Taylor Hawkins, who had been the Foo Fighters drummer for the past 25 years, was found dead in his hotel room in Bogotá, Colombia on Friday. He was just 50 years old. No cause of death has been reported yet. The band, which was slated to play Festival Estereo Picnic that evening and Lolla Brazil on Sunday, released this statement:
I was out tonight and am in shock coming home to read this tragic news. I've seen the Foos at least a half-dozen times over the years, including at my first Coachella in 2002. Taylor was a really talented drummer, had a charismatic personality, and was legitimately fun. Dave Grohl had handpicked him to replace the original Foo Fighters drummer William Goldsmith in 1997. Poor Dave has to go through the anguish of losing yet another bandmate and great friend.
Update: Variety is now reporting this...https://variety.com/2022/music/news/...say-1235215813
So sad!
The Foo Fighters family is devastated by the tragic and untimely loss of our beloved Taylor Hawkins. His musical spirit and infectious laughter will live on with all of us forever. Our hearts go out to his wife, children and family, and we ask that their privacy be treated with the utmost respect in this unimaginably difficult time.
Update: Variety is now reporting this...https://variety.com/2022/music/news/...say-1235215813
Without declaring that musician Taylor Hawkins died of an overdose, authorities in Colombia issued a statement Saturday afternoon noting that the Foo Fighters’ drummer was determined to have had 10 drugs in his system at the time of his death.
The report from the attorney general of Colombia came in a tweet which said that the 50-year-old musician had antidepressants, benzodiazepines and opioids in his system, along with THC. It did not further specify the drugs that had been found, and the attorney general’s statement avoided using the word “overdose.”
A report in a major Colombian magazine, Semana, went further, however, reporting that unnamed authorities told its reporters that heroin was part of the drug cocktail in Hawkins’ system, and that he was found to have an enlarged heart.
Semana reported that “forensic doctors were shocked by the size of the drummer’s heart,” at more than 600 grams, and believe that was a factor in Hawkins quickly succumbing to “a cocktail of narcotics.”
Hawkins was found lifeless on Friday, the attorney general’s report confirmed, in a hotel north of Boota, where he was staying in advance of a Foo Fighters concert in the area.
The official tweet from the country’s attorney general said (translated from Spanish): “In the urine toxicological test carried out on the body of Taylor Hawkins, 10 types of substances were preliminarily found, among them: THC (marijuana), tricyclic antidepressants, benzodiazepines and opioids. The National Institute of Forensic Medicine will continue the medical studies to achieve total clarification of the facts that led to the death of Taylor Hawkins. The Office of the Attorney General of the Nation will continue with the investigation and will report the results obtained within the framework thereof in a timely manner.”
The Foo Fighters were in the middle of a South American tour, and were scheduled to return to the U.S. to perform at the Grammys April 3.
The report from the attorney general of Colombia came in a tweet which said that the 50-year-old musician had antidepressants, benzodiazepines and opioids in his system, along with THC. It did not further specify the drugs that had been found, and the attorney general’s statement avoided using the word “overdose.”
A report in a major Colombian magazine, Semana, went further, however, reporting that unnamed authorities told its reporters that heroin was part of the drug cocktail in Hawkins’ system, and that he was found to have an enlarged heart.
Semana reported that “forensic doctors were shocked by the size of the drummer’s heart,” at more than 600 grams, and believe that was a factor in Hawkins quickly succumbing to “a cocktail of narcotics.”
Hawkins was found lifeless on Friday, the attorney general’s report confirmed, in a hotel north of Boota, where he was staying in advance of a Foo Fighters concert in the area.
The official tweet from the country’s attorney general said (translated from Spanish): “In the urine toxicological test carried out on the body of Taylor Hawkins, 10 types of substances were preliminarily found, among them: THC (marijuana), tricyclic antidepressants, benzodiazepines and opioids. The National Institute of Forensic Medicine will continue the medical studies to achieve total clarification of the facts that led to the death of Taylor Hawkins. The Office of the Attorney General of the Nation will continue with the investigation and will report the results obtained within the framework thereof in a timely manner.”
The Foo Fighters were in the middle of a South American tour, and were scheduled to return to the U.S. to perform at the Grammys April 3.
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