John Oates and Daryl Hall Confirm Breakup Amid Lawsuit: 'People Change'

Following Oates' comments on the breakup, his former musical partner confirmed the situation.

By Andrew Roberts

John Oates has slammed the door shut on his musical partnership with Daryl Hall, and his former musical brother has confirmed the details. According to a chat with Rolling Stone, Oates claims to have "moved on" from the partnership and doesn't see the duo performing together again.

"I didn't even know he was going on tour. I had nothing to do with that. If that's how he perceived it, then that's how he perceived it. But, really honestly, I don't follow him on social media. In fact, I don't even know what he's doing. I hope he's doing well and I hope he's having a time of his life, but it's not part of my life," Oates tells the outlet. "You can ask Daryl the same question, but, yes. As far as I'm concerned, I've moved on. I feel like I have a new lease on my creative life."

Hall spoke to Variety in a detailed interview on the situation and his career, confirming the breakup and sharing that he was surprised by the sale by Oates. "I don't know, man — all I can say is people change and sometimes you don't really know someone like you thought you did. Difficulties can be made from things that aren't difficult, and then it goes to a place where it can never come back from. It's unfortunate and untimely, but some things just change. People rewrite history and harbor thoughts you had no idea about," Hall told the outlet. "I haven't had a creative relationship with John for at least 25 years. We didn't write songs together, we didn't do anything together except perform live shows. We had an arrangement that I couldn't play my solo songs onstage with Hall & Oates — and now I get to."

Oates also tells the outlet he was unaware Hall was on a tour of America with Elvis Costello currently, following up the musician's tour dates in 2023 with Todd Rundgren. That's when Hall moved to file his lawsuit against his former musical partner. "This recent bad faith conduct by John Oates and the Oates Trust has created tremendous upheaval, harm, and difficulty in my life," Hall wrote in his legal filing. "I believe that John Oates timed the Unauthorized Transaction to create the most harm to me."

Hall didn't respond to Rolling Stone's requests for a comment on Oates or the status of the group. The pair were longtime friends, something that Oates stresses he is open to being again. "I'm always open for that," Oates says. "Daryl Hall is an amazing individual. He is one of the great, great songwriters of all time, and without a doubt, one of the great singers of all time. I would never say anything negative about him. But we have a different strategy for our lives, and we have a different strategy for our business lives as well as our personal lives. And that's that, so be it. We're old guys. We deserve to be allowed to do whatever we want to do."

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