Tributes are pouring in for Canadian singer Devon Niko, who died Sunday. He was 53.
“I am shocked and sad,” shared friend and frequent collaborator Serge Côté, on Facebook. “Just a few days ago, he was asking me about writing and recording new songs together … Devon and I wrote and produced many songs from the mid-90s to early 2000s. His voice had a very deep tone, warm and silky...like velvet.”
Ottawa music scene veteran Dave Bigelow wrote: “He was a sweet and gentle soul and he will be dearly missed. We had some very memorable moments together recording his album at Atomic Productions and especially the filming of his music video for ‘All the Way’ in New York City. Always loved his big voice and passionate delivery.”
Niko released several albums, including 1993’s Touch The Fire and 1995’s Solitude, and was briefly signed to Sony Music Europe.
The singer, who struggled with health issues for about a decade, said in April that his liver transplant had been “put on hold” due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Only three months earlier, he shared his optimism on Facebook. “To be here today is a gift that I don’t take for granted. Thanks to an incredible medical team who have worked hard and, after a long wait, secured a consultation appointment for me in Toronto with the transplant specialists in just a few days from now! Not out the woods yet, but it’s a pretty good step in the right direction.”
In early April, Niko posted a video of himself singing Joshua Kadison’s 1994 song “Beautiful in My Eyes.”
“We won't say goodbye, 'cause true-love never dies,” he sang. "You'll always be beautiful, in my eyes / You will always be, beautiful in my eyes / And the passing years will show / that you will always grow / evermore beautiful, in my eyes.”