Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham Attacked With Unknown Substance

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Lindsey Buckingham is dealing with an unsettling incident.

According to multiple law enforcement sources who spoke with NBC4 Investigates, a former member of Fleetwood Mac was attacked by a woman on April 1st while at an appointment in Santa Monica, California.

Reports say the 76-year-old was unharmed after a woman threw an unidentified substance at him as he was going into a building. The woman then ran away.

Police haven’t made an arrest, but they’ve identified a woman as a suspect in a stalking case. NBC4 reports that authorities describe her as someone known to the victim, Buckingham, from previous encounters, and an arrest is anticipated soon.

TopMob News has contacted both the police and a spokesperson for Buckingham for a statement, but they haven’t responded yet.

Since leaving Fleetwood Mac in 2018 due to conflicts with other band members, Lindsey Buckingham—who has three children with Kristen Messner—has largely stayed out of the public eye.

He recently collaborated with his former bandmate and ex-girlfriend, Stevie Nicks, to release a remastered version of their album, Buckingham Nicks. This was the name of the band they played in together before becoming famous with Fleetwood Mac.

Before finding fame with their Grammy-winning band, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham played together in a group called Fritz. Although Fritz eventually broke up, Lindsey explained in an October episode of the Song Exploder podcast that the experience actually brought him and Stevie closer together.

During their conversation, Nicks explained that their relationship likely wouldn’t have happened if they hadn’t been forced to dismiss the other members of their band.

Even though their relationship was difficult and lasted from 1972 to 1976, the 77-year-old explained what kept them together.

She described their relationship as a rollercoaster – full of highs and lows, and often challenging, but also incredibly wonderful.

According to Nicks, the incredible experience they were having made dealing with the challenges of a tough relationship worthwhile.

Read on to look back at Nicks and Buckingham through the years. 

Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham first met as high school classmates long before becoming a famous musical and romantic couple. Buckingham recalled that Nicks transferred to his school as a senior, and they occasionally played music together at social events. Nicks went on to attend San JosĂ© State University, and Buckingham followed after graduating high school. While at San JosĂ© State, Nicks joined Buckingham’s band, Fritz, and although they weren’t romantically involved at the time, there was a definite connection. Nicks later explained that her ambition may have intimidated her bandmates, but they didn’t want anyone else to have her either. After Fritz disbanded in the early 1970s, Nicks and Buckingham formed the duo Buckingham Nicks, which eventually blossomed into both a musical partnership and a romantic relationship. They spent increasing amounts of time writing songs together, and as Nicks put it, “it just happened.”

You haven’t heard the full story until you know how Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks became part of Fleetwood Mac.

A 2009 BBC documentary, Fleetwood Mac: Don’t Stop, reveals that in 1974, drummer Mick Fleetwood visited Sound City Studios in Los Angeles to assess the recording quality. While there, he listened to a song by the duo Buckingham Nicks. Fleetwood was particularly impressed with Lindsey Buckingham’s guitar skills and was looking for a replacement for former band member Bob Welch. He immediately offered Buckingham a spot in the band, which already included John and Christine McVie.

Fleetwood confessed in the documentary that he initially focused on Buckingham’s talent. Stevie Nicks playfully hasn’t forgotten that he didn’t initially seek her out! He recalls her feeling like he only wanted Lindsey, which was true at the time. However, the band quickly realized that Lindsey and Stevie were inseparable.

Buckingham confirmed that he needed Nicks’ approval before making any decisions. He told Fleetwood, “I’ll have to talk to my girlfriend about it, but if I join, you’re going to have to take her too.”

It was definitely the right decision to continue making music together. Fleetwood Mac’s 1975 album reached number one on the Billboard 200 chart and included popular songs like “Landslide,” “Rhiannon,” “Over My Head,” and “Say You Love Me.”

The band then started working on their 1977 album, Rumours, which would later win Album of the Year.

However, as their success grew, the relationships within the band were falling apart. Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, John and Christine McVie, and Mick Fleetwood and his wife, Jenny Boyd, were all experiencing difficulties.

In the documentary Don’t Stop, Nicks explained, “When we joined Fleetwood Mac, things were already tough between Lindsey and me. I think we all silently agreed to try and fix our relationships, because breaking up wasn’t an option. We couldn’t afford to lose the band.”

Despite their efforts, the relationships did end. The McVies divorced in 1976, and Nicks and Buckingham split up, followed later by Fleetwood and Boyd.

Listeners can get a glimpse into the turmoil the band members were experiencing by paying attention to the lyrics of songs like Christine McVie’s “Don’t Stop,” Stevie Nicks’ “Dreams,” and Lindsey Buckingham’s “Go Your Own Way.”

Nicks added, “My songs were all about Lindsey, and Lindsey’s songs were all about me, but we just had to put it aside and perform.”

Despite personal struggles and changing band dynamics, Fleetwood Mac continued to create music, releasing albums like Tusk in 1979 and Mirage in 1982. Simultaneously, Stevie Nicks began a successful solo career, starting with Bella Donna in 1981, followed by The Wild Heart (1983) and Rock a Little (1985).

However, this period wasn’t without its challenges. In 1985, Nicks entered treatment for cocaine addiction, and later revealed she was often absent during the recording of Fleetwood Mac’s 1987 album Tango in the Night due to her battle with Klonopin addiction.

1987 also marked Lindsey Buckingham’s departure from the band just before a tour. Nicks recounted a heated confrontation with Buckingham, leading to his exit.

Nicks continued to balance her solo work with her commitment to Fleetwood Mac, contributing to the 1990 album Behind the Mask, which featured new members Billy Burnette and Rick Vito after Buckingham left. However, a dispute over her song “Silver Springs” led to Nicks leaving the band in 1991. She wanted the song for her solo album, but Fleetwood Mac intended to include it on theirs, and she threatened to leave if she couldn’t have it back.

In 1997, the members of Fleetwood Mac – Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, John and Christine McVie, and Mick Fleetwood – came together for a concert televised on MTV, which they later released as a live album called The Dance. Although Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham had a history of difficulties, they seemed ready to move past some of their issues.

Stevie Nicks explained in a 1997 interview with the Arizona Republic that she and Lindsey Buckingham rarely have deep conversations. They mostly avoid personal discussions when they’re not performing. Both are cautious around each other, not wanting to cause conflict. However, when they’re on stage, they’re able to connect and express themselves, and a lot of emotions come to the surface.

In 2003, Fleetwood Mac released the album Say You Will. Over the following years, both Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks continued performing with the band and also pursued solo careers, participating in the group’s 2009 and 2013 concert tours.

However, in 2018, just before another tour was scheduled to begin, Buckingham was removed from the band.

Mick Fleetwood explained to Rolling Stone that while he didn’t like using the word “fired,” the band had reached a difficult point. He stated that they couldn’t continue functioning as a band with Buckingham and ultimately made a decision based on a majority vote to move forward without him.

Buckingham later addressed his departure during a concert, saying, “Some of you probably know that for the last three months I have sadly taken leave of my band of 43 years, Fleetwood Mac. This wasn’t my choice. There were divisions within the band that had lost perspective.”

Despite going their separate ways, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks collaborated once more. Fifty-two years after their first album, Buckingham Nicks, they announced a refreshed version. A message on YouTube revealed that the remastered album would be available on CD and digitally on September 19th. To give fans a preview, they also re-released their song “Don’t Let Me Down Again.”

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2026-04-01 23:29