Vivian Campbell Misses First Def Leppard Show of 2025

Source: Guitarist Vivian Campbell of the rock group Def Leppard and Last In Line performs at the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino on January 26, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Denise Truscello/WireImage via Getty Images)

Longtime Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell missed the band’s first show of 2025 on Saturday in Leon, Mexico. His absence is a result of his ongoing cancer treatment, according to frontman Joe Elliott.

Elliott informed the crowd that guitarist John Zocco was filling in for Campbell:

“[Campbell] cannot be with us tonight,” Elliott said. “He’s just recovering from some treatment for his cancer. So, manfully, please say hello to the guy that’s standing in for him tonight, Mr. John Zocco on guitar.”

Zocco, guitarist Phil Collen‘s guitar tech and photographer for the band, has been a touring musician for several rock and country acts, including Def Leppard.

As for Campbell, he’s been battling Hodgkin’s lymphoma for over a decade, announcing his diagnosis publicly in 2013. He’s undergone various treatments since then, and as of 2022 is receiving a combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy.

Campbell joined Def Leppard in 1992, a few years after a brief stint with Whitesnake from 1987 to 1988. He came into the band after the release of their 1992 studio album Adrenalize. He replaced guitarist Steve Clark, who died on Jan. 8, 1991.

Def Leppard’s next show is May 15, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and will be touring the U.S. and Canada through the late spring and summer.