Brett-Livingstone Strong - Michael Jackson

Celebrity Disc Jockey DJ AM Found Dead In Apartment : NPR

August 28, 2009

DJ AM, the sought-after disc jockey who became a celebrity in his own right with high-profile romances and a glamorous lifestyle, was found dead Friday at his apartment, which had drug paraphernalia in it, a law enforcement official said.

Paramedics had to break down the door to his Manhattan apartment before they found his body at about 5:20 p.m., the official said on condition of anonymity because family hadn't been notified. There was no evidence of foul play, the official said.

DJ AM, whose real name was Adam Goldstein, had talked openly about past addictions to crack cocaine, Ecstasy and other drugs, but he claimed he had been drug-free for years.

Goldstein, 36, was a deejay for hire who performed at Hollywood's most exclusive parties and was admired by music aficionados. He also was famous for past relationships with the reality TV star Nicole Richie, the daughter of singer Lionel Richie, and with actress-singer Mandy Moore.

Goldstein was critically injured last September when a Learjet crashed on takeoff in Columbia, S.C. The plane was transporting Goldstein and Barker, a drummer for the pop punk band Blink-182, after a performance; the pair had formed the duo TRVSDJ-AM.

Barker and Goldstein were burned, though Barker was injured more severely. Goldstein had to get skin graft surgery, but about a month later, he was performing again, joining Jay-Z on stage.

At the time, he told People magazine he was grateful to survive.

"I can't believe I made it," he said. "I've prayed every night for the past 10 years. There's a lot more to thank God for now. ... I was saved for a reason. Maybe I'm going to help someone else. I don't question it. All I know is I'm thankful to be here."

Goldstein rose to fame several years ago as highly sought-after DJ whose beats kept the dance floor packed and clubgoers hypnotized.

Celebrities and fans instantly shared their reactions to his death on Twitter, where "RIP DJ AM" was the No. 1 topic Friday.

"I'm stunned. Rest in peace Adam," singer-songwriter Josh Groban posted.

"So horrible. In shock," wrote TV host Maria Menounos.

"Thoughts and strength goes out to friends and family," entertainer Solange Knowles wrote.

"He survived a deadly plane crash and now THIS," blogger Perez Hilton tweeted. "I can't stop crying."

Representatives for Moore and Barker didn't immediately return telephone messages seeking comment on the DJ's death.

Celebrity Disc Jockey DJ AM Found Dead In Apartment : NPR

Audio slideshow: Michael Jackson - man and music

Fans and contemporaries have been paying tribute to the king of pop - who has died at the age of 50. But what did Michael Jackson think of his own life and career?

Here - with the help of his music, and archive images from the days of the Jackson Five to the present - he reflects on his own vulnerabilities.

There are no captions with this slideshow.

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Audio slideshow: Michael Jackson - man and music

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OBITUARY: HERBERT SINGLETON 1945-2007 Raw Vision

OBITUARY: HERBERT SINGLETON 1945-2007
	Herbert Singleton photo: Andy Antippas, courtesy Gordon W. Bailey
	Gordon W. Bailey reports:
	Algiers, Louisiana artist, Herbert Singleton, died on July 25 of lung cancer. His boldly carved and painted cedar panels both skewered and exalted his life and times. Singleton displayed keen insight into the socio-economic limitations imposed upon many in the New Orleans area. He railed against hypocrisy on both sides of the racial divide. Singleton overcame many hardships, some compounded by his own misdeeds. He survived a near-fatal shooting, drug addiction and, all tolled, nearly 14 years in prison, many of them in the infamous Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. He first derived meaningful income from artistic endeavours in the early 1980s, carving walking sticks for New Orleans buggy drivers and 'voodoo protection' stumps for friends. After his final stint of incarceration, the dispirited artist was encouraged by a French Quarter gallery owner to carve out his pain. Singleton dismantled an old chifforobe (clothes cupboard) and created his first bas-relief panel: a stark white skeletal figure cut out of a black background, bordered by red. The heads of serpents peer from the 'infected' figure's ribcage (see Vodou and Catholicism, RV #30). In works such as Who Do We Trust and Who Speak For Man Singleton addressed our seeming inability to meet the standards we set for others (see Herbert Singleton, RV #40). In one masterwork, he carved self-destructive indulgences - drugs, gambling, sex - into a huge cypress log he salvaged from the Mississippi River. Exhibited as the Algiers Rosetta in High on Life: Transcending Addiction at the American Visionary Art Museum, Singleton referred to his work more directly as the Tree of Death. In other more festive works like his Jazz Funeral and Mardi Gras pieces he paid tribute to the uniqueness of New Orleans culture. Sadly, due to failing health, Singleton was unable to complete a post-Katrina work. Perhaps, upon full review of the artist's career, it can be said that he did indeed leave sufficient comment. Singleton's artworks are in numerous important public and private collections worldwide including the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, and Collection de l'Art Brut in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Raw Vision