Japanese popular band the GazettE has announced the demise of their bassist, Reita. He passed away on April 15. Reita was 42. The statement by the group 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''.

"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 statement read further.

The cause of Reita's death is not disclosed. As per the group's announcement, a small memorial service would be held with only ''close relative'' in attendance.

Strangely, Reita's last post on X was on April 14. It read: “I hope the GazettE will last forever.”

For those unaware, in 2022, GazettE's former drummer, Yune, also died at 42 due to a sudden illness.

The GazettE is one of Japan’s most famous “visual kei” bands. The band made their debut with in 2004 with 'Disorder'. Since their debut, they have released nine studio albums. Some of their hits are 'Distress and Coma', 'Leech', 'Shiver', and the opening theme for 'Kuroshitsuji II' anime among others.They have also gave performances at major Japanese stadiums like the Budokan and Tokyo Dome, and completed their first world tour in 2013. On their 20th anniversary, the band released 'Heterodoxy -Divided 3 Concepts-' on December 21, 2022. After one week of release, Yune died.