Ryan Breaux, the 18-year-old brother of singer-songwriter Frank Ocean, was reportedly killed in a single-vehicle car crash on Sunday.
According to CBS, Breaux and a friend named Ezekial “Zeek” Bishop were driving in California’s Westlake Village early on Sunday When their car reportedly hit a tree and “cut in half on impact.” When authorities arrived on the scene responding to calls of smoke near Skelton Canyon Circle around 1:30 a.m., the vehicle was engulfed in flames, and both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Several of Breaux’s friends wrote tributes to him on social media. Cambria Aguilar wrote “Ry, I don’t think I’ll ever recover. I will love you forever,” while Paris Brosnan, the son of actor Pierce Brosnan, wrote “you were a leader and you had a whole army of soldiers behind you. Thank you for being there when I needed you most...I will carry you in my heart always.”
Rapper/singer MadeInTYO wrote that Breaux was “a good kid,” while DJ Sango offered his condolences via Twitter.
Neither FrankOcean (born Christopher Breaux) nor his mother Katonya has released any statements about the fatal accident, however, through his music, it’s exceedingly clear how much the Grammy winner loved his younger brother.
His song “Orion” is largely believed to be about Ryan, due to the lyrics “I remember when you were born/Ohhh, how happy I was/cause If it didn’t go as I planned it/At least you’d double my chances…” The song also features advice to Ryan about not letting his time go to waste while he’s here. Ryan’s impromptu interview with his brother about life was also featured on Frank’s song “Futura Free,” which is found on his 2016 album Blonde.
We offer our condolences to Ryan’s family and friends.