Aaron Carter dies aged 34: New details of the singer’s final weeks
New details of the final days and weeks of Aaron Carter reveal the singer’s plan to mend rift with brother and Backstreet Boys star, Nick Carter.
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Aaron Carter was striving for sobriety and had just begun working on a new album in the days and weeks before his death.
The singer’s manager, Taylor Helgeson, said Carter had begun working on “Love 2”, the highly-anticipated follow-up to his 2018 hit album, Love.
Taylor told TMZ that Carter considered the follow-up his best work and was excited about addressing his personal struggles in the album, which he hoped would mend relationships with brother Nick Carter and his family.
Taylor said he planned to use the music to tell them just how much he loves them, especially Nick, according to TMZ.
It comes as Carter’s friend, Gary Madatyan, revealed new details of the singer’s house the day after his body was discovered.
“I went to his bedroom, the bedroom was normal. I went to the bathroom where the bathtub was full of water, like, yellowish colour,” Mr Madatyan said, adding he saw aerosol cans in the home he alleged were used for “huffing”.
“I personally think he was on medication and had fallen asleep in a bathtub … I think it’s a tragic accident, because he loved life. He had so many plans. Even though he had mental issues, addiction, he loved life.”
Mr Madatyan said Carter was “really struggling” with the 2012 death of his sister, Leslie Carter, and a custody battle over his son Prince.
In his final interview before his death, Carter opened up about his personal struggles and fight for sobriety.
“I really believe in the Cali sober method. It helped me. So I actually just hit five years clean,” he said on the No Jumper podcast on November 2, just three days before his death.
“I take my medicine legally. I take Xanax,” he said, adding he doesn’t consider marijuana to be a drug. “I take everything legally.”
In the final interview before his death, Carter apologised to his brother over believing sexual assault allegations during the #MeToo era that he now believed to be false.
“To my brother, I would like to apologise and say I love you, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that,” Carter said. “I do not think they’re true at all, I completely dismiss them completely.”
NICK CARTER MOURNS BROTHER
Backstreet Boys star Nick Carter has paid tribute to his late younger brother, Aaron, after the 34-year-old star was found dead at his Los Angeles home.
In an emotional Instagram post, Nick Carter said that despite the pair’s “complicated relationship,” his love for his younger brother “has never ever faded”.
“My heart has been broken today. Even though my brother and I have had a complicated relationship, my love for him has never ever faded,” Nick Carter wrote.
“I have always held onto the hope, that he would somehow, some day want to walk a healthy path and eventually find the help that he so desperately needed,” he said in a caption alongside multiple photos of the two brothers through the years.
“Sometimes we want to blame someone or something for a loss. But the truth is that addiction and mental illness is the real villain here.
“I will miss my brother more than anyone will ever know,” he added.
“I love you Chizz, now you get a chance to finally have some peace you could never find here on earth …. God, please take care of my baby brother.”
It comes as Carter’s twin sister also paid tribute to the former child pop singer.
“To my twin … I loved you beyond measure,” Angel Carter wrote in a post on Instagram, alongside family photos of her and her brother as babies and young children.
“You will be missed dearly.”
“My funny, sweet Aaron, I have so many memories of you and I, and I promise to cherish them,” she continued.
“I know you’re at peace now. I will carry you with me until the day I die and get to see you again.”
‘HIS DEAD, HIS DEAD’: MAID HEARD SCREAMING
Carter was allegedly found dead in the bathtub of his home on November 5 after police responded to an emergency call, TMZ reported.
A representative for Carter later confirmed the death.
“It is with great regret to confirm Aaron Carter was found unresponsive this a.m. in his home in Palmdale, CA,” they said.
“The family has been notified and will be flying out to Los Angeles. Aaron worked very hard towards the end of his life in recovery, to be a good father and to make amends with his family.”
Neighbours said they heard Carter’s maid screaming, “He’s dead, he’s dead,” when she discovered the singer and reality star at his Californian home, sources have exclusively told The US Sun.
His shocked on/off partner Melanie Martin, 30, who is the mother of his son Prince, was later spotted at the scene, appearing distraught as she sat outside the house.
Homicide detectives were dispatched, a standard procedure for deaths under such circumstances.
A friend said they believed Aaron did not kill himself and that he had plans to go into the studio to record new music next week.
HILLARY DUFF: ‘BOY DID MY TEENAGE SELF LOVE YOU’
Carter’s former Lizzie McGuire co-star Hilary Duff also paid tribute to the fallen star.
“For Aaron – I’m deeply sorry that life was so hard for you and that you had to struggle in-front of the whole world,” Duff wrote on Instagram.
“You had a charm that was absolutely effervescent … boy did my teenage self love you deeply,” she added. “Sending love to your family at this time.”
Actress Melissa Joan Hart also expressed her condolences, posting a photo of herself with Carter and writing, “Sending love to the family and friends and fans of #AaronCarter. Rest In Peace!”
The band New Kids on the Block who often toured with the Backstreet Boys similarly shared their sympathies in a statement on Twitter: “We are shocked and saddened about the sudden passing of Aaron Carter. Sending prayers to the Carter family. Rest in peace, Aaron.”
FAMILY ISSUES
The singer had long struggled with his mental health and substance abuse issues.
Carter at times had a difficult relationship with Angel and oldest brother Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys.
In 2019, Nick Carter announced he and Angel had filed for a restraining order against their brother, saying in a statement his youngest brother allegedly harboured “intentions of killing my wife and unborn child.”
Carter had denied the allegations, saying he did not wish any harm on anyone.
A spokesman for Nick Carter confirmed his younger brother’s death to the New York Post.
He was also preparing to sue his ex-fiancee Melanie Martin for defamation of character after she claimed he broke three of her ribs in a fight.
In a TikTok posted to TMZ, Carter claimed the lawsuit would be a “Johnny Depp-Amber Heard 2.0” and denied suggestions he needed to go to a rehab facility.
CARTER’S EERIE FINAL POST
Carter was active across social media only hours before his death, posting on TikTok and Instagram in his final days.
His final social media post was a music video shared to Instagram that showed the singer-turned-rapper singing the lyrics: “I’ll tell my honey I’ll be gone but it’s not for long.”
Aaron Carter shot to fame back in the late 1990s as a pop singer, releasing four studio albums, starting with his self-titled debut album in 1997 at the age of nine.
He released his first self-titled debut album, which sold a million copies, that same year and went on to open for other major acts including Britney Spears.
As a child star he sold millions of records with pop hits like I’m All About You, I Want Candy, and Aaron’s Party (Come Get It)”.
He later acted in film and television shows including Lizzie McGuire and 7th Heaven.
The singer struggled with substance abuse issues over the years as well as body dysmorphia and is survived by his young son, Prince.
His sister, Leslie, died of a drug overdose at the age of 25 in 2012.
As recently as September, Carter revealed that he had “voluntarily” checked into an outpatient program of a rehab centre in order to try and regain custody of his 11-month-old son.
Carter’s on and off girlfriend, Melanie Martin, the mother of Prince, posted to TikTok crying just minutes after the announcement.
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