KELLY A. SWIFT/startraksphoto.comScott Weiland claims he thought he was still flying with the Stone Temple Pilots until today.
"I learned of my supposed 'termination' from Stone Temple Pilots this morning by reading about it in the press," the band's on-again, off-again lead singer said in a statement obtained Wednesday by E! News.
"Not sure how I can be 'terminated' from a band that I founded, fronted and co-wrote many of its biggest hits, but that's something for the lawyers to figure out. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to seeing all of my fans on my solo tour which starts this Friday."
What was apparent this morning was that the still-trucking members of STP had no trouble booting their Core member.
"Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland," read a statement released by the band's publicist this morning.
Plagued by personal issues that carried on through much of the '00s, Weiland first left STP in 2002 and then formed Velvet Revolver with Slash, Dave Kushner, Duff McCagan and Matt Sorum the following year.
Weiland rejoined brothers Dean and Robert DeLeo and Eric Kretz in STP in 2008. Their 2010 self-titled album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, indicating that at least the fans were psyched that the boys were back together.
According to Rolling Stone, it was Slash who first said in an interview a couple months ago that STP and Weiland had parted ways yet again, to which Weiland replied just yesterday: "Slash doesn't know anything about STP. We're talking right now about when we want to tour next."
"No one has ever fired anybody in STP," the 45-year-old rocker continued. "We're like a family. It's also a partnership. I started the band. We've always kept things going. We've taken time off before. They've done their own projects and I fully support that. No one has been fired and I haven't quit. That's all hearsay."