Nell Smith, Musical Prodigy and Flaming Lips Collaborator, Dies at 17

"Hold your kids extra tight tonight," the young musician's family wrote in a social media tribute

Nell Smith, whose blossoming music résumé included collaborating with The Flaming Lips when she was just 14, has died. She was 17.

Simon Raymonde, the head of Bella Union, the record label planning to release Nell's upcoming solo album, announced her death on Monday, Oct. 7.

"We are all shocked and devastated to hear of the sudden and tragic passing of our artist and dear friend Nell Smith, over the weekend in British Columbia," Raymonde wrote on Instagram. "Nell was just 17 and was preparing for the release of her first solo record in early 2025 on Bella Union, made in Brighton with Penelope Isles’ Jack and Lily Wolter. Her first release was an album of covers of Nick Cave songs recorded with fellow Bella Union artistes The Flaming Lips back in 2021 entitled, 'Where The Viaduct Looms.' "

Nell's family also confirmed her death on Oct. 7, saying she “was cruelly taken from us” on Saturday, Oct. 5.

“It pains us so much to say that our feisty, talented, unique, beautiful daughter was cruelly taken from us on Saturday night,” the singer-songwriter's parents and family members Jude, Rachel, Jed and Ike wrote in an emotional tribute on Instagram.

“We are reeling from the news and don’t know what to do or say,” they continued. “She had so much more to experience and to give this world but we are grateful that she got to experience so very much in her 17 years. She has left an indelible mark on the word and an unfillable chasm in our hearts.”

During The Flaming Lips' Oct. 6 concert in Portland, Ore., frontman Wayne Coyne said Nell had been in a “car accident.”

“We have a very sad announcement to make tonight,” Coyne said in footage captured by a fan. “We have a Canadian friend, her name is Nell. ... We got some very sad messages today that she was killed in a car accident last night and we're reminded once again of the power of music.”

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Coyne, Nell and the band collaborated on Where The Viaduct Looms, a cover album of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ music, including “The Weeping Song,” which Nell posted a music video for in May 2022.

Nell was working on her first solo album in 2024, for which she had launched a successful Kickstarter fundraising page to help fund it. She raised more than $17,000, surpassing her initial goal of $10,000.

“We made it!!!!!!! I am SO GRATEFUL for all of the support that I have received!!!!” she wrote to her fans in June.

Her family concluded their Instagram tribute on Monday with, “Hold your kids extra tight tonight and for now please leave us to work through things. We will shout when we need you.”

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