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Meat Loaf was an accomplished singer and actor who died on January 20, 2022, at the age of 74, his family confirmed on Facebook. TMZ reported the late rockstar died from COVID 19. It is unclear if he was vaccinated.
“Our hearts are broken,” the message read, revealing at the time of his death he was surrounded by family and close friends including his wife Deborah and daughters Pearl and Amanda.
Referencing his career, his family wrote that he sold “over 100 Million albums worldwide and [starred] in over 65 movies, including ‘Fight Club’, ‘Focus’, ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ and ‘Wayne’s World.’ ‘Bat Out of Hell’ remains one of the top 10 selling albums of all time.”
“We know how much he meant to so many of you and we truly appreciate all of the love and support as we move through this time of grief in losing such an inspiring artist and beautiful man,” the post continued. “We thank you for your understanding of our need for privacy at this time.”
They concluded, “From his heart to your souls…don’t ever stop rocking!”
While Meat Loaf adopted his childhood nickname as his stage name, he was born Marvin Lee Aday on September 27, 1947, in Dallas, Texas.
According to Biography.com, he left for Los Angeles, California in 1967. He had a short-lived band Meat Loaf Soul before starting his career in musical theater with a role in “Hair.”
The outlet reported the surprise success of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in 1975 and his “landmark” album “Bat Out of Hell” in 1977 would serve as a launchpad for decades in the entertainment industry.
He also competed on “Celebrity Apprentice” in 2011.
Meat Loaf Faced Health Issues in Recent Years
Meat Loaf faced his share of health struggles in recent years, with three known instances of on-stage collapses. The first of which occurred in 2003 and led to his diagnosis of Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, according to Biography.com. The condition causes a rapid heartbeat.
In 2011, at the age of 63, he collapsed during a performance in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. NME reported Meat Loaf cited asthma as the cause.
Again in 2016, he fainted during a gig in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, CBC reported. Months after the incident, he went on to address it during an interview with “Oprah: Where Are They Now?”
“It was about nine minutes before the end of the show. So I hit the high note of ‘Anything for Love,’ and when I did, the room just started spinning” he said. While trying to take a seat, he “just fainted dead away” and dropped the microphone.
“No matter what it was, if it was onstage in Broadway, doing a show, doing this interview with you, I gave every moment, everything that I had,” Meat Loaf continued. “I said, ‘If I’m going to go out, let it be on stage.’”
He revealed he told his band, “If I die on stage, you play ‘Swing Low Sweet Chariot’ and then you get the audience in a sing-along of ‘Take Me Out To The Ballgame.'”
Meat Loaf Earned His Moniker as a Child
Meat Loaf revealed the origin of his nickname in an interview for “Oprah: Where Are They Now?” in 2016.
“I got it when I was four days old, not the ‘Loaf’ part, just the ‘Meat’ because I was born bright red,” he said.
After it was suggested he stay additional days in the hospital, the singer quoted his dad saying, “So, I want you to name my son there because he looks like nine-and-a-half pounds of ground chuck. I want you to put the name tag on the front of that plastic crib and it say ‘Meat’ on it.”
He earned the “Loaf” years later in eighth grade. As he recounted, “I stepped on a coach’s foot and he screamed, ‘Get off my foot you hunk of meatloaf.’”
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