NIKKI SIXX On MICK MARS's Decision To 'Leave' MÖTLEY CRÜE: 'We Had To Sit Down And Go, 'Do We Fold?''

In a new interview with Angi Taylor of Chicago's Rock 95.5 radio station, MÖTLEY CRÜE's Vince Neil and Nikki Sixx discussed their decision to hire guitarist John 5 as Mick Mars's replacement following the latter's decision to no longer tour with the legendary rock act. Speaking about how it has been like touring with John 5 for much of the past year, Vince said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "He's a good fit for the band. He's a wonderful human being. He's a great guy and he's so talented, it's scary. On stage, when he's doing the solos, I usually go sit in the back and have some water and stuff and kind of kick it, but when he does the solo, I've gotta be out there watching him because he's mesmerizing. He's got that thing about him."

Addressing Mick's departure from MÖTLEY CRÜE, Nikki said: "We didn't see this coming. We were out doing our stadium tour, and Mick had decided to leave. And we really had to sit down and go, 'Well, what do we do? Do we fold? Do we fold on the fans and [concert promoter] Live Nation [and 2022 and 203 tourmates] DEF LEPPARD?' John, we've all known John. I've worked with John. We kind of talked about it. And if we had to move on, it's moved on in a such a beautiful way. It's been great."

On the topic of MÖTLEY CRÜE's future plans, Nikki said: "We're having a great time. We're getting ready to leave on tour pretty soon. We're not doing a lot of shows this year. We're doing, like, what? 17 or 20 shows. We've got some surprises coming up, which we can't tell you about… But we've got some really fun stuff coming up at the end of the year we're really excited about that we're keeping just between us. And it's gonna be a great year, and new music. And then next year we've got a lot of fun stuff planned. So it's just a great time in the band."

John 5 joined MÖTLEY CRÜE in the fall of 2022 as the replacement for Mars. Mick announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE in October 2022 as a result of worsening health issues.

Mars suffers from Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS),a chronic and inflammatory form of arthritis that mainly affects the spine and pelvis. After years of performing through the pain, he informed the other members of MÖTLEY CRÜE in the summer of 2022 that he could no longer tour with them but would still be open to recording new music or performing at residencies that did not require much travel.

When Mars announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE, he maintained that he would remain a member of the band, with John 5 taking his place on the road. However, in early April 2023 the now-72-year-old musician filed a lawsuit against CRÜE in Los Angeles County's Superior Court claiming that, after his announcement, the rest of CRÜE tried to remove him as a significant stakeholder in the group's corporation and business holdings via a shareholders' meeting.

Earlier today, MÖTLEY CRÜE released the official music video for its new single, "Dogs Of War". The track was made available via MÖTLEY CRÜE's new deal with Nashville's Big Machine Records.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's new deal with Big Machine Records sees the band working together again after making the 2014 project "Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute To Mötley Crüe", which featured CRÜE tracks covered by country stars RASCAL FLATTS, FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE, Darius Rucker and more. Big Machine also partnered with John 5 for the release of his 2021 album "Sinner".

MÖTLEY CRÜE's last studio album was 2008's "Saints Of Los Angeles", which was followed by a 2009 "Greatest Hits" compilation.

In 2018, MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded four new songs for "The Dirt" movie, including the single "The Dirt (Est. 1981) (Feat. Machine Gun Kelly)", "Ride With The Devil", "Crash And Burn" and the band's own spin on Madonna's "Like A Virgin".

In early 2023, MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded three new songs with legendary producer Bob Rock, including "Dogs Of War" and a cover of BEASTIE BOYS' "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)".

MÖTLEY CRÜE debuted its cover of "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)" during a "secret" June 30, 2023 club performance for 450 lucky fans at the Underworld in London, England.