Original W.A.S.P. drummer Tony Richards dies aged 69
Blackie Lawless has confirmed
W.A.S.P.’s original drummer Tony Richards has died aged 69.
Breaking the news of Richards’ passing, W.A.S.P. lynchpin Blackie Lawless said: “The entire W.A.S.P. Camp are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our original drummer, Tony Richards.
“When the Band was first started we were 4 extremely strong personalities. Tony was absolutely equal to any of the others that were in the band. His personality was infectious. He looked fantastic in photos. But his ability to play made him really who he was. To watch him play riveted you no matter where you were in the room.
“When he was gone from the band we were wounded in a way that we never really quite recovered from. He was equally a part of that first album and when that record is heard to this day his personal stamp will forever be a part of the totality of that recording.
“He will forever be missed. We in the W.A.S.P. Camp would like to wish his family our deepest condolences.”
Born in Phoenix, Arizona on 19th June 1957, Richards moved to Los Angeles in 1980 and his phenomenal playing behind the drum kit meant he was snapped up by a variety of bands on the LA scene including Dante Fox, who later became Great White.
He exited Dante Fox when Blackie Lawless asked him to join his newly formed band ‘W.A.S.P.’
Richards performed on W.A.S.P.’s first single ‘Animal (F**k Like a Beast)’ and the band’s debut album ‘W.A.S.P.’, including the huge single ‘I Wanna Be Somebody’, before departing in late 1984.
He’s the third W.A.S.P. drummer to die this decade following Frankie Banali in 2020 and Steve Riley in 2023.