Kelcey Ayer has announced he’s leaving Local Natives. The Local Natives co-founder and vocalist, who also played the keyboard, percussion, and guitar for the band — sadly announced today that after 20 years, he’s decided to leave Local Natives. In true Kelcey Ayer fashion, he shared a cheeky and heartfelt statement on Instagram this afternoon:
Feels pretty surreal to be saying this to you all, but after 20 years of playing with these guys, l’ve decided to leave Local Natives. This isn’t a decision l’ve come to lightly. I’ve spent more time with this band than I’ve been alive without it. People ask me all the time what it’s like, and I have to pause and gather myself for the extensive list: we’re creative collaborators, business partners, live performers, sometimes arch rivals, most-of-the-time giggly teenagers, and despite not being blood-related, it’s felt as close to a family as / think you can get. They are above all else my brothers. I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys.
The highest highs and lowest lows, all dealt with compassion, camaraderie, awe-inspiring talent, humility, character, joy, and steadfast loyalty. I’d kiss them if I was more sexually attracted to them and my wife would allow it. I don’t think the Eagles can say that. You have a lot to learn, Eagles.
The reason I’m leaving is because Ryan tore a sticker off my kick drum back in high school that l really really liked and I’ve just been waiting for the right moment – k I’m sorry, I’ll be serious. Being in a band this committed and this intense comes with a lot. It’s your entire life, and just doesn’t leave a ton of room to build anything else. While / have cherished so so much all that we’ve built, I’ve always wanted space and time to build other things. I have my own music and my own interests that I’d like to see flourish, and while my bandmates have always been supportive, the reality is that time is finite. It came to a point that I realized my whole adult life l’ve been a part of one thing and I just yearn to explore. / don’t know what the future holds, but I just want to find out what that can be on a wide open road.
just want to say I feel so lucky to have been on this journey with my bandmates and with you. / want to thank you all for your support of this band; taking us into your hearts, rejoicing and grieving with us, and making us a part of your lives. I really wish the best for LN moving forward and am excited to see what they make in the future. Life is long, and who knows, maybe I’ll be LN’s John Frusciante, but for now I’ll say this is not the end of Local Natives or the end of me. I’m excited to celebrate this last year of shows with you all (”I be here for the last phase of touring/ promoting TWWFNO & BIWFY, so the end isn’t quite here yet). And I hope you’ll understand that life is complicated. I can love them and love myself. And at almost 38 in one week, I want to see what it’s like to choose myself.
I love you all. I love you Ry, Tay, Matt, Nik, Sarah, Mara, Nada and Lindsey (and Mel duhhhhhhh).
And I’m excited for all our futures. All of us!
Except the Eagles.
Love, Kelcey
With Local Natives’ new album But I’ll Wait For You, released on April 19, the album’s arrival couldn’t be more timely. The band shared on their Instagram that a big theme on the album is the idea that “Time Will Wait For No One, But I’ll Wait For You is being there for one another, and part of that is accepting change.” The band waxed on how they started making music together when they were teenagers, expressing, “our bond is so much deeper than just bandmates; we have a true family love between us.”
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Statment from Local Natives shared on Instagram:
A big theme of Time Will Wait For No One, But I’ll Wait For You is being there for one another, and part of that is accepting change. With that, we wanted to share that our latest album and its upcoming tours will be the last with Kelcey as a member of Local Natives. We started making music together when we were teenagers, our bond is so much deeper than just bandmates; we have a true family love between us. While we’re of course sad to see our very talented and wonderfully weird friend go, we’re supportive of his decision to step away from Local Natives to focus on other projects. We’re excited to see what lies ahead for Kelc and wish him nothing but the best.
Endings are also new beginnings. For the four of us, this next chapter gives us a chance to reimagine what it means to make music together, and ultimately has deepened our commitment to Local Natives. Any impasse or threshold in life can feel like you’re on shaky ground, but it can also be a creatively generative time. We’re working on new music, we’re psyched about the future of LN, and can’t wait to share the next chapter when the time comes.
The TWWWFNO BIWFY era will be the last with Kelcey. For now we’re looking forward to celebrating what we have all done together over the last six records, and what’s yet to come.
Last year (2023), Ayer and his wife welcomed their first child into the world. He’s been very public about their journey to parenthood, writing several posts that are both personal and comical and feature their adorable little one. I highly recommend following Ayer on Instagram, especially if you’re a parent and/or a musician or just a fan of good music and good people. The guy has incredible wit, btw.
Ayer will continue to produce music with his solo project Jaws Of Love. We had the pleasure of presenting his residency at the Silverlake Lounge last year, and it was a very well-received run of shows that went out with a bang for its Halloween-themed finale. Be sure follow Jaws Of Love for new music and show announcements.
As for Local Natives, the band will continue on with the next chapter of their musical career. We’d be lying if we said we weren’t heartbroken over Ayer’s departure from the band. That sweet voice was part of the Local Natives’ signature charm and will truly be missed.
Over the past 15 years, since we first covered Local Natives in 2009, opening up for Frightened Rabbit at the Fonda, the band has become a sort of hometown heroes for the Los Angeles music community, especially during the music blog heyday of the 2010s. Every staff member at Grimy Goods has adored this band, especially those of us in the early days. We look forward to their future and continue to support their music, which has personally soundtracked some core memories for many of us.
Catch Local Natives on tour this May, and at the Beachlife Music Festival in Redondo Beach. Their new album, But I’ll Wait For You, is out now and available to stream.
