Gone but Not Forgotten

Over the decades, substance abuse has claimed the lives of many entertainers. Here are four icons whose candle burned out long before the legend ever did, writes LIAM KARABO JOYCE

BRENDA FASSIE

The news of Brenda Fassie’s death rocked South Africa. In April, 2004, Fassie collapsed at her home in Buccleuch, Gauteng. She was admitted to a hospital in Sunninghill with initial reports saying she had suffered cardiac arrest. However, it was later reported she had slipped into a coma brought on by an asthma attack. The post-mortem report revealed that she had taken an overdose of cocaine on the night of her collapse, and this was the cause of her coma. She stopped breathing and suffered brain damage due to a lack of oxygen. She was 39.

WHITNEY HOUSTON

The award-winning singer’s battle with substance abuse became a major part of her adult life. Houston admitted to using cocaine after years of rumours around her erratic behaviour.

On February 11, 2012, Houston was found unconscious in Suite 434 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, submerged in the bathtub. Beverly Hills paramedics arrived at 3.30pm, found Houston unresponsive, and performed CPR. She was pronounced dead at 3.55pm. The cause of death was not immediately known.

By late March, the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office reported that Houston’s death was caused by drowning and the “effects of atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use”. She was 48.

PRINCE

Prince Rogers Nelson was known for what could only be described as a squeaky clean reputation. He lived a clean life, no alcohol or marijuana, he was vegan and even those around him could not indulge. However, the star had a problem with pain pills.

On April 21, at 9.43am, the Carver County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call requesting an ambulance be sent to Prince’s home at Paisley Park. Emergency responders found Prince unresponsive in a lift.

A paramedic said he had been dead for at least six hours. A press release from the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office in Anoka County on June 2 stated that the musician had died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl. He was 57.

AMY WINEHOUSE

One of Amy Winehouse’s most famous songs is titled Rehab, which is a fitting song in relation to her battles with substance abuse which were the subject of much media attention. On July 23, 2011 two ambulances were called to Winehouse’s home in Camden,

London and she was pronounced dead at the scene. A coroner’s inquest reached a verdict of misadventure. The report released on 26 October 2011 explained that Winehouse’s blood alcohol content was 416 mg per 100 ml (0.416%) at the time of her death, more than five times the legal drink-drive limit. In a June 2013 interview, Alex Winehouse said he believed his sister’s eating disorder, and the consequent physical weakness, was the primary cause of her death: “She suffered from bulimia very badly. That’s not, like, a revelation – you knew just by looking at her... She would have died eventually, the way she was going, but what really killed her was the bulimia...”