American rock singer Melissa Etheridge announced the death of her son, Beckett Cypher, on Wednesday. He was 21.
After her daily COVID-19 Facebook Live concert was cancelled, the Come to My Window singer’s team confirmed the death in a statement via Twitter on Wednesday afternoon.
“We’re sad to inform you that Melissa’s son Beckett passed away and there will not be a Concerts From Home show today,” the statement read.
Etheridge, 58, returned to the social media platform three hours later, revealing that Beckett’s death came as a result of “opioid addiction,” suggesting he had overdosed on drugs.
“Today I joined the hundreds of thousands of families who have lost loved ones to opioid addiction,” she wrote. “My son Beckett struggled to overcome his addiction and finally succumbed to it today.
“He will be missed by those who loved him, his family and friends. My heart is broken. I am grateful for those who have reached out with condolences and I feel their love and sincere grief.
“We struggle with what else we could have done to save him, and in the end we know he is out of the pain now. I will sing again, soon. It has always healed me,” she concluded, suggesting she will return to the limelight again soon with new music.
No further details on Beckett’s death were revealed, according to the Associated Press.
Beckett was born on Nov. 18, 1998 and was Etheridge’s only son from her former relationship with filmmaker Julie Cypher. The two also had a daughter, Bailey Jean Cypher, in 1997 before ultimately splitting up in 2000.
David Crosby of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (CSNY) was Beckett’s biological father. He helped conceive the child after donating his sperm to the celebrity couple in the late ’90s.
Before taking to Twitter to reply to some fans’ messages of condolences, Crosby, 78, retweeted a news story announcing Beckett’s death.
One user suggested Crosby “played no other part” in raising Beckett and that he was simply Etheridge and Julie’s “donor.”
The Southern Cross singer denied that claim, writing: “Not true.”
“Maybe it’s a test,” Crosby tweeted in response to one user offering their apologies for his loss.
Another fan speculated about whether or not Crosby’s former CSNY bandmates had reached out to him in regards to his recent loss.
“I doubt it but … you never know,” Crosby wrote.
As of this writing, Julie has not publicly addressed her son’s death.
Additionally, Etheridge has two 13-year-old twins, son Miller and daughter Johnnie, born in October 2006. The twins are from a former relationship with ex-wife Tammy Lynn Michaels.
Are you or someone you know struggling with addiction? Here is a list of resources you can use to get help.
— With files from the Associated Press
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