Culture 5 min read By Lauren Baxter
Hayley Williams Pays Tribute to Late Ex-Husband Chad Gilbert
The Paramore singer honored the New Found Glory guitarist, who died at 45 after a five-year cancer battle, praising his influence on pop-punk and hardcore.
Hayley Williams has paid tribute to her ex-husband Chad Gilbert, the New Found Glory guitarist who died at 45 after a five-year battle with cancer. Gilbert, a co-founding member of the pop-punk band, died peacefully in his sleep on Sunday morning, according to a statement from his wife Lisa Cimorelli and the band.
In a message posted to her Instagram Story, the Paramore frontwoman reflected on Gilbert's influence on her life and on the music communities they shared. «Have not known what to say or if it's appropriate,» Williams wrote. «But I feel sure now that I want to bc life is made of the paths we cross and the reasons we cross them are infinite.»
Williams, who was married to Gilbert from 2016 to 2017, described him as a pivotal figure in the scene. «Chad is indeed a legend in the scene and my time connected to him taught me a lot,» she wrote. «He introduced me to people that continue to shape my life in beautiful ways, and to music and culture that has made life a lot richer.»
She credited Gilbert with helping to push the genre forward through his work with New Found Glory. «There isn't much that hasn't already been said about what he contributed to the musical world a lot of us grew up in,» Williams wrote. «His influence and attitude guided the genre forward. His passion for fostering the community was inspiring and sticks with me.»
Williams also expressed gratitude for the deeper connection she developed with hardcore music and its culture through her relationship with Gilbert. «I will forever be grateful that from him I gained a deeper understanding and a reverence for the community and the culture of hardcore,» she wrote, sending «love and my sympathies to his family, NFG fam, and all his friends.»
Gilbert co-founded New Found Glory in Florida in 1997 and remained the band's lead guitarist, backing vocalist and one of its principal songwriters for nearly three decades. The group became one of the defining acts of the early-2000s pop-punk scene, releasing more than a dozen albums and touring worldwide.
Announcing his death, his wife and bandmates said Gilbert «passed away peacefully in his sleep» with his wife and mother by his side. «Chad's guitar playing, songwriting, humor, and relentless drive helped shape New Found Glory for nearly three decades,» the band wrote. «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.»
They added: «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.»
Williams and Gilbert began dating in 2008 and married in Tennessee in February 2016. They announced their separation in July of the following year, saying at the time that they remained «close friends who are good in each other's eyes.» Williams later explored the relationship and its breakdown in her songwriting. Paramore's 2017 album «After Laughter» was written amid their separation, while her 2020 solo track «Dead Horse» dealt more explicitly with their history.
Speaking about «Dead Horse,» Williams said she had initially resisted writing so directly about her past. «I did not want to write about my past that way,» she said. «I really didn't.» She added: «My angst and rage has been a protective layer for the softer sadness and shame that I feel. 'Dead Horse' came just after ripping off the last band-aid. It was about finding this bubbling lava underneath a hard stone. It was like digging up bones.»
Williams is currently on the North American leg of «The Hayley Williams Show» tour. Earlier this month, she brought out Rico Nasty to perform «Airplanes» for the first time in 16 years, and she has announced a UK and European tour for summer 2027.
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