Madonna's younger brother dies days after devastating family loss
Madonna's younger brother Christopher Ciccone has died at the age of 63. One close friend paid tribute and said: "He was an extremely talented man with a wicked sense of humor". Christopher's tragic passing comes days after the death of his and Madonna's stepmother, Joan, who died on Tuesday 24 September after a short but 'aggressive' battle with cancer. Madonna's older brother also passed away last year.
Christopher and Madonna grew up together in Michigan with Christopher then following his sister to New York where she began her career as a pop sensation. Christopher was even a back-up dancer for Madonna and frequently performed with her in the early ‘80s. Christopher later worked as a designer, artist and director.
Christopher and Madonna worked closely together for years, however had a falling out in 2008 which was documented in Christopher's book 'Life with My Sister Madonna'.
READ MORE:TikTok star dies at 25, as husband says 'she's dancing in heaven'
READ MORE:Iconic Radio 2 star steps down after diagnosis with incurable health condition
However, the pair seemed to repair their rift later on, during an interview with the with Evening Standard in 2012, Christoper said: "[We are] on a perfectly personable level right now. As far as I’m concerned, we’re good. We are in contact with each other, although I haven’t seen her for a long time. We’re back to being a brother and sister. I don’t work for her, and it’s better this way."
Madonna and Christopher's stepmother, Joan, passed away just last month. A memorial pst online revealed her family's sadness over the loss. It read: "Joan Clare Ciccone passed away peacefully early in the morning of September 24th, 2024, after a brief encounter with a very aggressive cancer. She will be terribly missed by her family and friends whose lives she enriched with her enthusiasm, joy and love."
Joan married Silvio in 1966 following the death of his first wife - Madonna's mother who shared the same name as the singer - and took on his six kids. They had three children of their own including a son who died shortly after birth. The obituary added: "She took special joy in her grandkids later in life and with the grim cancer prognosis lamented that she was sad she would not see them marry and have kids of their own."
Madonna's mother died in 1963 after a battle with breast cancer when the pop star was five years old and she later admitted she had a difficult relationship with her stepmum Joan.
During an appearance on Larry King's talk show in 2002, Madonna explained she struggled to accept change after her mother passed away. She said: " Truthfully I didn't accept my stepmother when I was growing up. In retrospect, I think that was really hard on her. She was [trying] … I’m very close to my father and I didn’t want to accept change in my life."
