Singer, rapper and former teenage heartthrob Aaron Carter was found dead at his home in Lancaster north of Los Angeles on Saturday at the age of 34.
Firefighters and paramedics were dispatched at 11 a.m. to a home in the area of Valley Vista Drive and Avenue L-6 regarding a drowning, according to a Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatcher. A watch commander at the sheriff’s Lancaster station told City News Service that deputies were dispatched at 10:58 a.m. to a home at 42502 Valley Vista Drive.
“We went there for a person not breathing and he was pronounced dead,” the watch commander said.
The victim was first identified as Carter by the entertainment website TMZ, which reported that Carter apparently drowned in a bathtub. His death was later confirmed by Carter’s management company.
“We are shocked and utterly heartbroken to learn that Aaron has left us today,” his manger Roger Paul said in a statement provided to CNS. “Aaron is someone who we’ve cultivated a close relationship to over the last decade. He was adventurous and impulsive — many know about his recent wild ways.
“But what a lot of people didn’t know about Aaron is that he was as tender-hearted as they come. He was courteous. He genuinely cared for others, and the love he felt for those around him was immeasurable; so much so, that we believe it’s safe to say its transcending timelines.
“We can still feel his presence and warmth around us,” the statement continued. “Aaron knew sometimes he didn’t make the greatest decisions, but he suffered the consequences of that. He let himself be submerged in guilt, but he continued to venture on, trying to make things right and trying to make amends.
” Aaron Carter truly loved life. He was free-spirited and sought all the pleasures and pleasantries this world has to offer. Because of this attitude and approach to living, he was able to give so freely and energetically when it came to his music and his acting. We are sad to have to let him go, and we’ll miss him tremendously.”
Born in Tampa, Carter sold a million copies of his self- titled debut album in 1997 at age nine. His 2000 follow-up “Aaron’s Party (Come Get It)” sold three times that many in the United States alone.
Over the next several years Carter appeared on Nickelodeon and recorded a couple more successful albums. He later appeared on “Dancing with the Stars” and in the Broadway musical “Seussical.” He headlined a world tour in late 2014.
Carter was also the younger brother of the Backstreet Boys’ Nick Carter, and opened for the famous boy band in the late 1990s.
Recent years saw him in the news for a myriad of legal, drug and relationship troubles.
“It’s all a beautiful blessing because I’ve had a lot of relationships and I started [to] kind of [give] up on love,” he told Us Weekly in 2021, referring the birth of his first child. “I was talking about having a family years ago. I [wanted] to be at home and enjoy the love of my life and my child. Now that it’s here, it’s like an epiphany. Every minute now has become so precious and every bit of time that slips by now … I’ve [really] switched my gears of thinking. I’ve given a lot of people second and third chances, as you can see with us and the stuff that we’ve gone through.”
Carter tweeted on Oct. 29 that he was selling his Lancaster house, linking to a listing for $799,900 on Zillow. The two-story home has seven bedroom and four bathrooms.
“Selling my 2nd home. Real estate has been super good to me,” Carter tweeted. “Ready for a new chapter in my 3rd home which I plan on staying to make a beautiful life for my family. This year has been super tough but I’ve learned so much. Thanks for the support everyone.”