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DARK SECRETS: The chili peppers - The Real Truth

“I loved the band with Hillel so much – all I could think about was trying to match that energy”: John Frusciante on the challenge of replacing Hillel Slovak in the Red Hot Chili Peppers – and why he’s still at the core of his guitar style today

The funk-rock guitar icon joined his favorite band at 18 years old, but finding his groove took time. He explains how studying Slovak helped him find his own voice – and ultimately made the Chili Peppers one of the biggest bands on the planet

Guitar World

As An Old School Red Hot Chili Peppers Fan, The New Netflix Doc Is The Story I Needed To Hear

Fight like a brave!

Cinemablend

Red Hot Chili Peppers actively working on first album in four years

Flea has confirmed new Red Hot Chili Peppers music is on the way.

BANG Premier

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“I would never have played bass without him, and without him I would never have been in a rock band. He taught me so much”: Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea remembers the band’s original guitarist Hillel Slovak

“His guitar playing was beautiful”

MusicRadar

"I preferred the Chili Peppers' cover to what Guns N' Roses did, but I was really happy about the royalty cheques": Stooges guitarist James Williamson looks back at the proto-punk ass-kicker David Bowie didn't understand

Stooges guitarist James Williamson looks back at this proto-punk ass kicker that opened many a show circa ’73

Louder

“I never heard from John. He sold the guitar once he got out of rehab. And that was that – I never saw it again”: The incredible story of the Les Paul that Dave Navarro bought for his Guns N’ Roses audition – and ended up giving to John Frusciante

We ask Navarro about the Gibson that featured on the cover of GW's March ’96 issue, and it opens up a whole lot of memories for the former Jane’s Addiction and Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist

Guitar World

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith honors Midwest roots with U. of Michigan music scholarship

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith is gifting a need-based music scholarship to the University of Michigan

The Independent UK

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“Whatever magic John brought to the Chili Peppers, I didn’t have that style of magic”: Dave Navarro was the odd man out when he replaced John Frusciante in the Red Hot Chili Peppers. But 30 years later, he has no regrets

Emerging from the wreckage of Jane's Addiction, Navarro turned down a spot in Guns N' Roses in favor of a band he felt more of a connection with. The resulting album, One Hot Minute, was polarizing, but the guitarist sees it as a “difficult but valuable” part of his career

Guitar World

John Frusciante and Dave Navarro are the household names, but plenty more guitarists made their mark with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Here’s our guide to all of them

RHCP founder Hillel Slovak created the template, but the seven guitarists who later enjoyed stints in the band all created their own delicate balance of funk grooves and rock aggression

Guitar World

“The kids! This is what music is for. I am so proud of them”: Students at Flea’s music school pay tribute to him and the Chili Peppers

It’s the third in a series of EPs the students have released this year

MusicRadar

“I said, ‘It’s really beautiful – why would you say it’s not for the Chili Peppers?’ And he said, ‘That’s not what we do’”: How the Red Hot Chili Peppers broke new ground to create their life-changing hit

One of the greatest rock ballads ever recorded

MusicRadar

“I’ve gone from having the greatest time of my life, to wanting to kill myself.” An audience with a tired, homesick, and somewhat irritable Red Hot Chili Peppers on the final night of their One Hot Minute world tour

In the summer of 1996, rumours spread that the Red Hot Chili Peppers were going to break up following the conclusion of their One Hot Minute world tour. I was sent to the tour's final show to find out the truth

Louder

“When he saw the guitars, he goes, ‘John’s going back to the Chili Peppers.’ I said, ‘No way is he ever going back’”: John Frusciante’s former guitar tech on the moment he realized the guitarist could be rejoining the Red Hot Chili Peppers

Top-tier guitar tech Dave Lee reveals how he got to know about Frusciante's plans to return to the Chili Peppers

Guitar World

Red Hot Chili Peppers, Billie Eilish and Snoop Dogg all rumoured to be performing in Olympics Closing Ceremony

Three iconic LA artists likely to feature in Olympics closing ceremony

MusicRadar

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Guitar World

“Three songs in, we got into a physical altercation and I decided, ‘I’m done playing this show.’ I took all my Ibanez guitars and threw them into the audience”: Dave Navarro on why he switched to PRS – and Jane’s Addiction’s unlikely rebirth

Navarro stopped playing guitar after his battle with long Covid was compounded by grief following the passing of his friend and bandmate Taylor Hawkins. He reveals how he came back from the brink to join a once-more reunited Jane’s Addiction for new music and a new sonic approach

Guitar World

“I called John immediately and said, ‘Dude, you have to join us for a song. I’m not going to let you not play with us’”: Dave Navarro on how he and John Frusciante finally played together for the first time after decades of friendship

The former Red Hot Chili Peppers and current Jane’s Addiction guitarist has long had a close relationship with Frusciante, but they didn’t play together until 2020

Metal Hammer

"Red Hot Chili Peppers are being used by the Satanic powers of darkness": How a silly joke at the 1992 MTV Awards landed Anthony Kiedis in trouble with Christians and his granny

Are you aware that Red Hot Chili Peppers "pay homage to Satan"? Us neither, but Anthony Kiedis only has himself to blame

Los Angeles Times

Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea on the meaning of God, the band's worst album and the vice he misses most

"Hey, come see my baby boy!" Flea says excitedly, holding up his iPhone as he stands next to his motorcycle in the parking lot of the Silverlake Conservatory of Music. Dressed in basketball shorts and a red bucket hat, the 60-year-old bassist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers is FaceTiming…

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Metal Hammer

How Red Hot Chili Peppers recorded a sweet tribute to Guns N' Roses, but ended up causing beef with Axl Rose instead

Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose wasn’t happy about Red Hot Chili Peppers' "tribute" to his band on their fourth record

Metal Hammer

Danny Elfman: "F***ing put me next to the stage where Rage Against The Machine is playing"

Iconic film and TV composer Danny Elfman talks working with Tim Burton, being a "freak" and why he's surprised the likes of Trent Reznor and Avenged Sevenfold are fans

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