Ex-Famous Last Words drummer Craig Simons has passed away. Vocalist JT Tollas, who fronts the post-hardcore/metalcore outfit, commented of the passing of his late bandmate yesterday, February 04th.
“I didn’t want to write this, because writing this out makes it that much more real, but here we go…
The morning of 2/2/2024 the world lost a very special person.
A talented musician, a caring and loving friend, and someone so many considered a brother.If you knew Craig, you knew someone whose quirks were that of genuine joy, love, opinionated honesty, and absolute punk rock authenticity.
Someone who could make a room erupt with laughter (insert the Craig Simons laugh here, IYKYK).
Someone who loved his friends and family as hard as he’d hit his drums.I can confidently say that Craig has touched thousands of people’s lives across the world, whether they met him in person or not. Craig had so many friends, so many brothers and sisters, and made so many incredible memories with us that just simply wouldn’t be the same without him. Some of those memories were at shows. Some of them were at restaurants. Some of them were at parties, small gatherings, walks, long drives, late night talks about life, and many more. It didn’t really matter where, what mattered was the incredible spirit he brought with him wherever he went and aggressively shared with us… whether we liked it or not.
I will always remember Craig as the loving, talented, and completely goofy person that he was. The memories we made over 15 years. The music we played, the laughs we couldn’t escape, and the bond that was both deep and difficult at times.
What I’d really love to do is to remember all of those times with anyone reading this. Knowing how many lives he touched and memories he made, I’d love the comment section here to be an open and safe space to share your favorite memories with Craig, to tell your favorite stories with him, and to keep his spirit alive. So please, share your stories, your pictures, videos, art, song links, and anything that makes you think of him and your time together with him.
Craig was my drummer, my best friend… and forever my brother.
I love you and know you have found some peace.
“Never Give Up””
Simons performed with the band from 2010 up until his departure in 2017. Back on December 30th of 2023 Simons spoke of a ‘close call’ he had that saw him wind up in the hospital:
