Steve Harwell, the longtime frontman of the Grammy-nominated pop rock band Smash Mouth that was behind the megahit “All Star” has died. He was 56.
The band’s supervisor, Robert Hayes, mentioned Harwell “passed peacefully and comfortably” Monday morning surrounded by household and pals at his residence in Boise, Idaho. The reason for loss of life was acute liver failure, Hayes mentioned in a press release.
Smash Mouth can also be identified for hits together with “ Walkin’ on the Sun ” and “ Then The Morning Comes.”
“Steve Harwell was a true American Original. A larger than life character who shot up into the sky like a Roman candle,” Hayes said. “Steve should be remembered for his unwavering focus and impassioned determination to reach the heights of pop stardom.”
“His only tools were his irrepressible charm and charisma, his fearlessly reckless ambition, and his king-size (cojones),” Hayes continued. “Steve lived a 100% full-throttle life. Burning brightly across the universe before burning out.”
“He will be greatly missed by those who knew and loved him,” he mentioned.
Born in California in 1967, Harwell carried out in a rap group known as F.O.S. (Freedom of Speech) earlier than forming Smash Mouth in 1994. The band launched two platinum albums on Interscope Records, the ska-fueled 1997’s “Fush Yu Mang” and 1999’s “Astro Lounge.” The second album featured a few of the band’s largest hits, together with the Grammy-nominated, platinum single “All Star,” which appeared within the film “Shrek” alongside their cover of the Monkees’ “I’m a Believer.”
Humor was a driving drive behind Smash Mouth’s success, and on the forefront was Harwell’s playful alt-rock voice and persona. He made a cameo in 2001 comedy movie “Rat Race,” and had a well-documented friendship with the Food Network chef and host Guy Fieri.
On Monday, tributes started pouring in. Fieri wrote on Instagram: “To my brutha Steve RIP. Today is a sad day, I will miss my friend.”
NSYNC ‘s Chris Kirkpatrick and Joey Fatone additionally shared brief homages.
“I’m truly sorry for the difficult battle you had to fight,” Kirkpatrick posted on Instagram. “You were an amazing soul and will be deeply missed.”
Fatone mentioned he had identified Harwell for a very long time.
“Opened for NSync and even was my wedding singer at my wedding,” wrote Fatone. “Hopefully people out there that are dealing with addiction. get the right help that they need.”
“Today” host Carson Daly printed a two-part assertion on Instagram, detailing the primary time he met Harwell in 1995, when he was a DJ on JOME in San Jose and Smash Mouth was a brand new band.
“In better days, Steve was a force of a frontman & lived the life of 50 men,” Daly wrote. “He brought joy to millions with his music and his legacy will thankfully live on.”
“Rest in peace Steve Harwell,” comic Tom Green tweeted. “I remember hanging with you back in the MTV days you were always super cool and an amazing talent – my condolences to your family and friends.”
Harwell retired from performing and left Smash Mouth in 2021. The band continued to tour with Zach Goode because the singer. Smash Mouth launched a press release on the time saying Harwell had been identified with cardiomyopathy eight years earlier and had suffered “nonstop severe medical setbacks together with coronary heart failure in addition to acute Wernicke Encephalopathy.”
Hayes had launched a press release on Sunday saying Harwell was in hospice care.
Harwell shall be cremated in Boise and buried in San Jose, California, alongside his mom, Hayes mentioned.
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