c/squaredcircle · by siv9939@lemmy.zip · 7d

Andy Williams, pro wrestling’s ‘The Butcher’ and accomplished rock guitarist, passes away at 48

https://www.postwrestling.com/2026/09/06/andy-williams-pro-wrestlings-the-butcher-and-accomplished-rock-guitarist-passes-away-at-48/

Andy Williams, the professional wrestler known as The Butcher, has passed away at the age of 48.

TMZ reported on Sunday that the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed Williams’ death following a medical emergency he suffered on Saturday at an independent wrestling event in Pennsylvania.

A cause of death has not been announced.

Williams was competing alongside longtime tag team partner Jesse Guilmette, ‘The Blade’, against TME at Enjoy Wrestling’s Five Years event at Mr. Smalls Theatre in Millvale when he collapsed around the conclusion of the match.

Enjoy Wrestling stated that medics on hand immediately attended to Williams and administered CPR until an ambulance arrived. The remainder of the event was canceled.

POST Wrestling reported on the incident on Saturday night, with Rich Fann among those in attendance.

Fann said Williams appeared to be struggling near the finish before going down. The Blade attempted to help his partner before signaling for assistance, with medical personnel subsequently performing chest compressions and using an AED.

Enjoy Wrestling appeared to confirm the sad news on Sunday morning.

Tributes and condolences quickly began to pour in from the wrestling world, including from Josh Alexander, Matt Hardy, Corey Graves, RJ City, Matthew Rehwoldt, Bryce Remsburg, and QT Marshall, with many more expected.

Williams had recently returned to regular independent wrestling alongside The Blade after the pair’s AEW contracts expired in June.

The Buffalo-based team had been with AEW since 2019. The Butcher, The Blade and The Bunny debuted on the November 27 edition of Dynamite by attacking Cody Rhodes.

Williams later recalled that Ring of Honor, before its purchase by Tony Khan, had approached The Butcher & The Blade shortly before AEW.

The pair became regulars in AEW’s tag division during the company’s early years and were associated at various times with The Bunny, Eddie Kingston and the Hardy Family Office. Among their most prominent matches was a Falls Count Anywhere contest with The Young Bucks in July 2020.

Williams continued wrestling singles matches while The Blade was sidelined by a serious back injury. His final AEW appearance came on the February 22, 2025 edition of Collision, in a match with Gabe Kidd.

Their contracts subsequently expired in June, ending a run of more than six years with the promotion.

Williams had remained active on the independent circuit. Last month, he faced Josh Barnett, one of the figures who helped him during his development as a wrestler, at PRODUCE Volume 3 in Brooklyn.

Professional wrestling was the second major career of Williams’ life.

Born December 12, 1977, in the Buffalo area, he was a founding guitarist of Every Time I Die when the metalcore band formed in 1998.

Williams remained with the group throughout its run of more than two decades. Every Time I Die released nine studio albums before announcing its breakup in January 2022.

A lifelong wrestling fan, Williams began pursuing the profession while already established internationally as a musician. He worked his first full singles match in 2016 and began teaming regularly with Jesse Guilmette, The Blade, the following year.

The combination eventually carried Williams from the independent circuit to national television at an age when most wrestlers are already well into their careers.

After Every Time I Die ended, Williams eventually returned to music with new band Atomic Rule. The band’s lineup also includes James Henderson, Travis Bennington and Kevin Boutot. As recently as Saturday, he posted a video on Instagram marking progress on new recordings by the band.

Everyone at POST Wrestling would like to extend their condolences to the family and friends of Andy Williams.

42 points · 22 comments · view on lemmy.world

22 Comments

ImADifferentBird@piefed.blahaj.zone · 13 pts · 7d

Terrible news. Butcher was a highlight of early AEW, and a beast on the guitar.

siv9939@lemmy.zip · 10 pts · 7d

I like Enjoy Wrestling and the Butcher. This really sucks.

matador0820@lemmy.zip · 8 pts · 7d (1 reply)

Andy was a good guy. He took the time to chat at his merch table with annoying teenagers, like me and my best friend, in the mid-2000’s at warped tour . He signed the shirt I bought and told me to go mosh some more. 10 years ago, at an ETID concert in LA, he stopped mid-setup to give a too sweet to a fan in the crowd. (I got it on video) I’m gonna miss him.

victorz@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 6d

Hey, happy cake day. Feel better.

Neon_Carnivore@lemmy.zip · 8 pts · 7d

Wow... That's just awful.

Even though he was primarily an enforcer/henchman for more prominently featured wrestlers during his AEW run, Andy was damned good at it. He was simultaneously intimidating and cool.

Rest in peace, Butcher, you will be missed.

I'm going to pin this thread for a few days. Please use this thread for condolences and screenshots of other wrestling personalities paying their respects.

