Deryck Whibleyis ready to talk about life after Sum 41.
The Canadian pop-punk band’s former frontman will appear at this year’s Departure Festival + Conference in Toronto on May 7, 2026 — marking one of his first speaking appearances since the band’s retirement and Billboard Canada cover story in early 2025.
From the decision to sell his catalogue to navigating the transition beyond being in one of the biggest Canadian pop-punk bands, Talking Disaster: Deryck Whibley on Life After Sum 41 is billed as a candid and wide-ranging conversation with music trade journalist Karen Bliss.
In addition, he’ll reflect on his latest venture with clothing company Walking Disaster — a nod to the group’s 2007 song — providing insight into how artists can build businesses beyond music.
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Whibley officially announced that the group would be retiring in late 2023, but it wasn’t a decision that he made lightly.
“I never had an idea of when to end it or how to end it or if I’d even end it,” Whibley shared with Billboard Canada in the band’s last cover story interview. “There were lots of times I thought this is going to be the thing I do forever. But I just couldn’t deny the feeling that this was the time. Something internally was telling me it was time to move on. It even surprised me.”
It has been just over a year since Whibley and Sum 41 members Dave Baksh, Jason “Cone” McCaslin, Tom Thacker and Frank Zummo officially closed the chapter of their band after nearly three decades together. While it was bittersweet, it was equally as celebratory, as the group took the stage for the final time at last year’s Juno Awards in March, where they were inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
The decision surprised the other band members, with Whibley describing it as a “blindsided” feeling. Instead of dwelling on the sadness, they locked in and crafted their final album, 2024’s Heaven :X: Hell, which they’ve recognized as one of the best in their decades-spanning discography. It hit No. 37 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart and No. 23 on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart.
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Sum 41’s choice to call it quits coincided with a career resurgence that saw them break a chart record last year for the longest gap between No. 1 hits on the Alternative Airplay chart. Their album’s lead single “Landmines” hit the top, 22 years after All Killer No Filler’s “Fat Lip” dominated in 2001. They went on to top it again later in 2024 with "Dopamine."
Only a year after the band’s retirement, Whibley has kept busy. While he no longer serves as frontman, he has found himself on-stage, performing Sum 41’s “In Too Deep” with ex-wife and Canadian singer Avril Lavigne during her debut Warped Tour set last June. Whibley performed the same song three months later with sibling trio Jonas Brothers during their Greetings From Your Hometown stop in Seattle.
In February, he pivoted away from music and launched the clothing company Walking Disaster. He shared with Alt Press that the brand has been in the works since 2008.
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“Once Sum 41 was over, I decided now’s the time,” Whibley said. “I want to do something. It’s still creative, [and] it’s really fun — it’s not the same as writing music, but I still get to be very creative, and all these ideas that are floating around in my head, I get to put them into clothing instead of music.”
Other speakers at Departure include singer Sarah McLachlan (who will win the Allan Slaight Humanitarian Award) Heated Rivalry creator Jacob Tierney, Kpop Demon Hunters director Maggie Kang and more.
