Chad Gilbert died on 20 September at the age of 45. New Found Glory and his wife, Lisa Cimorelli, said he passed away peacefully in his sleep, surrounded by family and friends. His wife and mother were with him.
Gilbert had undergone treatment for a rare adrenal cancer since 2021. The disease later spread, and three brain tumours were removed during emergency surgery in February 2026. He returned to the stage with New Found Glory in Nashville on 8 June.
He helped form New Found Glory in 1997 and spent almost three decades as its lead guitarist and one of its main songwriters. His short, heavily muted riffs were a large part of why the band always sat close to hardcore, even at its most melodic.
His Metalcore History Started With Shai Hulud
Gilbert was still a teenager when he sang on Shai Hulud’s A Profound Hatred of Man and Hearts Once Nourished With Hope And Compassion. He returned in 2013 to produce and sing throughout Reach Beyond the Sun.
The A Day To Remember Records
Gilbert produced Homesick with A Day To Remember in 2009 and produced What Separates Me From You in 2010. He was also one of the producers on Common Courtesy in 2013, alongside Jeremy McKinnon and Andrew Wade.
That run is the clearest example of what Gilbert brought to metalcore as a producer. The breakdowns and pop-punk choruses feel like parts of the same band instead of two styles being forced together.
His production credits also include Terror’s Keepers Of The Faith, Trapped Under Ice’s Big Kiss Goodnight, H2O’s Nothing to Prove and State Champs’ The Finer Things.
Gilbert is survived by Lisa, their daughter Lily, his mother Jackie and his brother Brian.
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