Steve Harwell, the retired lead singer of the rock band Smash Mouth, is receiving hospice care following a lengthy health battle, E! News reports.
The 56-year-old Steve Harwell is “resting at home” and “being cared for by his fiancé and hospice care,” his rep, Robert Hayes, told E! News in a statement Sept. 3. “Although Steve is here with us still, sadly it will only be for a short time. We would hope that people would respect Steve and his family’s privacy during this difficult time.”
Entertainment Weekly quoted a rep for the band as saying Steve is back home with “only a week or so to live,” adding that for the past three days, his loved ones have gathered to be with him.
Harwell co-founded Smash Mouth in 1994 and the group rose to international fame with hits such as “All Star,” “Walkin’ on the Sun” and a cover of The Monkees’ “I’m a Believer,” which is featured in the 2001 animated film Shrek.
“Steve’s iconic voice is one of the most recognizable voices from his generation,” his rep told E! News. “Steve loved the fans and loved to perform.”
For the past decade, Steve Harwell battled heart and neurological conditions. The singer retired in October 2021 to focus on his health after exhibiting concerning behavior while performing with Smash Mouth in Bethel, New York.
The band’s rep told the Los Angeles Times at the time that the singer left the group to focus on longstanding medical issues, adding, “Despite Steve’s best efforts to work through these ailments, he is heartbroken to share that it has become impossible for him to continue doing what he loves most, performing in front of the band’s millions of fans around the world.”
The rep also told the newspaper that Harwell “has suffered profusely over the years with several types of addiction leading to medical and mental health issues,” including cardiomyopathy and Wernickes encephalopathy, a neurological condition that “has greatly impacted his motor functions including speech and impaired memory.”