David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen Set for Joint TEDxFargo Appearance

David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen were set to reunite for a joint appearance at the TEDxFargo event, their first public appearance together since Van Halen’s final concert on October 4, 2015 at the Hollywood Bowl. The conversation, moderated by artist Robert Vargas, was scheduled for Thursday, July 30, 2026, at the Brewhalla entertainment space in Fargo, North Dakota.

• Alex Van Halen had been announced as a TEDxFargo speaker several weeks in advance; David Lee Roth’s addition to the lineup was revealed on Monday, July 27 via an Instagram post from Vargas and TEDxFargo.
• A musical performance was not expected as part of the appearance, which was promoted with the tagline “Three icons. One stage. One conversation you won’t want to miss.”
• TEDxFargo’s 2026 edition carried the theme “CHARGE” and ran two days, July 29 and July 30, featuring more than 40 speakers.
• The Roth and Van Halen conversation was expected to be posted to YouTube a few weeks after the event for those unable to attend in person.

The appearance has been described as a reunion “kind of,” since it was not billed as a full onstage reunion but rather a moderated, conversational format with no performance planned.

Why David Lee Roth Became Available for the TEDxFargo Event

Roth’s decision to take part followed the cancellation of nearly all of his remaining 2026 tour dates. He canceled all but one of his scheduled U.S. shows for the year, leaving only an August 7 date at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in South Dakota. No reason was given for the cancellations, though reports of empty seats at multiple Roth dates in June and July had fueled speculation that low ticket sales played a role.

Who Is Robert Vargas, the Moderator of the Conversation?

Robert Vargas is a Los Angeles-based artist who created a mural of Eddie Van Halen at the Guitar Center in Hollywood in 2021. In recent years he has reportedly become a close friend of Alex Van Halen, and TEDxFargo billed him alongside Roth and Van Halen as the event’s three central figures.

Alex Van Halen’s Recent Public Appearances

Alex Van Halen has largely stayed out of the public eye since Van Halen’s 2015 farewell, making only sporadic appearances tied to his 2024 memoir “Brothers.” In interviews promoting the book, he has called the David Lee Roth-era lineup “the driving force” of the band while leaving out the Sammy Hagar era of Van Halen entirely. Both Alex Van Halen and David Lee Roth have had feuds with Hagar in recent years.