Kaiser Chiefs Founder Nick Hodgson Quits Band After 15 Years

Kaiser Chiefs drummer Nick Hodgson has quit the band after 15 years. The drummer, backing vocalist and primary songwriting announced the news on Twitter on Tuesday (December 4, 2012), telling fans of the Leeds band, "I can confirm I have left Kaiser Chiefs after 15 spectacular years. I'm moving on. I wish the rest of the band the very best!"

His band-mates tweeted their support for Nick's decision and there doesn't appear to be any bad blood over his departure. Lead singer Ricky Wilson said, "@nickkaiserchief The door is on the latch and the key under the mat," while bass player Simon Rix said, "good luck to @nickkaiserchief with his plans. I can exclusively confirm we will still be collaborating on pints in pubs." Named after Kaizer Chiefs, the South African football team and onetime home of Leeds legend Lucas Radebe, the Kaisers formed after Hodgson met Wilson and guitarist Andrew White (firstly calling themselves Runston Parva, and then Parva). He played with the band for six albums in total and wrote a string of their biggest hits, including, Oh My God, I Predict A Riot and Ruby.

For the past couple of years, Hodgson has turned his attention to work outside of the Kaiser Chiefs, setting up Chewing Gum Records in 2010. He has also written songs for Duran Duran and Shirley Bassey, while working closely with producer Mark Ronson.