Members of Talking Heads shot down talks of a reunion performance during an October 2023 appearance on CBS’ The Late Show. And in yet another blow to fans everywhere, it was recently reported that the ’80s new-wave innovators turned up their nose at sizable offers to perform as a unit again.
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Coachella festival curator and Goldenvoice president Paul Tollett told Billboard that he traveled in September to the Toronto International Film Festival in hopes of adding a Talking Heads reunion to this year’s Coachella lineup. The band’s four members, David Byrne, Jerry Harrison, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth, made their first joint public appearance in more than three decades to discuss the 40th anniversary of the quartet’s seminal concert film, Stop Making Sense.
After meeting with members of the band and their representatives, Tollett “sensed there were no shows happening” and therefore did not make an offer. Although Tollett stressed to Billboard that he never talked hard numbers with the group, sources have said the gig could have netted Byrne and company as much as $10 million.
[RELATED: David Byrne Opens Up on His Behavior After Talking Heads’ Breakup]
Talking Heads Reportedly Rejects Live Nation
Although a Talking Heads reunion doesn’t appear to be in the cards, it certainly isn’t for lack of effort. Billboard also reported that a promoter from Live Nation offered the the band a cool $80 million to headline six to eight festival gigs and headlining slots, sources close to the group said.
The Talking Heads ultimately rejected that offer as well, although Live Nation declined to comment to Billboard.
Byrne Takes Responsibility for Burning Down the House
The band’s bright star officially flamed out in 1991, when Frantz and Weymouth learned of Byrne’s exit from the frontman’s comments to the Los Angeles Times.
Byrne has since lamented the messy split, telling People in August 2023 that “I think [the end] wasn’t handled well. It was kind of ugly.”
Although Byrne has described the band’s current relationship as “cordial,” the foursome has not actually performed together since their 1999 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction. Many fans seem to hold Byrne responsible for this. One user wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “If it was turned down, Talking Heads didn’t turn it down…. David Byrne turned it down.”
“Unfortunately, they will never reunite,” another X user wrote. “They can’t buy David with money.”
(Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
