John Blackwell Jr., best known as a drummer for one of Prince's bands, has been pronounced dead at age 43, following a battle with cancer.
The news of Blackwell's death came courtesy of a message from his wife, who shared the sad news on the drummer's Instagram page. A picture that appears to be her holding his hand during his final moments was accompanied by a brief caption.
"My husband incredible drummer John Blackwell Jr. passed [away] peacefully in my company today," she said. "Thanks God for his life and thanks everyone for their support."
When news of his death hit social media, other players around the music industry saw fit to pay their respects to the musician, including Blink 182's Travis Barker and another longtime Prince collaborator, Sheila E.
Blackwell spent over a decade as the drummer for Prince's band The New Power Generation, following stints alongside artists like Patti Labelle. After playing alongside Prince propelled him to new heights, Blackwell was able to tour with a number of major artists in various genres, including Justin Timberlake, Bootsy Collins, and D'Angelo. Blackwell was also a part of Prince's 2003 instrumental album News, which was nominated for the Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Album.
The drummer had been battling complications from brain tumors since at least June 2016.
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