Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ bassist Flea has responded to rumours that the band may be set to retire – claiming they’re just ‘silly talk’.

Last week, RHCP drummer Chad smith sparked speculation of the funk-rockers’ demise when he said he ‘didn’t know if the band could continue’ to tour.

“We were riding in a van after a gig and Flea was like, ‘How much longer do you think we should… How do you think we should end this?’”, Smith said. “I was, like, ‘I don’t know!’ I want to make records, I still love making records, but the touring part… I don’t know if we can continue.”


He added: “I mean, three of us are 54 years old — Anthony, me and Flea. Josh [Klinghoffer, guitarist] is 38 or 39, so he’s a young man. But I don’t know if we can continue to do the long tours — the year, year and a half we normally do. That’s a good question.”

Now however, Flea has downplayed the rumours.

“I don’t know if you know it, but that’s just silly talk,” he told TMZ. “We never really look past the immediate future, but we’re on tour right now, we’re rocking out, we feel in the spirit, letting the music move us.

“To be honest, since we first started this band 35 years ago, I’ve never ever known what’s next or round the corner or anything. I think the power of the band lies in that – just staying in the moment and the energy that’s moving.”

Meanwhile, Red Hot Chili Peppers recently reunited with original drummer Jack Irons at a show in Grand Rapids, Michigan, playing tribute to late guitarist Hillal Slovak , who died of a heroin overdose in 1988.