Beckett Cypher, the son of singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge and filmmaker Julie Cypher, has died, aged 21.
Etheridge announced that Cypher had “succumbed” to an addiction to opioids, writing on Twitter: “Today I joined the hundreds of thousands of families who have lost loved ones to opioid addiction.”
“My heart is broken,” she continued. “I am grateful for those who have reached out with condolences and I feel their love and sincere grief. We struggle with what else we could have done to save him, and in the end we know he is out of the pain now.
“He will be missed by those who loved him, his family and friends,” she said, promising her fans that she “will sing again, soon” after cancelling a planned “concert from home”.
He is one of two children that same-sex couple Etheridge and Cypher had together during their partnership – Bailey and Beckett were both born to Cypher via artificial insemination in 1997.
The couple revealed the biological father to be singer David Crosby in 2000 with all five appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone as well as participating in a high-profile interview on US show 60 Minutes.
In 2016, Etheridge – who split from Cypher in 2001 – revealed they had considered Brad Pitt to be the father of the children until she “saw how badly” he wanted his own.
Etheridge also has 13-year-old twins with Tammy Lynn Michaels.
If you have been affected by this article, you can contact the following organisations for support:
nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/drug-addiction-getting-help
