Who Was Reita From The GazettE? Japanese Kei Band Member Passes Away At 42

Trigger Warning: This article contains mention of death.

The Japanese visual Kei band, The Gazette (Known as GazettE) formed in 2002, has lost one of its members. The bassist of the band, Reita, passed away on April 15 at the age of 42.

As per the Tokyo Weekender, the band made this tragic announcement via their website.

The statement read, “We would like to express our deepest gratitude to all fans who have supported and loved him and all partners who supported and took care of Reita in his career as the GazettE bassist.” 

As per Outlook India, The statement further read, “We are in great confusion and sadness (at) the loss of REITA but we believe that his passion for the band "the GazettE" will never change and will continue to shine even more brightly in the future,” The cause of the death is not yet revealed. According to reports, the memorial service will be held in presence of close relatives only.

Know more about Reita and the band

Reita also known as REITA was born on May 27, 1982. Reita was one of the original founding members of the group, along with Uruha (lead guitarist) and Ruki (Vocals). 

The three had previously played in various visual kei bands, but they eventually formed this group in Yokohama in 2002. Then they brought in Yune for the drums and Aoi for the rhythm guitar. After Yune left in 2003, Kai from Mareydi Creia took over.

The former band member, Yune also passed away at 42 in 2022. Interestingly, the band's bassist, Reita took to X on April 14 and posted, “I hope the GazettE will last forever.” The fans were shocked to hear Reita’s sudden passing.

The band's impressive discography

GazettE is Japan’s one of the most famous ‘Visual-Kei’ bands. Their debut album Disorder was released in 2004 and it was well-received by music lovers. It made its entry in the Oricon Charts, peaking at number 19.

After that the band released in total, nine studio albums. As per the Tokyo Weekender, all of them reached the top 10. Their notable hits include Leech, Shiver, Distress and Coma, and the opening theme for the anime, Kuroshitsuji II (Black Butler II). The band has performed at some notable Japanese venues including Tikyo Dome and Budokan. In 2013, they completed their first world tour. 

The band released Heterodoxy- Divided 3 Concepts - on December 21, 2022, the same day they celebrated the band’s 20th anniversary. This was released the week after the former band member Yune’s passing.

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