Rock guitarist Wayne Swinny, one of Saliva’s founding members who helped start the band in 1996, died on Wednesday at the age of 59 after suffering a brain hemorrhage.
A representatives for the band told TMZ, “It is with great sadness that we report the passing of Wayne Swinny, the guitarist of Saliva. Wayne passed away this afternoon from a spontaneous brain hemorrhage while on tour.”
Saliva also took to Instagram, where they posted a photo of Swinny, alongside the caption, “Love you brother.”
The news of Swinny’s death came just hours after the band revealed the guitarist was in the ICU after having a medical emergency, TMZ noted. On Tuesday, Swinny was rushed to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with a spontaneous hemorrhage in his brain.
“I’m not even sure what to think or how to feel right now,” Saliva lead singer Bobby Amaru said. “My heart aches for Wayne’s family, his friends, and anyone who had the joy of being around him. My heart aches for his daughter Nikki. He loved that little girl so much.”
“He would go out of his way to make sure you had a good time,” the singer added. “I’m grateful that I got to share almost 12 years of my life with Wayne on the stage and most importantly off the stage.”
Amaru went on to call Swinny “the older brother I never had.”
“I learned so much from him and we had a f***ing blast together! I will cherish it all for the rest of my life! God Bless you Wayne. I know we’ll meet again!!” he said.
Saliva is perhaps best known for their 2001 hit, “Click Click Boom,” as well as their 2002 song, “Always.”
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