Band will tour internationally in 2023
Mötley Crüe has released an official statement about the retirement of guitarist Mick Mars. After weeks of rumors, the band has also confirmed Rob Zombie guitarist and songwriter John 5 will be his touring replacement.
“While change is never easy, we accept Mick’s decision to retire from the band due to the challenges with his health. We have watched Mick manage his Ankylosing Spondylitis for decades and he has always managed it with utmost courage and grace,” Vince Neil, Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx write.
“To say ‘enough is enough’ is the ultimate act of courage. Mick’s sound helped define Mötley Crüe from the minute he plugged in his guitar at our very first rehearsal together. The rest, as they say, is history. We’ll continue to honor his musical legacy.
“We will carry out Mick’s wish and continue to tour the world as planned in 2023. No doubt will it take an absolutely outstanding musician to fill Mick’s shoes so we are grateful that our good friend, John 5 has agreed to come on board and join us moving forward. We’ll see all you Crüeheads out on the road!”
“I’m honored to carry on Mick’s legacy and am looking forward to playing these songs,” John 5 adds.
John 5, whose legal name is John Lowery, has a long history with Mötley. He co-wrote three of the songs on the band’s The Dirt soundtrack released in 2019, and shared a writing credit on the Nikki Sixx offshoot, Sixx:A.M., single “Lies of the Beautiful People” in 2011. He was also a member of LA Rats, the supergroup featuring Sixx, Rob Zombie and drummer Tommy Clufetos in 2021.
Yesterday (Wed, Oct 26th), Mars announced his retirement from the road after 41 years with the iconic group. The guitarist, who has suffered from AS since he was in his late teens, says the struggle is too painful to continue touring.
“Mick Mars, co-founder and lead guitarist of the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe for the past 41 years, has announced today that due to his ongoing painful struggle with Ankylosing Spondylitis (A.S.), he will no longer be able to tour with the band,” Mars tells Variety. “Mick will continue as a member of the band, but can no longer handle the rigors of the road. A.S. is an extremely painful and crippling degenerative disease, which affects the spine.”
Last week, Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard announced they’ll launch their co-headlining The World Tour in 2023. The trek will be the first in Crüe history without Mars on stage.
Produced by Live Nation, the trek kicks off on Saturday, February 18, 2023 at Foro Sol in Mexico City. Both bands will bring their electrifying stage shows across the globe with stops throughout Latin America before heading to Europe in May 2023. Additional shows are set to be announced.
Last month, the two bands wrapped The Stadium Tour, which was named the biggest North American stadium tour of 2022 with more than 1.3 million tickets sold. The 30+ trek also featured Poison and Joan Jett and The Blackhearts. International support has not been revealed as of press time.
