Red Hot Chili Peppers Member Suffers Injury, Major Concert Canceled

The Red Hot Chili Peppers announced that John Frusciante broke a finger earlier this month, forcing them to cancel a KROQ show in California. RHCP were set to perform as part of KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas concert. 

Unfortunately, the LA rock band was forced to withdraw from the event due to the extent of the injury sustained. But, the details of the injury and which member was injured were not revealed until the evening of the concert.

The announcement was made through the use of a video recorded by Anthony Kiedis as he sang an apology a cappella, which was played throughout the venue at the KROQ Christmas event. 

With the band playing KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas Encore this year, which takes place at Kia Forum on March 2, it means they’re not too far from being back in the KROQ sphere, where they would be reuniting with an audience that Kiedis says “has always rocked.”

While it is not known how the 53-year-old guitarist sustained the injury, the disclosure follows news on Dec. 1 that the band would be sidelined for six weeks due to an injury to one of its members.

After being away for 10 years, Frusciante rejoined the Red Hot Chili Peppers in December 2019. Since then, he has recorded two albums with the band he first joined at age 18, Unlimited Love and Return of the Dream Canteen, both released in 2022.

Red Hot Chili Peppers producer Michael Beinhorn recently spoke with Rick Beato about his work with the band and what made guitarist Frusciante so special.

“I think [temporary drummer] D.H. [Peligro] introduced Flea to John [Frusciante], who was a Chili Peppers fan and a Dead Kennedys fan. And no one knew of his secret superpowers at the time. The fact that he was a trained music student.”

According to Beinhorn, Frusciante was an expert in music theory and composition, and he would transcribe Steve Vai’s guitar solos. He added, “He’d sit around in his house for 12 hours every day just drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes and doing crazy s— like that. So he was absolutely perfect.”

Beinhorn explains that his only problem with Frusciante was the “hideous Ibanez guitar” he played, which “didn’t suit the Chili Peppers too much.” It may have been Frusciante’s old Ibanez RG760 guitar, which he frequently played during his time with the Chili Peppers. Despite the instrument’s distinctive stickers, Beinhorn clearly wasn’t a fan. The band returns to the road on Feb. 17 in Lincoln, California, followed by more North American dates.