New Found Glory’s guitarist Chad Gilbert passed away on September 20 after a battle with cancer. The band has decided that they will still perform at Epcot on September 28 and 29. From the New Found Glory Facebook page:
First off, we want to thank everyone for the overwhelming amount of love and tribute posts for Chad these past few days. Seeing how deeply he touched so many lives means everything to us, and we know he would be so proud to see it.
To give ourselves time to process and grieve, we have made the decision to cancel our upcoming appearance at Aftershock Festival. We rarely cancel shows but this felt needed.
Anyone who knew Chad knew that he was a massive Disney fan. Our shows at Epcot were dates he was so excited for and he was actively planning to be on stage with us there. He had already worked on the setlists with us and was practicing as much as possible to be ready. Because of how much he wanted to play these shows, taking the stage at Epcot feels like the right way to honor him, and what he would want us to do. Our plan from the beginning with him was to announce our Epcot sets ahead of time, so we feel it’s only appropriate to share them with you now as we prepare to play in his memory.
Every note we play and every word you sing at Epcot is for Chad. Thank you all for wrapping us in so much love, understanding, and support as we come together to honor his legacy.
Our deepest condolences to Chad’s family and friends, as well as the members of the band.