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Over the weekend, the deaths of 28-year-old Tim Bergling, better known by his stage name Avicii, and 49-year-old actor Verne Troyer were announced within the space of 24 hours.
Bergling, a wildly successful Swedish producer and DJ, died on Friday in Muscat, Oman. His cause of death is currently unknown or being withheld, but has been ruled “not suspicious”.
Troyer, who played the iconic role of Mini-Me in the Austin Powers franchise, died on Saturday after being admitted to hospital with high levels of alcohol in his system, US Weekly reports. A statement released by his family acknowledged “depression and suicide are very serious issues,” and “you never know what kind of battle someone is going through inside,” suggesting mental health might have been a factor in his passing.
Bergling and Troyer were two very different men, with two very different lives. But they had one common battle.
Avicii started making music in his late teens and early twenties, and released music at an incredible rate. In 2011, his song Levels hit number one in Sweden and the United States, and launched his career as a remixer, DJ and producer in the international music scene. But at just 21, he suffered acute pancreatitis during his US tour – brought on in part by excessive alcohol consumption. He was hospitalised for 11 days, and had his gallbladder and appendix removed.
“Yeah I was drinking way too much, partying in general way too much,” he told Time magazine. “Then I got a pancreatitis attack, which is very rare. So that forced me to do a 180 and stop drinking.”
He said the electronic dance music scene required a life of heavy partying, and doing 800 live shows had taken a toll on his mental health.