Rapper Mac Miller dead; overdose suspected
Rapper Mac Miller has died of an apparent overdose, according to reports from TMZ and Variety. He was 26.
The rapper and former boyfriend of Ariana Grande had reportedly struggled with substance abuse.
Miller released his album “Swimming” in August, which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart, and he appeared to be rebounding.
Musicians and fans were stunned by the news of his death, which came just weeks before he was set to kick off a U.S. tour to promote the album.
“I just wanna go on tour,” he tweeted Thursday. “The show is going to be special every night. I wish it started tomorrow.”
Miller, born Malcolm James McCormick and raised in Pittsburgh, released his first mixtape, “But My Mackin’ Ain’t Easy,” at the age of 15. He signed to Rostrum Records in 2010.
He rose to fame with his mixtape “Best Day Ever” in 2011, landing on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the single “Donald Trump.”
Miller was open about his ups and downs with drug addition and often addressed it in interviews and song lyrics.
In a 2015 interview with Billboard, Miller spoke about the drug habits that took hold after his debut in 2010. “I was doing a lot of drugs around that time, which is another difference now: I’m not doing as many drugs. It just eats at your mind, doing drugs every single day, every second. It’s rough on your body.
“I’ve got to make sure I make all this music so when I die there’s albums and albums,” Miller said in the interview.