Mikey Welsh

Mikey Welsh (twitgoo.com)

Sad news coming from the music world.

Mikey Welsh, the former bass player for the alternative rock band Weezer, was found dead in a Chicago hotel on Sunday.

The sad news was informed by a police spokeswoman, Laura Kubiak, who said that workers at the Rafaello Hotel were the ones who found the body of 40-year-old Welsh.

After Welsh failed to check out as scheduled, the workers went to his room on Saturday afternoon, only to find the musician unresponsive and not breathing.

In notifying fans of his death, the band members said in a statement on their website: “Mikey was never one to shy away from the absurd, dangerous or strange, and he did so with a gusto few others had.”

“No one had quite the stage presence of Mikey, nor have there been many who pulled the types of shenanigans he did at shows. If it rocked, he had to try it—and he always found a way to pull it off,” the statement added.

Condolences were also shared by the current members of the band via their website. Karl Koch wrote he and his bandmates had lost their beautiful, creative, hilarious and sweet friend.

The band also described Welsh as a unique talent, a deeply loving friend and father, and a great artist that they will never forget .

Welsh played with the band from 1998. He left the band in 2001 after a well-publicized nervous breakdown, resurfacing later as an artist and painter.

He had been in Chicago to attend Weezer’s appearance at RiotFest on Sunday night. The band had confirmed that the concert will still go on as scheduled.

While autopsy results are still pending, authorities said a drug overdose is suspected as Welsh’s cause of death.

Rest in peace, Mikey.

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