Why fans are divided over Scissor Sisters’ reunion

One of the early noughties’ biggest bands is getting back together – but one key missing element has left fans very upset.

Noughties dance-pop-rock legends Scissor Sisters made an announcement overnight fans have waited years to hear: They’re reuniting, more than a decade after they went their separate ways.

But there’s one key element missing from this reunion that’s leaving many fans upset: Founding Scissor Sister, co-vocalist and the group’s sole female member Ana Matronic will not be taking part.

Instead, the band will head out on the road as a three-piece, with vocalist Jake Shears, keyboardist Babydaddy and guitarist Del Marquis, to mark 20 years since the release of their hugely successful 2004 debut album.

The tour, which so far only spans the UK and Ireland across May 2025, marks the first time the band has played together since 2012, the same year they released their fourth and final studio album Magic Hour.

The Scissor Sisters circa 2010, with Ana second from right.

But excitement that one of the early noughties’ most iconic bands is back together has been dampened by the fact Matronic won’t be taking part.

Posts on the group’s newly-launched Instagram account have been flooded with comments declaring that the Scissor Sisters without Ana Matronic – the main vocalist on hits like Kiss You Off and Let’s Have a Kiki, and the band’s unofficial compere during live shows – ain’t really the Scissor Sisters.

“Never been so excited for an announcement, then deflated instantly,” one fan commented.

“Not having Ana is like removing a member of ABBA,” another wrote.

“No Ana? ️Not Scissor Sisters without her unfortunately.”

Another fan declared Matronic the “glue” that held Scissor Sisters together, while another fan called her “half the face of the band.”

The new-look Scissor Sisters, L-R: Babydaddy, Jake Shears and Del Marquis.

It seems this reaction may have taken the band by surprise, because Ana Matronic herself soon released a statement explaining why she’s not taking part in the tour, which was quickly shared on the official Scissor Sisters account.

Matronic, who now works as a DJ, radio host and presenter, told fans that since the Scissor Sisters finished her “Nerd self has taken the wheel and is now driving my career.”

She explained that she is currently finishing production on a new history podcast “which has grown into several long-term research & writing projects. With contracts signed and schedules agreed on these commitments, the timing of a Scissor reunion does not allow me to join my former bandmates on this tour. I wish the band and our fans all the best – I will be there in spirit to kiki with you!”

Ana performs onstage in Sydney in 2006. Picture: AAP

Ana at 50, following her "nerd" passions post-Scissor Sisters.

But even Matronic’s statement wasn’t enough to assuage fans desperate for her to rejoin the fold.

“Ana, please change your mind. This is important. Feels so sad without you with them,” reads one top comment under her post.

Another fan noted it was sad to read the finality of the phrase “former bandmates,” seemingly indicating that Matronic will never return to the Scissor Sisters.

No word yet on whether the Scissor Sisters’ reunion will extend to an Australian tour, although in a hilarious video announcing the tour, comedian Billy Eichner does tease that the shows will extend “beyond” the UK. The group toured here several times in their heyday, including a 2007 arena tour at the height of their success off the back of Australian number one single I Don’t Feel Like Dancing.

Originally published as Why fans are divided over Scissor Sisters’ reunion