Deadmau5 has apologized after a drunken incident cut his Coachella performance short, admitting it might be his final appearance at the festival. The Canadian DJ, performing under his Testpilot alias, took to Instagram the following morning to express regret for his behavior during his set on April 18.
Deadmau5, whose real name is Joel Zimmerman, was scheduled to perform alongside electronic artist Zhu, but their set was abruptly halted after Deadmau5 was seen taking shots and slurring his speech. He eventually fell behind the DJ booth and had to be escorted off stage.
In a post the next day, Deadmau5 admitted to not remembering the night’s events, but humorously noted that he hadn’t smoked a cigarette—something he had pledged to quit just a week earlier. “I don’t remember a thing. But I don’t think I had a cig? So… that’s good I guess?” he wrote. “Probably my last Coachella,” he added.
The DJ also shared a picture of his cat, joking, “Even my cat is disappointed in me.” He continued, apologizing for the incident: “Sorry about last night. To be fair, I felt the first 3/4 was great! Huge shoutout to @zhu for introducing me to whisky and carrying my dumb ass till the bitter end. lemme quit smoking, do some f***en personal resetting here at home, find my spirit animal, work on some new music, and come back better.”
In a bit of irony, Deadmau5 had previously mocked Grimes’ Coachella performance last year, which suffered technical difficulties. At the time, he sampled clips of Grimes addressing her issues, joking that music festivals should be fun and memorable.
It remains unclear whether Deadmau5 will return to Coachella in 2025, but his apology and reflection suggest he is considering a break from the festival.
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