Metalcore Pioneer and Professional Wrestler Andy Williams Dies at 48

Andy Williams, the founding guitarist of the metalcore band Every Time I Die and a professional wrestler, has died at the age of 48.

Reports indicate that Williams, who wrestled under the name “The Butcher,” collapsed at the end of his tag team match Saturday at an Enjoy Wrestling event in Millvale, Pennsylvania. “Our doctors on staff tended to him immediately, administering CPR until the ambulance arrived,” Enjoy Wrestling wrote.

Williams ultimately died Saturday night, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed to TMZ. No cause of death was immediately known.

Before he was “The Butcher,” Williams served as the founding rhythm guitarist of the Buffalo metalcore band Every Time I Die, holding that role from their formation in 1998 to their breakup in 2022. During his tenure in ETID, Williams played on all nine of the band’s studio albums, concluding with the 2021 release Radical.

While with Every Time I Die, Williams began training and moonlighting as a wrestler in the 2010s, initially working the independent circuits before rising to the level of All Elite Wrestling, where he made his debut as “The Butcher” in 2019.

“All Elite Wrestling is saddened to learn of the passing of Andy Williams, aka The Butcher,” AEW wrote in a statement Sunday. “A trailblazing musician with ETID and Atomic Rule, Williams made a successful transition into the world of professional wrestling and was incredibly respected by his peers both in and out of the ring. Our condolences go out to Williams’ family, friends and fans.”

Williams frequently wrestled alongside tag team partner Jesse “The Blade” Guilmette, who was also his partner Saturday at what was Williams’ final match. He spent seven years with AEW and its sister circuit Ring of Honor, a run that concluded in June 2026.

Following Every Time I Die’s disbandment, Williams joined the group Atomic Rule, which he worked on outside wrestling. Just hours before his death, Williams told Atomic Rule fans in a social media post that the band was hard at work on new music.

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