List of Dope band members

Three line-ups of Dope performing in 2013, 2013 and 2015

Dope is an American nu metal, founded in New York City by brothers Edsel (vocals, rhythm guitar) and Simon Dope (keyboards, samples) in 1997. ^[1] The pair then recruited Sloane Jentry as lead guitarist, Preston Nash as drummer, and Tripp Eisen as bassist. The band currently consists of vocalist, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Edsel, alongside guitarist and bassist Acey Slade (who first joined in 1998), lead guitarist and keyboardist Virus (who first joined in 2000), bassist and drummer Daniel Fox (who first joined in 2004), and drummer Chris Warner (who first joined in 2017).

History

Sloane Jentry soon left the band in early 1999. In his absence, Tripp Eisen moved onto guitar, while Acey Slade was brought in on bass. In November 2000, Eisen was fired from the band, ^[2] Nash also left at the same time. Producer/guitarist Virus joined on lead guitar, while Slade moved to rhythm guitar, Jentry rejoined on bass, and Adrian Ost joined on drums, although he was soon replaced by Racci Shay. After releasing Life in 2001, Slade left the band to join Murderdolls in mid-2002. ^[3]

In late 2002, Simon Dope left the group to pursue a career as a video game producer. ^[4] Shortly before a tour in early 2004, Jentry again left the band, Shay moved onto bass, and Adrian Ost briefly rejoined on drums. ^[5] Brix Milner joined as permanent bassist in May and Shay moved back to drums. ^[6] Drum tech Daniel Fox briefly took over drums in September 2005 when Shay left due to family issues. ^[7] Ben Graves joined as touring drummer in October. ^[8]

By 2006, Angel Bartolotta joined on drums. Milner departed by 2007, ^[9] he was replaced by Derrick "Tripp" Tribbett. ^[10]

A new line-up appeared in 2013, consisting of one time drummer Daniel Fox (who had gone on to play with Mushroomhead), new guitarist Nikk Dibs and new bassist Jerms Genske. ^[11] In 2015, Slade and Shay returned, touring alongside Dibs and Dope. ^[12] Virus returned for a classic line-up reunion in late 2015. ^[13]

Fox and Dibs (this time on bass) returned to replace Shay and Slade in 2017. ^[14] Fox was soon replaced by Chris Warner in October 2017, ^{[15] [16]} Slade replaced Dibs in late 2018. ^[17] Fox returned in May 2019. ^[18]

Since 2023, the band has had a fluid line-up with Virus and Acey Slade alternating lead guitar duties, ^[19] due to their commitments to teaching and Misfits respectively. ^[20] Daniel Fox alternates between drums and bass, ^[21] and Chris Warner plays drums when needed. ^[22]

Members

Current

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Edsel Dope (Brian Ebejer)	1997–present	lead vocals programming rhythm guitar (1997–2000, 2002–present) keyboards (2002–present)	all releases
	Acey Slade (Emil Schmidt)	1999–2002 2015–2017 2018–present	rhythm guitar (1999–2002, 2024–present) lead guitar (2023–present) backing vocals bass (1999–2000, 2015–2017, 2018–2023, 2024–present)	Felons and Revolutionaries (1999) Life (2001) Live from Moscow, Russia (2016) Live & Rare (2019) Blood Money Part Zer0 (2023)
	Virus (Andre Karkos)	2000–2013 2015–present	lead guitar backing vocals keyboards (2002–2013, 2015–present)	all releases from Life (2001) onwards
	Daniel Fox	2005–2006 (touring) 2013–2015 2017 2019–present	bass (2023–present) drums	Blood Money Part Zer0 (2023)
	Chris Warner	2017–2019 2023–present (touring)	drums	none to date

