"It’s great that someone of her acumen will be part of our touring family": The Smashing Pumpkins unveil their new guitarist

Smashing Pumpkins and new guitarist Kiki Wong — (Image credit: Paul Elledge / Kiki Wong)

The Smashing Pumpkins have unveiled their new guitarist. Back in January, the Chicago alt-rock giants announced that they were looking for a new six-stringer after the departure of long-serving member Jeff Schroeder, who had played with the group since they reunited in 2007. After putting out an open call and prompting many a 90s rock fan to go up to the loft and dust down their old guitar, the band stated that they had received over 10,000 submissions vying for the position, stating that there were eight people “working full-time to review each and every one”.

This afternoon, the band announced the winner, ending the dream for Dave from Milton Keynes and 9,998 others who thought this could be their big break. Writing on their social media channels, they said, “SP is excited to officially welcome highly-skilled veteran guitarist Kiki Wong. Kiki joins the band’s touring lineup of Billy Corgan, Jimmy Chamberlin, and James Iha, along with mainstays Jack Bates and Katie Cole. Please join us in welcoming Kiki to the SP family.”

“Reviewing the work of these incredible musicians was a herculean, albeit worthy effort,” frontman Billy Corgan added. “First off, I really want to thank everyone who submitted materials for consideration. It wasn’t an easy decision with how much great guitar playing we were lucky enough to see and hear over the past few months. I was a fan of Kiki’s before she submitted her name to be considered – and it’s great that someone of her acumen will be part of our touring family.”

Wong, a member of LA rockers Vigil Of War and formerly of Nylon Pink, also commented on her new gig, saying, “I never thought little ole 15-year-old me playing metal guitar in my bedroom would amount to this moment. It goes to show hard work and perseverance truly pays off if you’re willing to push thorugh the tough stuff, so never lose hope out there. I am so grateful for this opportunity and can’t wait to share the stage with the legendary Smashing Pumpkins!”

Fans won’t have to wait long to see the new guitarist in action – the Pumpkins embark on a European tour this summer that includes stop-offs in Birmingham, London, Dublin, Glasgow, Manchester and Cardiff.

Niall Doherty is a writer and editor whose work can be found in Classic Rock, The Guardian, Music Week, FourFourTwo, Champions Journal, on Apple Music and more. Formerly the Deputy Editor of Q magazine, he co-runs the music Substack letter The New Cue with fellow former Q colleague Ted Kessler. He is also Reviews Editor at Record Collector. Over the years, he's interviewed some of the world's biggest stars, including Elton John, Coldplay, Radiohead, Liam and Noel Gallagher, Florence + The Machine, Arctic Monkeys, Muse, Pearl Jam, Depeche Mode, Robert Plant and more.