The sudden death of rapper Mac Miller (Malcom McCormick) was caused by a suspected drug overdose, TMZ reports. Law enforcement informed TMZ that the 26-year-old was found in his home on Friday around noon by a friend who immediately called 911. The dispatch audio of the phone call reveals that Miller was apparently in cardiac arrest. While the cause of death has not yet been confirmed, the star’s public history of drug use and ill effects does support the claim.
For years, TMZ says, the rapper has faced issues with substance use. Most recently, he was charged with a DUI and hit-and-run charges shortly after his breakup with singer Ariana Grande. In May, Miller reportedly wrapped his vehicle around a utility pole and fled the scene. Once he was at home, Miller allegedly confessed to the charges and then blew two times the legal alcohol limit into a breathalyzer. TMZ also speculates that his breakup caused him emotional turmoil, possibly leading to a heavy relapse.
However, many have been fast to defend Grande on Twitter, claiming that the rapper’s death should not be blamed on their breakup.
Hi hello as you discuss the untimely and tragic death of Mac Miller, friendly reminder that it’s in no way, shape, or form Ariana Grande’s doing. Do not blame someone for leaving a situation they knew was unhealthy and detrimental. She did nothing wrong. This is not her fault.
— Danielle Campoamor (@DCampoamor) September 7, 2018
Besides the accident, the artist has been open about his involvement with substance use in the past. A mixtape he released in 2014, called “Faces,” featured extensive material about the artist’s past drug use, and even alluded to premature death, TMZ says.
In contrast to the suspicions that his death was caused by a drug overdose , People reports that after Miller’s May accident, he issued a statement implying that he was doing fine.
“I made a stupid mistake. I’m a human being. But it was the best thing that could have happened. Best thing that could have happened. I needed that. I needed to run into that light pole and literally have the whole thing stop.”
Miller’s death comes at a time of opioid crisis in the United States. Earlier today, the Inquisitr reported that Purdue Pharma is making changes in their coverage policy regarding the commonly abused pain-killer OxyContin next year to help fight the epidemic.
If we have learned anything from the untimely death of Mac Miller, it’s that there is never a way to know what is truly going on in the lives of those who struggle with substance issues. Here are Miller’s own words from a People interview earlier this year.
“I have people that care about me and fans that love my music and it’s a beautiful relationship with them — people who have been with me through being a 19-year-old wide-eyed kid to being a self-destructive depressed drug user to making love music to all these different stages. Then they see something like that and they worry. So your first reaction is, ‘Let me tell them I’m cool.’”