Last week, we heard an outraged Dweezil Zappa publicly oust his brother Ahmet for charging him an “exorbitant fee” to perform the music of Frank Zappa, and forcing him to change the band of his Zappa Plays Zappa band. In a new open letter, Ahmet Zappa tells his side of the story, and takes a much more moderate and understanding tone than his brother.

In the letter, Ahmet says that the “exorbitant fee” was simply $1 per year, and that Dweezil blew things well out of proportion in his New York Times interview.  “You’ve only been told that you can’t keep using the name without agreeing to a fee of $1 per year, which you’re fully aware of, but never mentioned in your interviews,” said Ahmet in his open letter. Not only that, but the family apparently has no problem with the band name either. 

“Fact: You can absolutely keep touring under the name Zappa Plays Zappa,” he says. “You could do it tomorrow, and honestly, I hope you will. You’re a fucking guitar god and in my opinion one of the best guitar players in the world. You do an amazing job playing our father’s music with total integrity. Your tours help keep Frank’s name alive, just like the work Gail and I have done through the ZFT.” It’s nice to see Ahmet trying to bridge the gap between brothers.

Another shrewd point made by Ahmet: Dweezil gets paid by the Zappa Family Trust. “When the ZFT does have profits, we split them between the four of us. I’m getting enough heat on social media that I’m betting a lot of people don’t realize that you also receive funds from the ZFT. Even when you do pay fees to use the Zappa name, and sell Zappa merchandise, you receive a portion of the profits from it.”

The letter also mentions that he has tried to hold family meetings, but Dweezil has declined the opportunity to do so. “I’ve been reaching out to you for months. I even tried to set up a family meeting so we could discuss all of our family issues, but you repeatedly said you couldn’t fit it into your schedule, and that you weren’t available to attend without your lawyers present.”

It’s a sad state of affairs, and hopefully these two can put their differences behind them. Read the full letter below:

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