Lil Peep was a rapper and musician with the world at his feet, but at the age of just 21 years old his dreams and life were cut short when he was found dead on his tour bus.
His real name was Gustav Elijah Åhr, and he was a rapper, singer, songwriter and model, and was part of a collective called GothBoiClique.
Since his death, Lil peep has been credited as being one of the leading figures in the rap and rock revival that came around in the late 2010s.
He first started releasing music in 2014 and had big plans for his career before his death in 2017.
Career
(Image: WireImage)
Gustav was the son of two college graduates, and made a name for himself by weaving working-class themes into his music despite coming from a well-off background.
He first gained attention in 2014 after he uploaded songs to Soundcloud, and collaborated with Lil Tracy and released several mixtapes.
Peep released Lil Peep: Part One, Live Forever, Crybaby and HellBoy, and the success of Helllboy in 2016 saw him touring across the US.
(Image: Getty Images)
He relocated to London in 2016 to work on his debut album, Come Over When You’re Sober, Pt 1.
It wasn’t until the release of his second album, Come Over When You’re Sober, Pt 2 that he really found commercial and critical success.
The album debuted at number four in the US charts, and he starred in a documentary about his life, Everybody’s Everything in 2019.
(Image: WireImage)
Many fans and music publications dubbed him “this generation’s Kurt Cobain”, after the late singer of Nirvana.
Life seemed to be going well, but behind the scenes he was struggling with depression, bipolar disorder and substance abuse.
He often wrote about these themes in his work. His many face tattoos also inspired fans to get tattoo artwork of their own.
Death
(Image: PA)
In November 2017, just hours before he went onstage Lil Peep was in the back of his tour bus, getting high with two young fans in Tucson, Arizona, according to Rolling Stone.
They were smoking a potent version of weed. One of the fans that was smoking with him on the bus was 16-year-old Nick Dowd.
He told the magazine: “He was in a very good mood.”
He quoted Lil Peep as looking out of the window and saying: “Today is a good day. Not every day is a good day, but today is. I feel good.”
(Image: Getty Images)
Just over 30 minutes later, Lil Peep went to sleep and never woke up again.
The autopsy that followed ruled that his death was an accidental overdose.
The toxicology report found high levels of fentanyl and Xanax, along with cocaine, marijuana and other opiates.
Tucson Police Department believe Peep didn’t know he was taking fentanyl, which is deadly in even the tiniest amount.
(Image: Getty Images)
Something he took meant he had more than twice the lethal dose in his system.
His mother, Liza Womack, told RS: “At home, he didn’t do drugs like this. He knew not to do crazy stuff.”
Months before his death, he wrote a text in his phone that read: “I’m under a lot of pressure from a lot of people and I’m on a lot of drugs with no sleep.”
(Image: Instagram)
His tour manager arrived to check on him to wake him up to play a concert that night, and noticed his lips were blue.
Several attempts were made to resuscitate the star, but tragically it was too late.
He was dead at just 21 years old.
Fans around the world were in mourning, and a giant image of Lil Peep was displayed on the Houses Of Parliament as his supporters gathered around the world to grieve.
(Image: PA)
More of his music and a documentary has since been released posthumously, with many artists crediting him as an inspiration to them.
It’s still not known exactly how Lil Peep came to take the fatal dose of fentanyl, and his bereaved mother is still searching for answers years after his death.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