Former

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Simon Dope (Erikh Ebejer)	1997–2002	keyboards samples programming percussion	all releases from Felons and Revolutionaries (1999) to Felons for Life (2002) The Early Years - New York City 1997/1998 (2017) Live & Rare (2019)
	Tripp Eisen (Tod Rex Salvador)	1997–2000	bass (1997–1999) lead guitar (1999–2000)	Felons and Revolutionaries (1999) The Early Years - New York City 1997/1998 (2017) Live & Rare (2019)
	Preston Nash		drums
	Sloane "Mosey" Jentry	1997–1999 2000–2004	lead guitar (1997–1999) bass (2000–2004)	Life (2001) Felons for Life (2002) Group Therapy (2003)
	Adrian Ost	2000–2001 2004 (touring)	drums	none
	Racci "Sketchy" Shay Hart	2001–2005 2015–2017	drums bass (2004)	all releases from Life (2001) to American Apathy (2005) Live from Moscow Russia (2016) Live & Rare (2019)
	Brian "Brix" Milner	2004–2007	bass	American Apathy (2005)
	Andrew "Angel" Bartolotta	2006–2013	drums	No Regrets (2009)
	Derrick "Tripp" Tribbett	2007–2013	bass backing vocals
	Nikk Dibs	2013–2015 2017–2018	lead guitar (2013–2015) bass (2017–2018) keyboards backing vocals	Blood Money Part 1 (2016) Blood Money Part Zer0 (2023)
	Jeremy "Jerms" Genske	2013–2015	bass backing vocals	Blood Money Part 1 (2016) backing vocals on one track as Jerms Jude

Touring

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Notes
	Ben Graves	2005	drums
	Koichi Fukuda	2025	lead guitar	[23]

Timeline

Line-ups

Period	Members	Releases
1997 – January 1999	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming Simon Dope – keyboards, samples, programming, percussion Sloane Jentry – lead guitar Tripp Eisen – bass Preston Nash – drums	The Early Years - New York City 1997/1998 (2017) Live & Rare (2019) six tracks
January 1999 – November 2000	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming Simon Dope – keyboards, samples, programming, percussion Tripp Eisen – lead guitar Preston Nash – drums Acey Slade – bass, backing vocals	Felons and Revolutionaries (1999)
November 2000 – early 2001	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, programming Simon Dope – keyboards, samples, programming, percussion Acey Slade – rhythm guitar, backing vocals Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals Sloane Jentry – bass Adrian Ost – drums
Early 2001 – August 2002	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, programming Simon Dope – keyboards, samples, programming, percussion Acey Slade – rhythm guitar, backing vocals Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals Sloane Jentry – bass Racci Shay – drums	Life (2001)
August – November 2002	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming Simon Dope – keyboards, samples, programming, percussion Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals Sloane Jentry – bass Racci Shay – drums	Felons for Life (2002)
November 2002 – January 2004	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Sloane Jentry – bass Racci Shay – drums	Group Therapy (2003)
January – May 2004	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Racci Shay – bass Adrian Ost – drums
May 2004 – September 2005	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Racci Shay – drums Brix Milner – bass	American Apathy (2005)
September – October 2005	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Brix Milner – bass Daniel Fox – drums
October 2005 – mid 2006	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Brix Milner – bass Ben Graves – drums
mid 2006 – early 2007	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Brix Milner – bass Angel Bartolotta – drums
February 2007 – September 2013	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Angel Bartolotta – drums Derrick Tribbett – bass, backing vocals	No Regrets (2009)
September 2013 – May 2015	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Daniel Fox – drums Nikk Dibs – lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals Jerms Genske – bass, backing vocals
May 2015	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Nikk Dibs – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Acey Slade – bass, backing vocals Racci Shay – drums	Blood Money Part 1 (2016) Edsel and Dibs only
mid 2015 – early 2017	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Acey Slade – bass, backing vocals Racci Shay – drums Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards	Blood Money Part 1 (2016) Edsel and Virus only Live from Moscow Russia (2016) Live & Rare (2019) remaining tracks
February – October 2017	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Daniel Fox – drums Nikk Dibs – bass, backing vocals, keyboards	Blood Money Part Zer0 (2023)
October 2017 – mid 2018	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Nikk Dibs – bass, backing vocals, keyboards Chris Warner – drums
July 2018 – May 2019	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Chris Warner – drums Acey Slade – bass, backing vocals
May 2019 – February 2023	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards Acey Slade – bass, backing vocals Daniel Fox – drums	Blood Money Part Zer0 (2023)
February [24] – April 2023 [25]	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Acey Slade – lead guitar, backing vocals Daniel Fox – bass Chris Warner – drums
September – November 2023	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Daniel Fox – bass Chris Warner – drums Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards
February 2024 – present	Edsel Dope – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, programming, keyboards Daniel Fox – bass (select shows), drums (select shows) Chris Warner – drums (select shows) Virus – lead guitar, backing vocals, keyboards (select shows) Acey Slade – rhythm and lead guitar, bass, backing vocals (select shows)

