Billy Corgan, who chose her from among thousands of applicants, says, ‘I was a fan of hers even before she applied for the role.’ Apparently, she was selected from over 10,000 candidates.
After receiving over 10,000 applications, The Smashing Pumpkins have chosen their new guitarist. In fact, their new guitarist is Kiki Wong, a musician who is also a social media personality with nearly 700,000 followers on Instagram—more than double that of Billy Corgan—and 1.3 million on TikTok.
To replace Jeff Schroeder, the band launched a call in January inviting anyone interested to apply for the role. Two weeks later, the Pumpkins announced that they had received so many resumes and videos that it took “eight full-time people” to review them.
Reviewing the applications was “a massive effort, but it was worth it,” Corgan now says. He thanks everyone who sent in their applications and writes that “it wasn’t an easy decision” and that he was a fan of Kiki “even before she applied for the role.”
Kiki herself says she is honored to play “with some of the greatest and most influential rock musicians of all time. I never thought that the 15-year-old who played metal in her room would get this far.”
The first tour with Wong in the lineup is likely set for this summer. Along with the guitarist and the leader, the live lineup of The Smashing Pumpkins includes longtime members James Iha and Jimmy Chamberlin, Katie Cole on keyboards, and Jack Bates on bass. Bates is the son of Peter Hook of Joy Division and New Order.
