New Found Glory founding guitarist Chad Gilbert died Sunday at 45 after years of cancer treatment, his wife Lisa Cimorelli and the band announced in a joint statement.
The September 20 statement said Gilbert died peacefully in his sleep with family and friends nearby, including Cimorelli and his mother. The band remembered him for nearly three decades of guitar playing, songwriting and performances with New Found Glory.
Gilbert had undergone treatment since a 2021 diagnosis of metastatic pheochromocytoma, a rare adrenal cancer. He later said his diagnosis had changed to adrenocortical carcinoma as the disease spread to other parts of his body.
His condition worsened earlier in 2026 after he lost control of the left side of his body following a Nashville performance. Doctors discovered three brain tumours; Gilbert underwent surgery to remove one and later received radiation treatment for the remaining tumours.
Gilbert returned to the stage in Nashville on June 8, performing with New Found Glory from a motorised scooter three months after the emergency operation.
He co-founded New Found Glory in Florida in 1997 and became one of the band’s principal songwriters. His career included the albums “Sticks and Stones,” “Catalyst” and the 2026 release “Listen Up!”
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“Sticks and Stones” reached No. 4 on the Billboard 200, while “Catalyst” peaked at No. 3, marking two of the band’s biggest commercial releases.
Gilbert also performed with Shai Hulud and New Found Glory side project International Superheroes of Hardcore. He is survived by Cimorelli, their daughter Lily, his mother Jackie and his brother Brian.
