Geddy Lee Reveals What Rush Would Have Done If Anika Nilles Hadn’t Worked Out

Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson recently reflected on Rush’s decision to bring Anika Nilles into the lineup, discussing whether they would have continued their search if her audition rehearsals had not been successful.

Nilles officially joined Rush following five days of intensive rehearsals with Lee and Lifeson, sessions that were designed to determine whether she was the right choice for the band’s reunion tour. Asked if they would have explored other options had things not clicked, both musicians shared their thoughts.

“Who knows? I mean, it’s impossible to say,” Alex Lifeson said.

Lee expanded on the topic, explaining what he thinks the band likely would have done while expressing gratitude that the situation never came to that.

“My gut tells me we would have regrouped and looked elsewhere, but I’m very happy we didn’t have to do that. We’re really lucky. And also with Loren Gold, our keyboardist – I met him in 2014 when I did a charity show with the guys from the Who in London for their 50th anniversary, ironically,” Lee said.

“We kind of hit it off. Again, he was one of those names that just stuck in the back of my mind. And when we talked about adding a keyboard player, his was the first name that came to mind,” he continued.

Lee noted that both additions turned out even better than the band could have hoped, calling the outcome a fortunate turn of events.

“We’re very fortunate that the two people who were top of our minds both have worked out really, really well. That’s a little bit of a blessing from above, I think. Someone’s looking after us there,” Lee added.