Whitechapel has announced that they will no longer be part of their planned Latin American tour with Thy Art Is Murder this fall. Fans in Mexico, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile, Brazil, and Argentina will instead see Thy Art Is Murder perform solo. The decision stems from vocalist Phil Bozeman’s need to prioritize his mental health as he works through the challenges of tapering off a long-term antidepressant and the side effects of the withdrawal.
Bozeman shared the difficult news in a heartfelt statement on November 26, expressing gratitude to fans while explaining his situation. “To all of our Mexican, Costa Rican, Colombian, Chilean, Brazilian, and Argentinian fans. We regret to inform you that we will not be embarking on this tour due to mental health concerns regarding myself. I will be ok but I need time to get right for myself, my fiancé, family, friends, and all of you. Your support is immeasurable. Thank you all so much for everything. Here’s to strengthening and healing. Take care of yourselves and never stay silent on your mental health. It is our foundation for life. OUR FRIENDS IN THY ART IS MURDER WILL STILL BE PLAYING THESE SHOWS. YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THEM. GO AND SUPPORT OUR FRIENDS!”
In a video accompanying the statement (transcribed by ThePRP), Bozeman opened up further, sharing his history with mental health medications and his current struggles as he transitions off Zoloft, a drug he has relied on since his teens. Reflecting on his traumatic childhood, he spoke candidly about losing his parents at a young age and how those events shaped his mental health journey.
“What’s going on everyone, Phil from Whitechapel here. I wanted to make this video — this unfortunate video — to address our Mexican, Costa Rican, Colombian, Chilean, Brazilian, and Argentinian fans. We unfortunately will not be embarking on this South American tour that we had planned.
And a lot of you may know, I have had a traumatic childhood; I’ve been on mental health medications since I was a teenager. I started to come off of them because I wanted to. I wanted to try not to rely on medication months back.
And it has had a very bad effect on me. I [have] been having mental health issues. I’ve been on Zoloft ever since I was a teenager. For those of you who don’t know, the childhood I’m talking about is my dad passing away when I was 10 years old, and then my mom passing away around five years later from drug abuse and…
Yeah, and from an early age, I was put on Zoloft. And that basically numbed me for 30 years. And I had tried to come off this medication before, and that didn’t go well. I tried to stop cold turkey, and that just did not work at all. But I tried to do it again recently, and I did it the right way. I tapered off.
And, yeah, it seems as if… It’s not making me necessarily worse, but I just haven’t felt… because I’ve been numbed for 30 years, and coming off of it like the way I have, has been the healthy way, but it’s also come with consequences.
And I have not felt things I should have felt in those past 30 years. And it [has], you know, really affected me [I’m] very, very emotional. And I’m gonna try not to choke up on you guys here.
I don’t want to make this too long-winded, but in a nutshell, yes, I’m just dealing with some mental health issues, and I just need time to correct all of this.
And to all our South American fans and Mexican fans and, yeah, getting on a plane and traveling over and over and over every day just seems like hell to me right now. I’m just coming to you as just a normal person. I’m just a normal person, just like all of you. And yeah, I just… With the love and support of all the guys in the band, my family, and my fiancée, I’m going to correct this.
And [I] want to get better for not only myself, and my family, and friends, but also for you guys, so that I can continue to perform at the level that is expected of me. And, yeah, it’s, you know, in this metal community, we, a lot of us, found metal because of, you know, having our own mental health issues, and that was the same for me.
And yeah, it’s, it’s a real thing. And I encourage all of you who may be dealing with stuff like this —or whatever mental health issue that you’re dealing with — is that you, you do seek help, you do talk to people you don’t just keep it in. I’ve made that mistake a lot, and just don’t make that mistake.
Talk to people in your life, professionals. Mental health is the foundation of our life. It is what dictates our quality of life and the overall well-being of, of life in general. And yeah, I don’t want to sit here and lecture you guys on everything.
I’m sure you guys already know. It’s just, I just think that you guys in Mexico and South America as a whole deserve to understand and know why we aren’t coming down there. And just to everyone around the world that are fans of us, that you know what is happening right now.
And I appreciate all your guys’ support, and we’ll get through this. And thank you guys so much for the support. It’s just… it’s on the top of my pedestal as to what I appreciate, you know.
So, yeah, I don’t want to take up any more of your time, [I’m] just gonna go through a mental health journey right now and get better. And [I] appreciate you guys. Love you guys. And again. Just, just talk to someone, if you need to, and don’t ever hide it or hold it back. It’s not worth it.”
The outpouring of support from fans, bandmates, and the wider metal community has been immense, with social media comments flooded with messages of love and encouragement. Bozeman’s vulnerability is simply a reminder of the importance of addressing mental health openly, especially in a genre and community that often draws strength from shared struggles.
View this post on Instagram
