Derek Jones
Derek Jones (June 5, 1984 – April 21, 2020) was an American guitarist, best know as the rhythm and lead guitarist and often co-lead vocalist for the American post-hardcore band Falling in Reverse. He was also previously the guitarist of the American band A Smile From the Trenches until his departure in 2010.
Derek Jones was born June 5, 1984 in Lake Forest, California. He started playing the saxophone but switched to the guitar. He started listening to bands like Manowar, Blink-182 and Slipknot. In his adolescence he formed several local bands, which only had small presentations until when he turned 19 and he had his first tour. In 2007 he joined the band A Smile From The Trenches.
A Smile From The TrenchesIn 2007, Derek joined the band A Smile From The Trenches. On June 29, 2007, they released their first self-titled EP, That same year, the band was invited to the Vans Warped Tour. On October 13, 2009, they released their first studio album entitled Leave the Gambling for Vegas, on which they covered the song “Bad Romance” by Lady Gaga. In May 2010, Derek left the band to join Falling in Reverse, the band split in September 2010.
Falling in Reverse
In 2008 Jones was apart of the original lineup of Falling in Reverse while still apart of A Smile From The Trenches. The band only recorded demos as Radke was in prison until December 2010. In May 2010 after leaving A Smile From The Trenches, Derek moved to Las Vegas due to his commitment to Falling In Reverse. Since Ronnie Radke was still in prison, the band had to wait for Ronnie to leave, in December 2010. On July 26, 2011, they released their first album, The Drug in Me Is You, which peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard 200, selling 18,000 copies in its first week. The band’s second studio album, Fashionably Late, which was released on June 18, 2013, peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard 200. The band released their third album Just Like You on February 24, 2015. Coming Home, their latest album, was released on April 7, 2017.
Besides Ronnie, Jones was the only original member of the band until his death in 2020, and was the only member besides Radke to feature on every album.
Jones loved video games and Taco Bell and had tattoos on both of his knuckles. In 2008, Derek appeared in an Ivannkie music video called “No Soy Tu Ken”, Derek appears playing bass. In 2015, he got engaged to Christina Cetta. When Cetta was diagnosed with cancer in March 2019, Jones created a GoFundMe to raise 100,000 dollars needed for Cetta’s treatment. The band gave special shirts to fans who donated. Cetta died on November 19, 2019, which resulted in the cancelation of Falling in Reverse’s fall tour.
Jones died on April 21, 2020; His death was announced on social media by his bandmate Ronnie Radke
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