Hatebreed frontman and podcast host Jamey Jasta recently revisited some of the backlash he received for challenging As I Lay Dying‘s Tim Lambesis in an April interview.
Many of the talking points during that interview focus on Lambesis’ musical comeback following his prison sentence for attempting to hire a hitman to kill his ex-wife.
Jasta was most recently a guest on the LOS Podcast,(seen below) and while discussion of Lambesis was initially brought up in a morbidly humorous manner by the hosts, the musician and podcaster took it a more serious direction. He spoke about what he experienced from fans after his interview with Lambesis first aired.
What Jamey Jasta Said About Tim Lambesis Backlash Against Him
Reflecting on one of his prior interviews with Lambesis, Jasta recalled, “We did the podcast [with Tim] and everybody said that I was too hard on him and the questions were rude and stuff and I was like, ‘the dude survived prison… what’s a couple questions over Zoom?'”
During the podcast, Jasta revealed that there were no restrictions placed on the interview and that he appreciated Lambesis agreeing to the no limits questioning. The As I Lay Dying vocalist did, however, state that he did not want to rehash things that have been heavily covered in the press already.
On the LOS podcast, Jasta further explained, “The fans get very attached to certain people in certain bands and they want to see them… no matter what they’ve done, it doesn’t matter. If they’re your favorite band, they’re like, ‘Oh, separate the art from the artist.’ I was asking questions like, ‘Do you still have a restraining order with your kids and your wife?’ and there were things that he couldn’t answer… because that’s what I would want to know, especially if we’re going to tour together or be on the same stage together,” he adds.
The Hatebreed frontman points out, “If [the hitman Lambesis attempted to hire] wasn’t a cop, she would be dead… and he had dudes vouching for him, so those dudes want to come on the [podcast], or one of the dudes I think I’ll have on the show again, Ken [Susi], who’s a great guy, was like, ‘Yeah, I want to take back what I said, vouching for [Lambesis].'”
The Hatebreed singer continued, “It’s a shitty situation if you’re a diehard fan of [Lambesis], who I asked, ‘is your ex-wife still in witness protection?’ and he couldn’t answer. [Lambesis] cried on the show and stuff and really sold it, so people were like, ‘Fuck Jasta! He’s so insensitive! I can’t believe this!'”
He recalled, “I was one of the only people that publicly went against [Lambesis] and said it on multiple shows. Not a lot of people… I think I’m still, you could probably Google this, I’m still one of the only people that said, ‘No fuck this dude! It’s wack. He’s done. This is someone that should really be canceled’. And I swear, in one day I had maybe like 400 tweets where it was like, ‘Fuck you, Jasta, you never wanted to kill your wife?!?’… I was like, ‘No, I mean…'”
On the Jasta Show podcast episode with Lambesis, Jasta had asserted he’s never wanted to kill his wife or anyone close to him.
Hatebreed’s Jamey Jasta Guests on the LOS Podcast
Jamey Jasta Addressed the Backlash He Received With Tim Lambesis
Back in April of 2024, Jasta posted a full podcast with Lambesis. In it, he relayed that previous fan mail he had received through the podcast (in response to his public comments about Lambesis) left him “disappointed.”
“Going through it for me, it was disappointing. I really feel like people sided with you based off the things I had said publicly,” said Jasta to Lambesis. “It not only made me rethink how I interact with fans, but it made me think, ‘Man, there’s a lot of people who want to hurt their spouses or do terrible things.'”
“I don’t want to put people on blast, but do I want this person as a fan?,” questioned the Hatebreed singer and podcast host. “Do I want to engage with these people? And I try to always respond politely, but I notice that some of their anger was directed towards me because they thought that I was unforgiving, that I was close minded.”
He continued, “It was something I really had to grapple with because it was a good amount of volume and I’m from a band that half of our fan mail was from prison. I genuinely wanted these people who write me to not only have forgiveness, but to get out and get their lives together.”
Within Jasta sharing that he had started to rethink things based on some of the reaction he had received, he added, “Now I’m not so in the weeds anymore, because it’s been years and we’ve seen each other multiple times since you’ve gotten out and I do feel like you’re on the right path, but are you on the right path? That’s the question I’m trying to get to here.”
Tim Lambesis Got Emotional on Past Jasta Show Podcast
Within the same podcast posted in April 2024, Lambesis did tear up and get emotional during the chat. The question that led to the response (viewed at the 1:26:00 mark below) was when Jasta brought up that he had re-married and asked the musician if he would want to start a new family.
“I don’t think I’ve healed enough to tackle that topic right now,” responded Lambesis after composing himself. “I think the loss hurts me enough to the point where I don’t know how I could wrap my mind around that right now.”
Shortly after, Lambesis told Jasta, “I think we have a tendency and it’s why we like superhero movies and stuff to view as an entirely good person or an entirely bad person. Life is so complicated. I’m not at all sitting here saying I’m a great person, but I do know there is a lot of good in me and I do know that I’ve done something terribly wrong.
“There’s not a lot of good answers to where people are going to walk away and say, ‘Oh it’s so black and white. It’s so clear.’ If there was a way to view me that was just like the correct answer, then you could just get some professor with a whiteboard to explain how you’re supposed to view Tim Lambesis.”
As I Lay Dying’s Tim Lambesis on The Jasta Show Podcast in April 2024
As I Lay Dying Defections + Tim Lambesis’ Troubling 2024
The attention turned back to Tim Lambesis and As I Lay Dying during the fall of 2024.
In late October into early November, several members of Tim Lambesis’ two bands began to leave their positions in the groups. Bassist Ryan Neff was the first to exit As I Lay Dying, with Ken Susi, Nick Pierce and eventually the longest tenured As I Lay Dying member Phil Sgrosso following suit.
Susi stated that his “personal morals” were tested to the breaking point in making his decision to leave. Pierce stated that he needed to distance himself in order to retain his personal health and integrity.” Sgrosso cited “concerning patterns of behavior” while adding that the group “no longer offers a healthy or safe environment for anyone involved.”
Drummer Brandon Short of Lambesis’ other band Austrian Death Machine then exited that band stating that his exit was “for the sake of my mental well-being and personal beliefs.”
READ MORE: Tim Lambesis Responds After Videos of Disturbing Exchanges With Wife Surface
Lambesis himself acknowledged “an unhealthy environment” within As I Lay Dying in his first statement after all the other band members had left. He also used that statement to share his intent to continue the group with a new lineup.
But just before Thanksgiving, two videos showing disturbing exchanges with Lambesis’ wife Dany surfaced online. Not long after the videos surfaced, Lambesis shared a statement that he had filed a restraining order against his wife, who he noted was now “formerly Lambesis,” and claimed that a domestic violence investigation had been started as well.
Lambesis alleged a pattern of verbal and mental abuse perpetrated by Dany and added that the videos being shared publicly were a form of retaliation after he had served her with divorce papers.
A Timeline of As I Lay Dying’s Controversial Comeback
Here is a timeline of what has gone on in the world of As I Lay Dying, from Tim Lambesis’ 2013 arrest through November of 2024.
Gallery Credit: Lauryn Schaffner