A friction material for a clutch pad comprising: a plurality of fibers; and, a filler material including at least 0.1% and at most 100% calcium silicate particles by weight based on total weight of the filler. A friction material for a clutch comprising: a plurality of fibers; a filler material including at least 0.1% and at most 40% calcium silicate particles by weight based on total weight of the friction material; the calcium silicate particles characterized by a specific surface area of at least 40 m2/g and an average particle size of at most 60 μm; and, a binder. In an example aspect, the calcium silicate particles are characterized by a spherical morphology. In another example aspect, the calcium silicate particles are characterized by a specific surface area of about 105 m2/g and an average particles size of about 10 μm.