New Rush touring drummer Anika Nilles has pulled back the curtain on her intensive preparation for the band’s current “Fifty Something” anniversary tour, revealing that the legendary prog-rock catalog forced her to completely reinvent her standard approach to practice.
During a new interview with musician and educator Rick Beato, Nilles candidly discussed the immense technical hurdle of mastering the intricate patterns left behind by the late, great Neil Peart.
When asked directly how she managed to learn that many songs for the band’s “Fifty Something” tour, her initial reaction was one of disbelief.
“I have no idea,” Nilles admitted bluntly. “Sometimes I was sitting there and thought, ‘I have no idea how I’m learning that,’ but somehow it’s working because I learned those songs in a completely different way. My preparation was so different to how I prepare myself usually.”
The drummer went on to explain that her standard learning routine, which relies heavily on visual transcription, proved entirely ineffective when confronting the fluid, highly expressive compositions of Rush.
“Usually I just listen, then I make a quick chart for myself to have it visually in front of my eyes and then I just listen, read and play. And I figured with this, it doesn’t work right. So sometimes you cannot really write it out because a lot of it is also kind of a feeling,” she explained.
“And technically you can write it out, but I would have spent so much time with just that. And I thought, I don’t have that time. I just have to listen, make chunks for myself and just learn it step by step and then this is how I did it. But just memorizing all the parts is one thing and then learning the feeling is a different thing,” Anika added.
Stepping onto the drum riser for Rush is widely considered one of the most intimidating assignments in rock history. Nilles secured the gig after connecting with the camp through John “Scully” McIntosh, the longtime bass technician for Geddy Lee. Knowing the monumental expectations ahead of her, she completely immersed herself in the band’s history to capture the nuances of Peart‘s style.
“I was diving directly into the Rush rabbit hole and just listened to everything I could catch — the music, videos, interviews, live shows, everything you can find online, basically, just to get to know the songs a bit better,” she continued. “Because I just knew a bunch and also not in detail. So I started my whole research, but we also prepared, I think, six or seven songs for the first rehearsal. And as I got those titles, I was just focusing on those songs because they have a huge catalog.”
While the challenge was massive, Nilles noted that the timeline worked in her favor. Because Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson had not toured together as a unit in over a decade, the entire band had to dust off the tracks collectively, creating a supportive environment that helped alleviate her initial anxiety.
“We all kind of started a little bit together from scratch,” Anika noted. “I mean, they didn’t really start from scratch, but as a trio, we had to find a way to come together. And it’s one thing when you come into a band and everyone knows everything and it’s just like playing, it’s smooth because they’re doing it every day onstage and you’re the newbie [who] has to adjust and learn all this. It didn’t feel like that. So it was also taking the pressure a little bit away because they’re kind of like, ‘Okay, how does this go?’ ‘Cause they hadn’t played it in 10 years. Definitely took the pressure a little bit off my shoulders.”
The rigorous preparation has clearly paid off. The initial performances of the “Fifty Something” tour have been met with overwhelming critical acclaim from fans and peers alike, with massive praise specifically directed at Nilles‘ precise and passionate execution behind the kit.
Prior to the massive Los Angeles kickoff, the new iteration of Rush made their live public debut in late March at Canada’s Juno Awards in Hamilton, Ontario. During the ceremony, the group performed “Finding My Way” from their 1974 self-titled debut album, Rush, notably the only full-length studio release in their catalog that did not feature Peart. Before the “Fifty Something” tour, Lee and Lifeson‘s only live performances together since 2015 were under their own names, participating in high-profile tribute events for artists like Gordon Lightfoot and Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins.
The high-profile reunion tour is currently making its way through an extended multi-night celebratory run in Los Angeles, with live dates currently mapped out across the globe through April 2027.
Looking further ahead, Rush recently confirmed international extensions scheduled for early 2027. The upcoming global dates will mark the band’s first European shows since 2013 and their first visit to South America in 17 years. Formatted as special “evening with” performances, the 24-show European run will see the group continuing to deliver two distinct sets each night.
Rush “Fifty Something” 2026 Tour Dates:
- June 11, 13 – Los Angeles, CA – Kia Forum
- June 18 – Mexico City, MX – Palacio de los Deportes
- June 20 – Mexico City, MX – Palacio de los Deportes
- June 24, 26, 28, 30 – Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena
- July 16, 18, 20, 22 – Chicago, IL – United Center
- July 28, 30, Aug. 1, 3 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
- Aug. 7, 9, 11, 13 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena
- Aug. 21 – Philadelphia, PA – Xfinity Mobile Arena
- Aug. 23 – Philadelphia, PA – Xfinity Mobile Arena
- Aug. 26 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena
- Aug. 28 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena
- Sep. 2 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
- Sep. 4 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
- Sep. 12 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
- Sep. 14 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
- Sep. 17, 19 – Cleveland, OH – Rocket Arena
- Sep. 23 – San Antonio, TX – Frost Bank Center
- Sep. 25 – San Antonio, TX – Frost Bank Center
- Oct. 5 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena
- Oct. 7 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena
- Oct. 10 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
- Oct. 12 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
- Oct. 15 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center
- Oct. 17 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center
- Oct. 25 – Washington D.C. – Capital One Arena
- Oct. 27 – Washington D.C. – Capital One Arena
- Oct. 30 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Arena
- Nov. 1 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Arena
- Nov. 5 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live
- Nov. 7 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live
- Nov. 9 – Tampa, FL – Benchmark International Arena
- Nov. 11 – Tampa, FL – Benchmark International Arena
- Nov. 20 – Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center
- Nov. 22 – Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center
- Nov. 25 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
- Nov. 27 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
- Dec. 1 – Glendale, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena
- Dec. 3 – Glendale, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena
- Dec. 10 – Edmonton, AB – Rogers Place
- Dec. 12 – Edmonton, AB – Rogers Place
- Dec. 15 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
- Dec. 17 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
Rush “Fifty Something” 2027 UK And European Tour:
- February 19: Paris, FRA – La Défense Arena
- February 21: Berlin, GER – Uber Arena
- February 23: Amsterdam, NED – Ziggo Dome
- February 25: Munich, GER – Olympiahalle
- February 28: Cologne, GER – LANXESS Arena
- March 2: Hamburg, GER – Barclays Arena
- March 4: Stuttgart, GER – Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle
- March 8: Glasgow, UK – OVO Hydro
- March 12: Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
- March 16: London, UK – The O2 Arena
- March 18: London, UK – The O2 Arena
- March 27: Kraków, POL – Arena Kraków
- March 30: Milan, ITA – Unipol Dome
- April 1: Basel, SWI – St. Jakobshalle
- April 4: Copenhagen, DEN – Royal Arena
- April 6: Oslo, NOR – Unity Arena
- April 8: Stockholm, SWE – Avicii Arena
- April 10: Helsinki, FIN – Veikkaus Arena
Rush “Fifty Something” 2027 South America Dates:
- January 15: Buenos Aires, AR
- January 22: Curitiba, BR
- January 24: São Paulo, BR
- January 30: Rio De Janeiro, BR
- February 01: Belo Horizonte, BR
- February 04: Brasília, BR
