Shock: Keyboardist Melissa Reese Out of Guns N' Roses Tour

The band announced that Melissa Reese, their keyboardist, will not be participating in the upcoming tour due to "unforeseen personal reasons". The announcement was made on the eve of the tour's kick-off, scheduled for March 28 in Mexico. Representatives for the band did not immediately offer further details regarding Reese's departure.

The world tour, which will begin on March 28 in Mexico, will extend through September 9, with a final show in Atlanta. The band has yet to announce a replacement for Reese.

Melissa Reese first joined Guns N' Roses in 2016 during their reunion tour. She was recruited by Caram Costanzo, producer of 'Chinese Democracy', who asked her, "What are you doing for the next few years?"

Costanzo was looking for someone with "a really unique set of skills that is excellent at those skills", and Reese fit the description. Reese has played hundreds of shows with the band, according to her own statements.

In a 2020 interview with Rolling Stone, Reese commented: "All those experiences gave me this fire in my belly." She added that she learned to "do shit better than everybody else".

Reese also reflected on the perception of the band as a "dude's thing", but praised her bandmates: "You could not ask for a better group. They're like a family, and they're like my big brothers." In announcing her absence, Guns N' Roses shared a photo of the full band arm in arm on stage.