Twisted Sister has officially expanded its 2026 50th-anniversary celebration, announcing a string of new European festival appearances. The legendary Dee Snider-fronted act has added Sweden Rock, Copenhell, Tons Of Rock, and the Steelhouse Festival in the UK, among others, to its growing itinerary.
This reunion tour will feature the core lineup of Snider, founding guitarist Jay Jay French, and lead guitarist Eddie Ojeda. Bassist Mark “The Animal” Mendoza is not participating in the reunion; Russell Pzütto, who plays in Snider‘s solo band, will handle bass duties. Joe Franco will take the drum throne in place of the late A.J. Pero.
The reunion has raised eyebrows, as Snider has been one of the most outspoken critics of rock and roll farewell tours and subsequent reunions, famously “naming names” like Kiss and Mötley Crüe. In a recent interview on 102.3 WBAB, Snider confronted his past statements head-on.
“First of all, I own [my previous] statements [about not wanting to stage a Twisted Sister reunion]. I said that and more,” Snider admitted. “I ranted and raved about this, and I expected to get excrements for this, but I’m getting hit hard.”
Snider explained that his dramatic change of heart was not about money, but was triggered by a recent and serious personal crisis.
“I turned 70 this year and I had a health scare. And I’m okay… And it shook me up…” Snider revealed. “But it really made me re-evaluate a lot of things… part of that re-evaluation was looking and saying… Do I really wanna do that without rocking one more time?”
He also clarified that he was the one who initiated the reunion, not the other way around. “It was I, me, who called the [other] guys [in Twisted Sister]. I called them… I said, ‘Guys, what do you think about doing it one more time?'”
Snider also took issue with media reports calling this a “tour,” emphasizing that it is a limited run. “I’m seeing, ‘Tour.’ ‘They’re hitting the road again.’ Wait a minute — who’s hitting the road?” he said. “This is a handful of dates — I’m thinking it’s about 20, 25 shows around the world, festivals almost exclusively.”
While he admitted he wouldn’t do it for free, Snider insisted the primary motivation was a desire to write his own ending. “It really was this sort of looking in the mirror going, ‘Hey, man, that was scary. And I don’t wanna go out like that.’ I do not wanna go out quietly. Kicking and screaming, man — that’s the way I wanna go.”
Twisted Sister 2026 50th-Anniversary Tour Dates:
- June 3-6 – Sweden Rock – Sweden
- June 10 – Mind Live Arena – Milan, Italy
- June 19 – Graspop Metal Meeting – Dessel, Belgium
- June 26 – Copenhell – Copenhagen, Denmark
- June 27 – Tons Of Rock – Oslo, Norway
- July 3 – Barcelona Rock Fest – Barcelona, Spain
- July 10 – Midalidare Rock In The Wine Valley – Mogilovo, Bulgaria
- July 24-26 – Steelhouse XV – Hafod-Y-Dafal Farm, Ebbw Vale, United Kingdom
- August 23 – Riverside – Aarburg, Switzerland
