OAN’s Abril Elfi
10:27 AM – Monday, September 4, 2023
Steve Harwell, the former lead singer of Smash Mouth, has died in his home at 56.
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A statement sent to the press on Monday confirmed the death of the rockstar. Robert Hayes, Smash Mouth’s manager, said in the statement that he “passed peacefully and comfortably” at home in Boise, Idaho, “surrounded by friends and family.”
“Steve Harwell was a true American Original,” the statement read. “A larger-than-life character who shot up into the sky like a Roman candle. Steve should be remembered for his unwavering focus and impassioned determination to reach the heights of pop stardom. And the fact that he achieved this near-impossible goal with very limited musical experience makes his accomplishments all the more remarkable.”
According to Hayes, Harwell struggled with alcoholism which prompted liver failure and was told he only had days left to live.
Hayes also stated that the singer was at home in hospice care due to his liver disease progressing too far.
“Even though Steve has not been with Smash Mouth for two years now, and the band continues to tour with new vocalist Zach Goode, his legacy will live on through the music,” Hayes added.
In 2021, Harwell announced his retirement from the band, which formed in the 1990s and wrote hit songs including “All Star” and a cover of the Monkees’ “I’m a Believer” which were featured in the 2001 animated movie Shrek.
The 56-year-old’s retirement came after an incident in 2021 in which the singer was captured on camera slurring his speech, threatening the audience, and seemingly offering a Nazi salute to the crowd at the Big Sip wine and spirits festival in Bethel, New York.
Representatives of the band told the press at the time that he would retire and that the incident was related to “long-term medical issues” and Harwell had “suffered numerous symptoms directly linked with his current medical situation.”
His cause of death was not released publicly, although Harwell was allegedly diagnosed with cardiomyopathy eight years before the incident and had heart failure which is frequently caused by “long-term heavy alcohol use.”
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