RIP Steve Harwell 🕊️

On Monday, Steve Harwell, the frontman of Smash Mouth, the alternative rock group renowned for their enduring pop hit “All Star,” passed away at the age of 56.

The band’s manager officially announced this sad news, revealing that Harwell had passed away at his residence in Boise, Idaho.

The day before, TMZ had reported that Harwell was in the advanced stages of liver failure and had entered hospice care. In 2021, Harwell had made the decision to retire from Smash Mouth, citing his deteriorating health as the reason. He openly shared, “I’ve made every effort to push through my physical and mental health challenges, hoping to perform one last time for you all, but regrettably, it was beyond my capabilities,” as he conveyed during his retirement announcement.

This decision came after a performance in upstate New York, during which Harwell’s speech was slurred, and he made unsettling gestures towards the audience, including what appeared to be a Nazi salute. A band representative later explained that Harwell had “endured significant struggles over the years with various addictions,” resulting in health problems such as cardiomyopathy, which affects the heart’s ability to pump blood, and Wernicke’s encephalopathy, significantly impairing his motor skills, speech, and memory.