James Kottak, known for being the drummer for Scorpions for 20 years, has died at age 61, the band announces.
“Very sad news…”: in a message published on social networks, in the evening of Tuesday January 9, the group Scorpions announced the death of its former drummer, James Kottak, at only 61 years old. Information initially revealed by the specialized site Metal Sludge. “Very sad news… Our friend and drummer for 20 years James Kottak has passed away at age 61… James was a wonderful human being, a great musician who loved his family… He was our ‘brother born’ another mother’ and we will really miss him”, we can read in the message signed by the members of the group Scorpions: Klaus (Meine), Rudolf (Schenker), Matthias (Jabs), Pawel (Maciwoda) and Mikkey (Dee) .
For the moment, no details on the circumstances of James Kottak’s disappearance have been communicated. The Metal Sludge site, however, suggests that the rocker died of cardiac arrest, thus ruling out any suspicious leads. James Kottak died in Louisville, his hometown in Kentucky in the United States.
Born on December 26, 1962, the musician had, before creating Scorpions in 1987, participated in several groups, such as Montrose and Kingdom Come. But it was by replacing Haerman Rarebell on drums in 1996 that he experienced success with the German rock band, and participated in its success and some hits like Rock You Like a Hurricane. James Kottak then led a solo career, releasing three albums between 2006 and 2001. He left Scorpions in 2016, due to his state of health and alcohol addiction.