Singer and Madonna protégé Nick Kamen died Tuesday after a battle with cancer. He was 59.
"If you didn't have a crush on Nick Kamen in the 80s, you probably weren't there,” tweeted British comedian Matt Lucas.
It breaks my heart to know you are gone. You were always such a kind sweet human and you suffered too much. Hope you are happier wherever you are Nick Kamen. pic.twitter.com/Cfk8vkM1Je
— Madonna (@Madonna) May 5, 2021
Duran Duran’s John Taylor remembered Kamen as “one of the loveliest and gentlest men I ever met” and Culture Club singer Boy George called him “the most beautiful and sweetest man.”
Born Ivor Neville Kamen in England, he worked as a model in his early 20s and found fame by stripping down in a laundromat in a 1985 commercial for Levis jeans.
Kamen kicked off a pop music career with “Each Time You Break My Heart,” a song written and produced by Madonna and Stephen Bray that features Madonna’s backing vocals. It was a modest hit in Canada but made the Top 10 in the UK and several European countries.
Bray tweeted: “I’m sending light and love to Nick’s loved ones during this difficult time and wishing his beautiful soul a peaceful journey.”
Kamen – who released five studio albums between 1987 and 1992 – also had some success in Europe with his 1987 cover of the Four Tops song “Loving You Is Sweeter Than Ever” and with 1988’s “Tell Me” (also featuring Madonna’s backing vocals) and 1990’s “I Promised Myself.”