Bad Wolves loses guitarist and tour spot over Dolly Parton cover and singer controversy

Los Angeles based metal band Bad Wolves lost its guitarist and a tour spot within the same week, the result of two separate but equally turbulent crises. The trouble centered on relatively new vocalist Sara "Killboy" Skinner, who only joined the band in June, and on an announced cover of Dolly Parton's 1974 classic "Jolene."

Skinner, who replaced her predecessor D.L. Laskiewicz after he became bassist for Falling In Reverse, had her live debut with Bad Wolves scheduled on a tour with Christian metal band Skillet, which also featured alt metal group Escape The Fate. That tour, however, will not be happening for Bad Wolves. In a social media video, Skinner explained what went down: Skillet fans apparently took it upon themselves to dig into her background and shared what they found with the tour organizers. She stated in the video that Skillet's booking agents and management had apparently skipped that research beforehand. "Skillet announced us on their tour and their fans had a field day doing very extensive research that their booking agents and management did not do. Upon their findings, I am a trans OnlyFans bitch. Now, unfortunately, only one of those things is true. Have fun finding out and we will see you on the next tour," Skinner said verbatim. Skillet has not publicly responded to her statement, but on Friday announced that Canadian hard rock band Autumn Kings will be taking the open slot on their fall 2026 tour.

Less than a week after Skinner's announcement, guitarist AJ Rebollo revealed he is leaving Bad Wolves. Rebollo, who came on as a touring guitarist in 2023 before becoming a full member, pointed directly to record label Better Noise Music's decision to release a metal cover of "Jolene" as the breaking point, despite strong objections from multiple band members. The cover was recorded at a time when Dolly Parton herself had planned to contribute her vocals to the track, but following her passing, Rebollo and others pushed back against releasing it. "We felt it would (understandably) be interpreted as somewhat of a capitalization on her passing," he wrote in his statement. Better Noise Music pressed ahead with the single anyway, scheduled for Monday August 31, and announced that proceeds would be donated to Parton's Imagination Library, an organization focused on children's literacy.

Rebollo acknowledged in his statement that donating to the Imagination Library is a noble gesture, but said he suspects the label's motives behind the decision. "I can no longer in good faith remain a member and co sign the decisions constantly being made FOR this band by the label, among other issues I have with the inner workings of the business," he wrote. He also noted that the constant stream of hate and harassment stemming from decisions the band members themselves do not support has taken a serious toll on everyone in the group. "The amount of hate, negativity, and harassment we receive on a daily basis due to decisions made outside of our control has taken a massive toll on our sanity," Rebollo said.

As a point of comparison, the guitarist brought up his previous band Issues, where he said he had the kind of autonomy he feels is missing at Bad Wolves. He expressed gratitude toward both Better Noise and founder and drummer John Boecklin for the financial support he received during periods when the band was not on the road, but said that did not outweigh the persistent feeling of having no say in artistic or business decisions. Bad Wolves already have a turbulent history behind them: former vocalist Tommy Vext also departed after internal conflicts with Boecklin, partly fueled by Vext's political statements. It remains unclear who will fill the open spots in the band and what the remaining tour plans will look like.