Addendum: This Saturday's AEW Collision will be a tribute show to him, I'll keep this thread pinned until then.

calliope@retrolemmy.com · 7 pts · 7d (1 reply)

I mentioned this in a different thread but this was one of Enjoy Wrestling’s last shows, and it’s too bad that this incident happened at one of them.

siv9939@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 6d

It was also their anniversary show, and I think the last show they were having a show at the main location they run shows in. I feel really bad for the whole Enjoy Wrestling crew.

Montagge@lemmy.zip · 7 pts · 7d

The world is a worse place without Andy

Montagge@lemmy.zip · 7 pts · 7d

rozodru@piefed.world · 7 pts · 7d

When AEW first started I was so insanely stoked that The Butcher, The Blade, and The Bunny got signed because as an ETID fan as well as following them on the indie scene they were my favourite tag team. They had such a great look. I've seen them wrestling countless times, i've seen Every Time I Die countless times, so this one hurts. So young too and not much older than myself. Certainly is a wake up call.

RIP Butcher.

JelloBrains@piefed.zip · 7 pts · 7d

This sucks, they were a fun throwback style team. I had some hope last night, sadly tonight I saw the news.

Their debut in AEW, if muted because commentary bungled it to me, made them feel like they were going to be big players, while that didn't happen I think they were a great addition to the AEW tag division, something different to the fast paced guys, and even then they worked so well at what they did with almost every team they entered the ring with.

I knew little of his musical career until last night, but in the past few hours have seen a bit, he was talented. RIP, your wrestling career entertained me and for that I offer my thanks and condolences to the loved ones he leaves behind.

Malica@lemmy.zip · 6 pts · 7d

Tragic

cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone · 5 pts · 5d (1 reply)

i just got back from holiday to this and it succkssss T_T i loved the butcher and the blade

siv9939@lemmy.zip · 5 pts · 4d

I hope you had a nice getaway. Sorry the universe decided to be an asshole while you were gone.

siv9939@lemmy.zip · 5 pts · 6d (1 reply)

An Enjoy Wrestling co-owner released a statement giving a timeline of the night, and said the on site medics said it seemed like a cardiac event, but the cause of death is still pending.

siv9939@lemmy.zip · 5 pts · 6d

To make it reading it easier:

Andy collapsed at ringside after his match on Saturday and hit his head on the floor. We carried him to the side where he was attended to by the two doctors we have on staff.

I called for an ambulance. At this time, he was conscious but unresponsive. His condition worsened quickly and his pulse faded. Called 911 again to provide an update and were informed that the police were about to arrive.

We ended the event and asked the audience to leave. Doctors administered CPR and utilized an AED provided by the police until the ambulance arrived.

He was taken to Allegheny General Hospital at around 9:45PM and we were informed of his passing by his tag team partner, Jesse Guilleman, shortly after midnight.

Medics on site indicated that the symptoms were consistent with a cardiac event, but we were told that the cause of death is pending the results of an autopsy.

Thank you,

Kurt Hackimer

Enjoy Wrestling Co-Owner

Neon_Carnivore@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 4d (1 reply)

A tribute to Andy at the latest RoH tapings.

cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone · 4 pts · 4d

love that they did it on roh so as to not take anything away from rebel; hopefully they can redo the live collision into a tribute to andy instead (though that would be a lot of sadness for a weeks worth of programming!)

siv9939@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 5d

The police have released a report. it's not much different than the statement from Enjoy's co-owner, but I thought I'd share it anyway.

At approximately 8:45 p.m. on Saturday September 5th, 2026, Millvale Borough Police officers were dispatched to Mr. Smalls Theatre for a report of a male wrestler who had struck his head on a ring post during a wrestling event.

Upon arrival, officers located Andy Williams unresponsive and being attended to by two physicians who were at the venue with the wrestling organization. Shortly before the arrival of Ross/West View EMS, Williams stopped breathing. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was initiated, and an automated external defibrillator (AED) was applied.

Upon the arrival of Ross/West View EMS, life-saving measures were continued. Williams was transported by EMS to Allegheny General Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased at approximately 9:43 p.m.

There were no visible signs of trauma and no indications of foul play observed by investigating officers.

The official cause and manner of death remains pending. An autopsy has been performed by the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office, and the final determination will be made pending the results of the examination and any associated testing.

The Millvale Borough Police Department extends its condolences to Mr. Williams’ family, friends, colleagues, and the many members of the wrestling and music communities affected by his passing.

No further information regarding the cause of death will be released until the appropriate medical examiner’s findings are available.

Montagge@lemmy.zip · 3 pts · 4d

https://andywilliamsforever.com/

Celebration of life and the family is donating selling merch/taking donations for charity

altphoto@lemmy.today · 1 pts · 7d (1 reply)

Wow he looks way older

ImADifferentBird@piefed.blahaj.zone · 6 pts · 5d

The weird thing is, I never thought he looked physically older, but I did think he looked like a relic of the past. Which was part of his charm to me.

And I think he played that up with the monocle and everything.