UNITED STATES—Tim Bergling, the Electronic Dance Music (EDM) DJ known as Avicii, was found dead in his hotel room in Muscat, Oman on April 20. The musician was 28.
Famous for catchy dance tunes like “Levels” and “Wake Me Up,” Berling sky rocketed into DJ stardom. Avicii, as many know him, had a history of alcoholism and underwent gall bladder surgery in 2014. He suffered from acute pancreatitis, a result of alcohol abuse, and in 2016, the DJ tried to scale back his lifestyle.
“Two weeks ago, I took the time to drive across the U.S. with my friends and team, to just look and see and think about things in a new way,” Bergling said in 2016. “It really helped me realize that I needed to make the change that I’d been struggling with for a while.”
Two autopsies have been performed on the musician revealing nothing suspicious. Authorities do not suspect foul play in Bergling’s death.
“Our beloved Tim was a seeker, a fragile artistic soul searching for answers to existential questions. An over-achieving perfectionist who travelled and worked hard at a pace that led to extreme stress,” reads a statement from the Bergling family.
“He really struggled with thoughts about meaning, life, happiness,” the family wrote. “He could not go on any longer. He wanted to find peace.”
The family added that Bergling was “not made for the business machine he found himself in; he was a sensitive guy who loved his fans but shunned the spotlight..”
TMZ reported on Tuesday, May 1 that Avicii died from suicide, where he used a shard of glass from a wine bottle to cut himself.
His girlfriend, a Czech model named Tereza Kacerová, released a stream of pictures and video clips throughout the week and shared a letter she wrote to the late artist.
“We had so many plans,” she wrote. “You never got to show me Sweden in the summer and I never got to show you my South America.”
