Panic! at the Disco Announces Split: ‘It’s Been a Hell of a Journey’

Panic! at the Disco, the pop-rock band that formed in Las Vegas nearly 20 years ago and gradually became a solo vehicle for frontman Brendon Urie, announced on Tuesday morning that the group will end after its forthcoming European tour. Urie says he and his wife are expecting their first child and “I am going to bring this chapter of my life to an end and put my focus and energy on my family, and with that Panic! At The Disco will be no more.”

The final tour begins in Vienna on Feb. 20 and concludes in Manchester, England on March 10. Urie’s statement follows below in full.

Well, it’s been a hell of a journey…
Growing up in Vegas I could’ve never imagined where this life would take me. So many places all over the world, and all the friends we’ve made along the way.

But sometimes a journey must end for a new one to begin. We’ve been trying to keep it to ourselves, though some of you may have heard.. Sarah and I are expecting a baby very soon! The prospect of being a father and getting to watch my wife become a mother is both humbling and exciting. I look forward to this next adventure.

That said, I am going to bring this chapter of my life to an end and put my focus and energy on my family, and with that Panic! At The Disco will be no more.

Thank you all for your immense support over the years. I’ve sat here trying to come up with the perfect way to say this and I truly can’t put into words how much it has meant to us. Whether you’ve been here since the beginning or are just finding us, it has been a pleasure to not only share the stage with so many talented people but also share our time with you. I am looking forward to seeing everyone in Europe and the UK for one last run together.

I love you. I appreciate you. Thank you for existing.

Brendon

The group, which released seven albums, formed in 2004 when Urie and co-founders Ryan Ross, Spencer Smith, and Brent Wilson were in high school. Their first album, “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out,” was released the following year and, driven by the hit single “I Write Sins Not Tragedies,” quickly vaulted them into stardom. The album was certified triple platinum and the group cleaned up at the MTV Video Music Awards the following year. However, Wilson left the band and before the release of their sophomore effort, “Pretty. Odd.,” which represented a change of musical direction; ultimately Urie and Smith were the sole remaining founders. Two more albums, “Vices & Virtues” (with Urie and Smith playing all the instruments) and “Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!,” followed before Smith left unofficially in 2013 and for good in 2015. However, the band had long since become Urie’s solo vehicle.

Two more albums followed, interspersed with Urie appearing on Broadway in a leading role in Cyndi Lauper’s musical “Kinky Boots.” He has collaborated with many musicians over the years, ranging from Fall Out Boy to, more recently, Taylor Swift, duetting with her and appearing in the elaborate video for her 2018 hit “Me!” He relaunched Panic last year with the album and single “Viva Las Vengeance” and followed with a tour, but the band failed to reach its previous peaks.

With Urie as the sole constant member of the band, it is unclear what the distinction between Panic and his future projects will be, but apparently he felt the name is no longer representative and, at the age of 35, decided it’s time to move on from it.