Zoë M. Federoff has announced her sudden departure from Cradle of Filth mid-way through the band’s Latin American tour. The 33-year-old vocalist and keyboardist, who officially joined in 2022, cited “personal reasons” in her statement on Sunday (24th):

“It is with deep regret I share that for personal reasons I am unable to continue this tour and continue in general with Cradle of Filth. Please respect my privacy and my family’s privacy. I will answer no further questions. Be kind to my successor. I wish her and my now former bandmates well. At least, like Roy Khan said over a decade ago, God was there after all.
Yours,
Zoe”

Cradle of Filth launched the 13-date trek on August 21 in Limeira, Brazil, and most recently performed in São Paulo on August 23. The tour continued on Sunday evening in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Kelsey Peters has stepped up to fill in as Federoff’s immediate replacement.

Federoff, who married Cradle guitarist Marek “Ashok” Šmerda this past January in Tucson, Arizona, later followed up her original post to fight off rude comments and rumors, with the below message:

“Couple clarifying points since so many people decided to speculate in the nastiest possible ways.
Ashok isn’t cheating. While the turmoil of being in the band has taken its toll on us, we remain very much certain that we love each other. Please be kind to my husband. He is a good man.
We were already planning to leave the band later this year. Certain events have sped that up for me.
At this time there is nothing further I wish to clarify and I’d appreciate keeping the ugly rumors off my page and out of my inbox.
Please enjoy the remaining shows on this tour and give a lot of love to Kelsey, who is one of the greatest singers I’ve ever been privileged to hear. You’ll love her.”

Cradle of Filth issued the below response:

“Hello Filthlings, A strange turn of events have manifested out here on tour for CRADLE OF FILTH in South America. Our keyboardist/backing singer Zoe Smerda has chosen to leave the band mid-tour, effective immediately. We, of course, wish her all the best for the future and we as a band will continue onward and upward as always with a replacement singer here in Kelsey Peters, one of the very talented CREWDLE members.
In life, one cannot always foresee what the future holds for us, but we will remain ever-professional and continue on with The Screaming Of The Americas concerts for our fans without allowing any of this to sully our onward trajectory.
So, our South and Central American brethren, we will see you at the next spat of relentless shows.
The shows have already been incredible in Brazil and we are just so exceptionally appreciative of your massive and passionate attendance, my friends and fiends alike.
Long live the FILTH!
Dani Filth, Buenos Aires, Argentina.”

Earlier this year, Metal Insider interviewed Federoff, sharing her excitement about writing new material with the group following the release of The Screaming of the Valkyries, giving no indication of an exit. When asked about her position in the band, Federoff expressed:

“I think a lot of people are surprised when I tell them how straightforward it’s all been. Dani Filth is a gentleman, and quite fun to be around. I am now married to Ashok the guitarist, who is the greatest man I’ve ever met- and I get to create music with him! I don’t know a better love story than ours. Beyond that, Dougal (Daniel Firth) and Donny are two of my best friends and I love working with them. It’s just a really cohesive group, great friendship exists here and the band family is extremely healthy at the moment. “

Federoff’s departure, therefore, comes as a surprise, particularly given her claim that both she and Šmerda had been planning to step away from the band.

Feature Image Photo Credit: Jakub Alexandrowicz

Zenae Zukowski

See Full Bio