Jay Weinberg, drummer of heavy metal band Slipknot, recently spoke with Hearing Health Foundation about his experiences with loud music and hearing health. Jay candidly shared a personal story from his teen years, and we are thrilled with and fully appreciate Jay's genuine advocacy for the importance of hearing protection.

In collaboration with HHF’s Keep Listening prevention campaign, Jay’s public service announcement reached a combined audience of over 200K across Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook.

Clearly the man named Metal Drummer of the Year by Modern Drummer who is in a band that has sold over 30 million records worldwide really struck a chord, as seen across nearly 90 comments on the Instagram post.

Here is just a small sampling from Jay’s fans:

“I made a mess of my hearing playing live gigs and practicing without ear protection. Cymbal crashes will kill your ears. I have permanent tinnitus now. I wish I’d thought about it from day 1 of playing.”

“I think this is something that bands don’t stress enough to the public. Even at shows people should protect their ears!”

“I approve this message. I have tinnitus in both ears after years of going to concerts and jamming in bands. I haven’t done either without hearing protection for about 14 years now. Should have listened to my mom when I was a kid.”

“When we were young, we were invincible... hardly. It wasn’t until my work put me through a safety course did I realize how easy it was to ruin your hearing. Looking back, after thinking ‘I can take it’ only meant ‘I can lose it.’ DON'T BE A BONEHEAD... USE HEARING PROTECTION!"

“So important! Went through school drum lessons with no hearing protection, suffering for it now! Always wear protection, kids.”

Our sincere thanks to Jay Weinberg for using his voice to amplify the message of hearing health!

Watch Jay’s Instagram Reel here, and a longer video on YouTube:

Get more safe listening tips from HHF’s Keep Listening prevention campaign.

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