Vic Chesnutt died Friday afternoon after slipping into a coma following a suicide attempt Thursday. He was 45.

Chesnutt’s friend Kristin Hersh reported news of his death on Twitter, where she had been posting updates on his status. His record label, Constellation, confirmed that he had died. The New York Times reported that Chesnutt took an overdose of muscle relaxants.

It was not the first time the Georgia singer and songwriter, paraplegic since a car accident in 1983, had tried to commit suicide. In a recent interview with Terry Gross on NPR, though, he seemed to distance himself from the notion.

“You know, I’ve — I attempted suicide three or four times,” Chesnutt said in discussing the song “Flirted With You All My Life,” from his 2009 album “At The Cut.” “It didn’t take. And this is really a breakup song with death.”

He later added, “I don’t deserve the sweet relief of death yet, because I haven’t accomplished my tasks yet.”

Chesnutt released 14 full-length solo albums between 1990-2009; before that, he was a member of the Athens, Ga., band the La-Di-Da’s.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his friends and family in this unimaginably difficult time.

December 25, 2009 at 1:39 pm | Share |