartic for me to play on stage with LAST IN LINE. It really exercises the muscle of guitar playing furiously. It keeps me sharp and on top of my ga.me And the travel's hard, back-to-back shows, five or six hours every day in a sprinter van, cheese sandwiches, no sleep, but when we're on stage, it is just electrifying for me to play. It just kind of recharges my batteries. And then when I go back to DEF LEPPARD, I feel so, so confident about my playing again. So, yeah, I'd like to get back at it. I do miss it, to be honest. And there will be new music."

"Jericho" was helmed by Chris Collier, who has previously worked with KORN and WHITESNAKE, among other bands. LAST IN LINE's first two albums were produced by former DOKKEN and current FOREIGNER bassist Jeff Pilson.

In 2022, LAST IN LINE surprised fans by releasing a unique version of THE BEATLES classic "A Day In The Life", which was made available on the limited 12-inch silver collector's EP with the same name.

LAST IN LINE's debut album, "Heavy Crown", was released in February 2016 via Frontiers Music Srl, landing at No. 1 on Billboard's Heatseekers chart. Initially, the release had been preceded by tragedy when Bain unexpectedly died at the age of 68 on January 23, 2016. LAST IN LINE, honoring what they knew would be Bain's wish to keep the band moving, brought in Soussan and committed to sustained touring in support of the album before beginning work on the follow-up release, 2019's "II", which was also made available through Frontiers Music Srl.

In the fall of 2024, Soussantold Thomas S. Orwat, Jr. of Rock Interview Series about the progress of the songwriting sessions for LAST IN LINE's fourth studio album: "We had got together, and in the crazy way that we do, we usually get together and get into a room. And we don't really bring in ideas. We just get into a room and plug in and start banging around and seeing what comes out, seeing what sounds cool. And we've got a whole bunch of embryonic ideas, and so we're working that at the moment. We do have to work around the DEF LEPPARD schedule, obviously; that's part of the parcel of what we do, and it's fine. And Viv has some personal things that he has to do as well, which is not my business to talk about. So that's going to mean where it's gonna be a little hard for us to get together as much to do this record. However, the 'Jericho' album, we got together and recorded half of those ideas just before the pandemic. It wasn't a plan. We found ourselves in L.A. 'Let's go into a studio and let's just do that.' And it turned out to be somewhat prophetic because of what happened with the pandemic. At least we had half an album to work on. But in the process of doing that, we found that we were able to work on a record remotely, using file transfers and doing things. So, half of 'Jericho' was done that way. And a lot of this album is probably going to be done in a similar kind of way as well."

Asked if there has been any thoughts of maybe going out on a tour opening for a bigger band and getting more exposure to LAST IN LINE, Phil said: "It would be great, if it would work out and if everything made sense. Just prior to the pandemic, we were really on a good roll, and we had been going to Europe quite a lot and we had done tours opening for SAXON, for example, that was just terrific. It was a lot of fun for everyone on the tour together, and we had a great time. When that whole period came along, it really disrupted a lot of our plans. We had plans to go to South America, to Japan and back to Europe, a bunch of festivals in Europe, and all of that vaporized. And it's been hard trying to get that impetus back on track again. Not for any crazy reasons. One of the reasons, which is no secret, it's extremely expensive to try to get to Europe now, what with the kind of costs involved in touring — the fuel costs and the transportation costs and the way that the exchange rates have been, it's almost been a little prohibitive. And we've sort of been waiting for an opportunity to be able to go there and do that. We'd love to, sooner rather than later, I hope. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed."

Regarding how difficult is it for a band at the level of LAST IN LINE to make a profit going out on the road, Phil said: "It's not really about making a profit. It's about, basically, being able to cover everything, cover all the expenses. We're very passionate about what we do, and I think I am personally, and that's always been my mantra, is to be passionate about what I'm doing and let the money take care of itself. So it's not just about trying to make money, but sometimes it's just cost prohibitive to be able to do something. I mean, if you figure the expenses of — I don't wanna get into details, but once you start adding these numbers up, then you realize it's going to be really in the whole to do a tour. But if we can cover it and get close to covering it, then that's fine. I mean, thank God that we don't all live paycheck to paycheck and we're able to be able to do these things and get together with our fans in a way that works for everyone. I mean, that's the most important thing, is getting the music in front of the people who love our band and being able to find a way to do it."

In 2023, Vivian told Classic Rock magazine about the "Jericho" songwriting process: "One thing we insist on in LAST IN LINE is that we have to be in the room together when we cut the tracks, old school, because that's how we did the early DIO records with Ronnie [James Dio]. We started this record in January 2020 in L.A., intending to finish it that April, and then obviously COVID happened and things got… discombobulated. It wasn't until February 2022 that we were able to get back into the studio, but that break only made the record stronger."

Photo credit: Jim Wright (courtesy of earMUSIC)