References

1. "For Dope, 'Life' imitates contrived art". Yale Daily News. November 2, 2001. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
2. "Hail and Kill". Angelfire . Retrieved June 2, 2024.
3. Dope, Edsel (August 13, 2002). "Acey to Murderdolls". Edseldope.com. Archived from the original on February 25, 2004. Retrieved November 16, 2010.
4. "EDSEL DOPE Shoots Straight From The Hip About JOEY JORDISON, MURDERDOLLS And Former Bandmates". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. November 4, 2002. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
5. "DOPE Part Ways With Bassist, Announce Temporary Replacement". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. January 7, 2004. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
6. "Former SKRAPE Bassist Joins DOPE". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. May 7, 2004. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
7. "Dope's Racci Shay Leaves Mid-Tour". metalunderground. September 20, 2005. Retrieved June 2, 2024.
8. "DOPE Joined By MURDERDOLLS Drummer For Japanese Tour". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. October 17, 2005. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
9. "Ex-DOPE/SKRAPE Member BRIX MILNER Joins SLAUGHTER For SUMMERFEST Performance". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. July 4, 2007. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
10. "DOPE Bassist Makes His Debut On VH1's 'Daisy Of Love'". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. April 27, 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
11. "DOPE: 'Drug Music' Song Teaser Released, New Lineup Announced". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. September 19, 2013. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
12. Reeve, Jo (May 21, 2015), Dope , retrieved May 31, 2024
13. DiVita, Joe (March 28, 2016). "Dope Announce 2016 North American Tour With Classic Lineup". Loudwire. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
14. Crespo, Charley (March 24, 2017). "Dope at the Highline Ballroom" . Retrieved May 31, 2024.
15. Warner, Chris [@chrissywarnerdrums]; (October 15, 2017). "I'm filling in on drums for DOPE" – via Instagram.
16. Warner, Chris [@chrissywarnerdrums]; (June 15, 2016). "Stoked to be part of these shows with @dopeband" – via Instagram.
17. Dope [@dopetheband]; (October 20, 2018). "Acey Slade (DOPE) at Hills of Rock - Bulgaria 2018" – via Instagram.
18. Fox, Daniel [@danielfoxdrum]; (May 28, 2019). "Looking forward to sharing the stage with my brothers in @dopetheband this summer" – via Instagram.
19. Ahmed, Kal (February 14, 2024). "Static-X and Sevendust co-headling with support from Dope and Lines of Loyalty- The Norva, Norfolk, VA (USA) February 7, 2024". Rockwell Unscene Magazine. Retrieved May 25, 2024.
20. Slade, Acey (January 31, 2024). "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved May 31, 2024. OK, well, Virus is doing that leg, I'm doing the dates posted, LOL. It can be confusing I know...
21. Fox, Daniel [@danielfoxdrum]; (November 4, 2019). "Tour starts back up on November 8th in Austin,Tx. Will be back on the drums for @dopetheband" – via Instagram.
22. Fox, Daniel [@danielfoxdrum]; (June 23, 2021). "There's no way out! @dopetheband in Ukraine 2019" – via Instagram.
23. Brent Boyer (May 27, 2025). Dope May 26, 2025, in Wichita with Koichi Fukuda of Static-X filling in on Guitar . Retrieved June 23, 2025– via YouTube.
24. Warner, Chris [@chrissywarnerdrums]; (February 25, 2023). "I'm grateful for the opportunities. #dope #dopetheband" – via Instagram.
25. Warner, Chris [@chrissywarnerdrums]; (April 13, 2023). "The final 4. Tonight the #riseofthemachine tour takes over Las Vegas" – via Instagram.