Melissa Etheridge Shares Heartbreaking Statement On 21-Year-Old Son's Death

Melissa Etheridge says her son struggled in recent years with opioid addiction

Last night, Melissa Etheridge shared the heartbreaking news that her son, Beckett, died suddenly earlier this week of an opioid overdose. She spoke about her grief for her son and his struggles with addiction in a very honest statement.

Beckett, who was just 21, was Etheridge’s youngest child with ex-partner Julie Cypher– the former couple also has a daughter together, Bailey, 23. The legendary singer opened up on Twitter about her indescribable loss.

“Today I joined the hundreds of thousands of families who have lost loved ones to opioid addiction,” Etheridge said in a statement. “My son Beckett, who was just 21, 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,” she continued. “I am grateful for those who have reached out with condolences and I feel their love and sincere grief.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Etheridge’s team shared a tweet on her behalf announcing the tragic news.

“We’re sad to inform you that Melissa’s son Beckett passed away and there will not be a Concerts From Home show today. – #TeamME”

Etheridge also has two other children, twins Johnnie Rose and Miller Steven with her ex-partner Tammy Lynn Michaels.

According to the CDC, drug overdose deaths continue to impact communities in the United States. From 1999 to 2017, more than 702,000 people have died from a drug overdose. In 2017, more than 70,000 people died from drug overdoses, making it a leading cause of injury-related death in the United States. Sixty-eight percent of those deaths involved a prescription or illicit opioid. On average, 130 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose.

“There’s nothing like taking the responsibility or creating the responsibility of bringing a human being into this world and helping it in its first years,” Etheridge previously told Parents magazine of parenthood. “It doesn’t matter the equation that gets you there or what you are to that person. It doesn’t matter at all. It is the bond between you and the child.”

Tons of supportive messages have been popping up on Twitter — both sentiments from her famous friends and fellow parents who have lost children to addiction.

https://twitter.com/jetpack/status/1260762299536728068

https://twitter.com/jetpack/status/1260759290970849286

The singer concluded her statement with a gut-wrenching sentence: “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,” she says. “I will sing again, soon. It has always healed me.”