MÖTLEY CRÜE’s Nikki Sixx is Performing Concerts With “Pre-Recorded Tracks”, Says Mick Mars, Who Filed a Lawsuit After Band “Ripped Him Off” (UPDATED)

MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars has had enough. He is pissed as Hell with Nikki Sixx. Believe it or not, the legendary guitarist has sued his bandmates, claiming they are ripping him off financially.

Mars, whose real name is Robert Alan Deal, departed from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE due to the band using pre-recorded tracks at all of their comeback concerts, according to Carmine Appice. But in his shocking new lawsuit Mars says he made it clear he can indeed still ‘record with the band or do limited performances’. Word is Mars just does not want his band using pre-recorded tracks anymore in arena/stadium venues. He thinks it rips off the fans.

Mars lawsuit, which was filed Thursday (April 6) in Los Angeles County’s Superior Court, states that his bandmates held an emergency shareholders’ meeting to throw him out of MÖTLEY CRÜE and strip him of his shares in the corporation that manages the group’s business interests.

In the lawsuit, Mick says MÖTLEY CRÜE cut his percentage of profits from 25 percent to 5 percent after he announced he was stepping back from touring. Furthermore, he claims the band’s lawyers made him feel like he should be grateful for even that small cut, because they didn’t feel they owed him anything at all. Mick also claims there was a full band meeting and they decided to “unilaterally” remove him from MÖTLEY CRÜE.

Mick also reportedly accused bassist Nikki Sixx of “gaslighting” him about his guitar skills diminishing, despite the fact that Sixx didn’t “play a single note on bass” during a recent tour, according to the guitarist. Mick claims all of Nikki‘s parts were pre-recorded.

Sixx made it clear to Mars that he believed that the [5 percent] offer was a generous one, and that Mars, after 41 consecutive years with the band, did not deserve anything going forward,” Mick‘s lawyers wrote in the filing. “Sixx further ‘gaslighted’ Mars by severely criticizing his performances on the U.S. tour, and exclaimed that there is no way that the band could tour with Mars anymore.”

Mars also claims that Sixx would make “band decisions” without telling the other musicians and would ask his bandmates to sign documents “immediately” on Fridays at 5 p.m.

INDUSTRY SOURCE: Nikki Sixx Made Mick Mars Cry

“How did Mars‘s brothers of 41 years respond to Mars‘s tragic announcement [about quitting the road]?” asks the suit, according to Variety. “They noticed an emergency shareholders’ meeting for the band’s main corporate entity in order to throw Mars out of the band, to fire him as a director of the corporation, to fire him as an officer of the corporation, and to take away his shares of the corporation. When he did not go away quietly, they purported to fire him from six additional band corporations and LLCs.”

The suit contends: “During much of the band’s recent tenure, Sixx continually ‘gaslighted’ Mars by telling him that he [Mars] had some sort of cognitive dysfunction, and that his guitar playing was sub-par, claiming that Mars forgot chords, and sometimes started playing the wrong songs.

“Astonishingly, Sixx made these claims about Mars‘s playing while he [Sixx] did not play a single note on bass during the entire U.S. tour,” the lawsuit continues. “Ironically, 100% of Sixx‘s bass parts were nothing but recordings. Sixx was seen fist pumping in the air with his strumming hand, while the bass part was playing. In fact, a significant portion of [Vince] Neil‘s vocals were also pre-recorded. Even some of [Tommy] Lee‘s drum parts were recordings. Some fans actually noticed that Lee was walking toward his drum set as they heard his drum part begin.

“Mars, at times on the tour, did play the wrong chords, but not due to any cognitive dysfunction,” the lawsuit continues. “He was playing live, and his in-ear monitors were constantly malfunctioning, causing Mars to be unable to hear his own instrument. The fact is that Mars is rarely mocked or criticized online. He is a quiet member of the group, who shows up to play, and puts his heart and soul into each performance. Conversely, other band members are often criticized online, particularly Neil, who is routinely torn to shreds for, among other things, not remembering the songs.”

***UPDATED 9/19/2023: TMD has busted Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee and Vince Neil using prerecorded tape at Crue concerts, including shows in 2023. Mick Mars’ lawsuit seeks to gain the founding guitarist shareholder control of the band he helped to create and named himself.