Steve Harwell’s Cause Of Death Revealed
via @Newsmax / YouTube
Steve Harwell, best known as the lead singer of the beloved band Smash Mouth, passed away on Monday morning at his home in Boise, Idaho, surrounded by his loved ones. He was 56 years old. The cause of his passing was confirmed as liver failure by the band’s manager, Robert Hayes.
Harwell had been under hospice care in his final days and was given only a short time to live over the weekend, according to TMZ.
He was receiving end-of-life care at home, supported by his family and friends. Reports suggest that his health battles, including struggles with alcohol abuse, contributed to his passing.
Steve Harwell, along with his bandmates, founded Smash Mouth in 1994 in San Jose, California. The band gained widespread fame with hits like “All Star” and “Walkin’ on the Sun.” Harwell once expressed his pride in “Walkin’ on the Sun,” the breakout hit from their debut album “Fush Yu Mang,” stating that the song had a transformative impact on music, changing the way people listened to it.
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Smash Mouth’s next album, “Astro Lounge,” featured the chart-topping hit “All Star,” which earned a Grammy Award nomination and appeared in numerous films.
The song’s inclusion in the opening credits of the movie Shrek catapulted the band to even greater fame. Harwell acknowledged in 2019 that they had no idea how enormous Shrek would become and how it would forever connect their music to the film.
With nearly a billion streams on Spotify, “All Star” stands as the band’s most iconic song. They also achieved success with their cover of the Monkees’ “I’m a Believer,” featured on the Shrek soundtrack.
In 2021, Harwell made the decision to step away from Smash Mouth and retire from performing altogether after an erratic performance in New York, during which he was observed slurring his words and using profanity.
He had previously taken a break from performing earlier that year, citing heart problems. Following Harwell’s departure, Smash Mouth released new singles this year with a different lead singer.
Throughout his life, Steve Harwell faced numerous challenges. Tragically, his infant son Presley passed away in July 2001 at just 6 months old due to leukemia. In his son’s memory, Harwell established a medical research fund. Additionally, Harwell battled his own health issues, receiving a diagnosis of cardiomyopathy in 2013 and Wernicke encephalopathy, a condition that affects motor functions like speech and memory and can lead to heart failure.
