DevilDriver are getting back out there after health issues sidelined singer Dez Fafara for a while and now the frontman is talking about what exactly was at the root ofit
While appearing on the Garza Podcast alongside drummer Davier Perez, Fafara shared publicly for the first time that he’s been dealing with a tumor that, so far, is inoperable.
“You don’t want to say this stuff before you book tours or before you’re doing deals or before you’re going out, but I would say for over a year, almost two years now, we’ve been dealing with a situation where they found a tumor in my head,” explained the singer.
What Did Dez Fafara Say About His Tumor and the Treatment?
“They want me back in every six months,” Fafara further revealed, underscoring how this has impacted his ability to tour year-round. “It’s actually got to grow a little bit for it to be safe to go in, because it’s very unsafe if they go in and get it now. I could lose speech and a lot of other stuff.”
Within the chat, Fafara spoke about the importance of diet and positive thought. As he’s taken part in fasts, cut back on sugar and carbs and spent plenty of time in prayer, the tumor has actually gotten smaller in size whichhe says is somewhat of an anomaly.
“I’m of the mindset that I’m going to make it go away. I’m going to make it go away with dieting, fasting and positive thought. It’s gonna go away. It’s gonna shrink more and it’s gonna go away,” he shared, joking withhis doctor that he’d have a new one for his medical books.
Fafara says he learned about the tumor after initially being treated for vertigo.”They did a head scan with me and the doc came in and said, ‘Good news. I think you got the vertigo thing under control and I really don’t think that’s gonna happen anymore. But I want to show you something.’ It was a picture of my head and you saw a tumor,” he recalled.
The tumoris located just aboveFafara’s jawline near a salivary gland. If not treated properly, it could impact speech, smiling and blinking, among other motor functions.
The singer then recalled the emotionally harrowing day of undergoing testing to see if the tumor was cancerous.
“They did the test and I’ll never forget it,” he said, noting that after a medical assistant advised Fafara and his wife that they’ll have the results in 15 minutes. “And I’m sitting in the chair like, ‘You’ll know?’ And when she left the room, I told [my wife] Anahstasia, ‘Don’t talk. Bow your head right now cause we need to pray hard,'” recalled the singer. “Then she came back in and said, ‘Hey, I got good news, it’s non-cancerous.’ I fucking jumped up and scared the shit out of this woman. I jumped up and hugged her and lifted her in the air.”
DevilDriver’s Dez Fafara + Davier Perez Guest on the Garza Podcast
Did the Experience Impact DevilDriver’s New Music?
According to drummer Davier Perez, Fafara channeled the emotion and uncertainty of dealing with the tumor reveal into the song “Summoning Shadows” from the newDevilDriveralbum Strike and Kill.
“It is about how Dez felt when he was going through it. One of the moments I’ll never forget from recording the records and being next to him in the booth, there’s a certain part that he sings in the song that he goes emotional. You can hear it, clearly, when he starts screaming. It’s like a mix of relief but also uncertainty, pain,” shared Perez, adding, “I’m glad we got it in one take.”
“I felt, hands to God, like I had someone’s hands on my shoulders, like there was someone there writing with me,” added Fafara. “Because the songs were coming out so quickly, I’d send [Davier] voice notes and saying, ‘Am I just being lazy? Cause I just wrote three songs this afternoon in two hours.'”
DevilDriver, “Summoning Shadows”
Where Do Things Stand With DevilDriver?
Admitting that doctor’s appointments have kept things on the backburner for some time, DevilDriver expect to have more of a presence as the year goes on. As stated, the group has a new album, Strike and Kill, and will be touring in support of it.
READ MORE: DevilDriver’s Dez Fafara Reveals ‘First’ That Makes New Album One of Their Strongest
“I’m just gonna deal with it,” says the singer. “Keep booking stuff. Take my looks inside, everything’s cool, okay, book it and run.”
Tickets for all shows can be found viathe DevilDriver website.
See where DevilDriver and other big rock and metal acts are touring in 2026 in the gallery below.
2026 Rock + Metal Tour Guide
These are the biggest rock and metal tours happening in 2026 so far, including Metallica, Iron Maiden, My Chemical Romance and more.
Gallery Credit: Lauryn Schaffner
