New Found Glory’s Chad Gilbert Has Died
The founding guitarist and backing vocalist of the pop-punk group had been receiving treatment for cancer and passed away peacefully in his sleep.
Chad Gilbert, founding guitarist and backing vocalist of the pop-punk group New Found Glory, has died. He was 45. A cause of death was not provided, but Gilbert had been receiving treatment for cancer. In early 2026, he revealed that doctors had discovered three brain tumors and was diagnosed with adrenocortical carcinoma years after receiving treatment for a rare adrenal cancer.
The band and Gilbert’s wife Lisa Cimorelli confirmed his death in a joint statement on social media. “On the morning of September 20th, Chad Everett Gilbert passed away peacefully in his sleep,” reads the statement. “He left this world surrounded by friends and family and took his final breaths with his wife and mother by his side, just as he wished.”
“We are devastated and shocked by how quickly he left us, yet so grateful for how peacefully and smoothly he went. The amount of visitors that crowded the hospital lobby at a moment’s notice is a testament to how beloved and cherished Chad was, and always will be. He was a legendary musician, but his favorite accomplishment was being a husband and father. His biggest dreams came true.”
Click to load video
Born on March 9, 1981, in Coral Springs, Florida, Gilbert played in several bands before forming New Found Glory in 1997 with Jordan Pundik, Steve Klein, Ian Grushka, and Joe Marino, who was quickly replaced by Cyrus Bolooki. Gilbert dropped out of high school after 11th grade when New Found Glory signed to Drive-Thru Records.
“We sat at a lunch table with eight people,” Gilbert told New Noise earlier this year. “We were all the weirdos with dyed hair, and we didn’t care who you were or what you looked like—you just belonged. Some of us went to different high schools in the same city, but we experienced the same things. We started this band because we wanted to keep feeling like we belonged.”
New Found Glory would become one of the most influential pop-punk bands of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Gilbert played on all the band’s albums from their 1999 debut, Nothing Gold Can Stay, to their most recent album, Listen Up!, released earlier this year. The band’s 2002 breakthrough, Sticks and Stones, featured the single “My Friends Over You,” which peaked at No. 85 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“Chad’s guitar playing, songwriting, humor, and relentless drive helped shape New Found Glory for nearly three decades,” his bandmates wrote Sunday. “Through more than a dozen albums, endless tours around the world, and more accolades than we ever could have imagined, Chad challenged all of us to grow as musicians, performers, and human beings. While we are devastated to lose him, we are so grateful for the incredible life he lived, the memories we shared, and the brotherhood we had. His influence will always be part of New Found Glory and his spirit will be felt on every stage we stand on, with every note we play.”
Gilbert was an integral member of the pop-punk scene in the early aughts. In addition to New Found Glory, Gilbert has also played in the side project International Superheroes of Hardcore and the group Shai Hulud. He contributed guest vocals on a track from Fall Out Boy’s From Under the Cork Tree and played guitar on the band’s 2007 song “The Take Over, The Breaks Over.” Gilbert also had a longtime relationship with Paramore lead singer Hayley Williams; the pair were married from February 2016 to late 2017.
In a tribute post following the news of Gilbert’s death, Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus wrote, “Chad was the best friend to every person he met. The most positive and creative force in any room he walked into. These past years he fought his sickness with the soul of a joyous, courageous warrior,” said Hoppus, who previously fought lymphoma after being diagnosed in 2021. He added: “You’ll be sorely missed by more people than you could ever imagine. See you on the other side.”
In April, the guitarist detailed his arduous cancer journey in an interview with Rolling Stone. Gilbert continued to be positive. “I have my crying moments where, like everyone, I have to let it out,” he said. “But I like that we can turn it around into something positive… It’s always been just to inspire and grow a community of people that want to go to our shows and smile and have a good time.”
