(NEXSTAR) – David Lee Roth is running his last lap with the devil, it would seem.
Roth, the rock star who fronted Van Halen during the band’s heyday and most recent iteration, has announced his upcoming retirement after a stint of shows in Las Vegas in December and January.
“I am throwing in the shoes. I’m retiring,” Roth told the Las Vegas Review-Journal, offering little explanation as to why.
The rocker, 66, shared the news exclusively with the Review-Journal via a phone interview. During the conversation, Roth referenced the death of Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen — who passed in Oct. 2020 — as one of the possible reasons for his retirement, but gave no specific details.
“I am encouraged and compelled to really come to grips with how short time is, and my time is probably even shorter,” Roth told the outlet, later adding that he imagined he “might have been the first” to die of the band members, rather than Eddie Van Halen.
He also said didn’t want to “endanger” his own future by continuing to perform, citing guidance from his “doctors” and “handlers.”
Roth said he’ll be taking the stage for his final shows at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay for five concerts between Dec. 31 and Jan. 8.
“I’m not going to explain the statement. The explanation is in a safe. These are my last five shows,” he told the Review-Journal.
Tickets for the performances go on sale Saturday.
Roth, often considered to be one of the greatest frontmen in rock, performed with Van Halen between 1974 and 1985, returning for stints in 1996 and from 2006 onward. He also embarked on a solo career starting in the mid-‘80s.