Go backstage with The Music and receive FREE:

  • Exclusive members-only editorial, charts
  • Our subscriber-only newsletter
  • Members only competitions to win tickets, experiences and more
  • Access to our street press archives
  • First access to our exclusive limited edition vinyl variants

Thank you for being a part of our community! Enter your email address as verification and you'll be taken backstage right away.

Please ensure that you provide a valid email address.

Hayley Williams Pays Tribute To Ex-Husband, New Found Glory's Chad Gilbert

Mary Varvaris

"Chad is indeed a legend in the scene, and my time connected to him taught me a lot," Williams wrote.

Hayley Williams, New Found Glory (Chad Gilbert on the left)
Hayley Williams, New Found Glory (Chad Gilbert on the left)(Credit: Zachary Gray, Angelea Yoder)
More Hayley Williams Hayley Williams Profile

Hayley Williams shared a statement after the news of her ex-husband, New Found Glory’s Chad Gilbert, passing.

Gilbert passed away in his sleep last Sunday (20 September) following a lengthy battle with cancer.

Paying tribute to him, Williams wrote on her Instagram Stories, “Have not known what to say or if it’s appropriate. 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, the lead singer of Paramore and an acclaimed solo artist, continued, “Chad is indeed a legend in the scene and my time connected to him taught me a lot. 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.

“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. His influence and attitude guided the genre forward. His passion for fostering the community was inspiring and sticks with me.”

She concluded, “I will forever be grateful that from him I gained a deeper understanding and a reverence for the community and the culture of hardcore. Sending love and my sympathies to his family, NFG fam, and all his friends.”

Join 'Backstage Pass', our FREE members program for music fans

Gilbert co-founded the pop-punk band New Found Glory in 1997 and previously fronted the hardcore band Shai Hulud. 

Williams and Gilbert started dating in late 2007 – while the guitarist was still married to Eisley singer Sherri DuPree. The couple got engaged on Christmas Day in 2014 and married in February 2016.

They announced their separation in July 2017, and their divorce was finalised by the end of the year, with Williams citing Gilbert’s infidelity as the reason.

The Paramore song, Still Into You, is about Williams’ relationship with Gilbert. Meanwhile, songs on the 2017 Paramore album After Laughter touch on the end of the relationship, while Williams’ 2020 solo song Dead Horse was inspired by the couple’s beginnings as an affair.