An Open Letter: Geddy Lee Announces 2026 Farewell Tour — “Let’s Do It Again” Marks the End of a Rock Legend’s Era
Byline: Rock Atlas Magazine – January 12, 2026
It began, as so many stories in rock do, with a letter — not a press release, not a social-media blast, but a handwritten note photographed on the worn maple surface of a 1972 Rickenbacker bass.
The note, signed simply “Love always, Geddy”, read:
> “It’s time. Time to say thank you, time to look back, and — one more time — time to make some noise. Let’s do it again. See you in 2026.”
With that, Geddy Lee, the unmistakable voice and thunderous bass behind Rush, announced his first and final solo world tour: “Let’s Do It Again: The Farewell Tour.”
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The Letter That Shook the Airwaves
By sunrise, the image had rocketed across social media — shared, dissected, memed, and cherished in equal measure. For decades, fans had wondered whether Geddy would ever return to the stage following drummer Neil Peart’s passing in 2020 and Rush’s quiet disbandment years earlier.
Rumors had swirled after Lee’s 2023 autobiography My Effin’ Life rekindled his public presence and saw him reunite onstage with Alex Lifeson for a surprise charity performance in Toronto. But few dared hope for something bigger — until now.
Within hours, Let’s Do It Again became the top-trending phrase in music worldwide.
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A Journey Through Sound and Memory
The 2026 tour, produced in collaboration with long-time Rush lighting designer Howard Ungerleider, will span 24 cities across North America and Europe, beginning April 10, 2026, in Toronto, and concluding September 15 in London’s O2 Arena.
Here’s the full list of cities, as revealed in the letter’s follow-up announcement:
North America
Toronto, ON – April 10
Montreal, QC – April 13
Boston, MA – April 17
New York, NY – April 19
Philadelphia, PA – April 22
Washington, D.C. – April 25
Nashville, TN – April 28
Chicago, IL – May 1
Denver, CO – May 5
Seattle, WA – May 8
San Francisco, CA – May 12
Los Angeles, CA – May 15
Europe
Oslo, Norway – June 10
Stockholm, Sweden – June 13
Berlin, Germany – June 16
Prague, Czech Republic – June 19
Paris, France – June 23
Amsterdam, Netherlands – June 26
Milan, Italy – June 29
Zurich, Switzerland – July 3
Madrid, Spain – July 6
Dublin, Ireland – September 10
London, UK – September 15
Each stop, Geddy promises, will be “a celebration — not of endings, but of everything music gave me.”
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The Band and the Vision
The tour’s lineup reads like a love letter to both Rush and the new generation of rock musicians who grew up idolizing them.
Joining Geddy onstage will be:
Omar Hakim on drums — a veteran of Weather Report, Sting, and David Bowie’s Let’s Dance sessions.
Rhonda Smith on bass and keys, taking turns with Geddy for some tracks.
Alex Lifeson, who will join “for select North American and UK dates,” according to the press release.
Jacob Moon, Canadian singer-songwriter and long-time Rush interpreter, providing rhythm guitar and harmony vocals.
The stage design, Lee teased in an interview with Classic Rock Radio, will “blend nostalgia with the future — like stepping into a dream where 2112 meets 2026.”
He went on:
> “We’re using pieces of the old Rush sets — the amps, the lights, even Neil’s drum shells — reimagined through holographic projection. It’s not a resurrection; it’s a conversation with memory.”
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A Setlist to Span the Decades
Fans can expect a mix of Rush classics, solo material, and even unreleased songs Geddy has been crafting quietly in his Toronto home studio.
Leaked rehearsal snippets suggest songs like “Subdivisions,” “The Spirit of Radio,” “YYZ,” and “Limelight” will share the stage with “The Garden,” “Anagram (For Mongo),” and a brand-new track reportedly titled “Echoes of the Maples.”
When asked about the title, Geddy laughed:
> “It’s my little nod to every basement we ever jammed in — and to every kid who picked up a bass because of a Rush record. The maples have deep roots.”
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A Farewell Decades in the Making
For a man whose career spanned over five decades, the notion of farewell carries both weight and warmth.
Backstage at a Toronto rehearsal space last December, Geddy reflected:
> “When Neil passed, I thought that part of my life was over. But music doesn’t stop asking for you. You hear a riff in your head, a melody at 2 a.m., and you realize — you’re still alive. You still have something to say.”
He paused, tracing the outline of his Rickenbacker’s neck like an old friend.
> “This tour isn’t a goodbye to the fans. It’s a thank-you letter, written loud.”
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Fans React: Tears, Cheers, and Tattoos
Outside the Horseshoe Tavern in downtown Toronto, a line of fans gathered hours after the announcement, many wearing vintage Moving Pictures shirts or carrying copies of My Effin’ Life for signing.
“It feels like the universe just turned its amps back on,” said 29-year-old drummer Maya Cullen. “My dad raised me on Rush. I’m booking flights to see him in London — he’s earned that encore.”
Social feeds lit up with tributes, fan art, and emotional videos of listeners revisiting classic albums. One viral post simply read:
> ‘If this is goodbye, let’s make it loud enough for Neil to hear.’
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The Man Who Never Really Left
Though Rush retired in 2018, Geddy never quite faded from the public eye. His book tours, podcast appearances, and collaborations with younger artists — from Primus’s Les Claypool to Muse’s Chris Wolstenholme — kept him both humble and in demand.
Claypool wrote on Instagram:
> “Geddy taught me that bass could be both thunder and melody. One last ride? I’ll be in the front row.”
Even after all these years, Lee’s work ethic hasn’t softened. According to close friend Alex Lifeson,
> “He still practices every day. Scales, counterpoint, finger exercises. He’s like a monk of rock.”
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Legacy in the Key of E
What makes Let’s Do It Again different from other farewells is its honesty. There’s no grand illusion of eternal youth, no attempt to rewrite time. Geddy Lee stands as he is — older, wiser, but no less electric.
“Age doesn’t scare me,” he said during a SiriusXM interview. “Silence does.”
If there’s one constant in Geddy’s universe, it’s motion — the restless pulse that drove Rush from high-school gyms to world arenas. This tour feels like the final arc of that motion, the gentle landing after half a century of flight.
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Epilogue: One More Encore
In the closing lines of his open letter, Lee wrote:
> “Every ending hides a beginning. Music found me once — a scrawny kid in Willowdale with a cheap bass and a dream. It found me again through every one of you.
Let’s do it again — one last time — before the lights go out.”
Tickets go on sale January 26. They’ll sell out in minutes. But for those who’ve ever air-drummed to Tom Sawyer or whispered the words ‘Catch the mist, catch the myth,’ this isn’t just another tour.
It’s a farewell to a legend, yes — but more than that, it’s an invitation to remember what it feels like when music makes the world feel infinite.
And when Geddy Lee walks onto that Toronto stage next spring, under the familiar white-and-red maple light, bass slung low, and whispers, “Let’s do it again,” you can bet the crowd will roar back —
“Always.”
