Grimes Manager Lauren Valencia Dies of Cancer: ‘I Think the Gods Just Wanted You Back’
Veteran artist manager Lauren Valencia has lost her battle with cancer, prompting an outpouring from artists she had worked with over the years, including members of My Chemical Romance, Grimes and…
Veteran artist manager Lauren Valencia has lost her battle with cancer, prompting an outpouring from artists she had worked with over the years, including My Chemical Romance and Grimes, as well as friends and colleagues.
“The world is dimmer today, but I will always have your light to get me through,” said former MCR frontman Gerard Way in a statement on Instagram. Valencia managed the post-hardcore favorites during their later years, helping Way as he “struggled with being on a long and sometimes hard to process journey.”
Valencia joined Roc Nation in 2012 and notably worked with Grimes, who called her “the best manager a girl could ask for.”
Added Grimes, also on Instagram, “I loved you. Boy, did I love you. Life is beautiful, but we are not entitled to it. Cancer has no intention. It’s just life and death. So I don’t need to cry for you anymore. I think the Gods just wanted you back.”
“Our hearts are heavy,” said Jay Brown, CEO of Roc Nation. “We’ve lost a family member in the physical world but we know Lauren’s spirit will continue on until the end of time. She lived in love, happiness, empathy and camaraderie. The world is a better place because Lauren walked among us.”
Ex-MCR guitarist Frank lero said Valencia was “one of the kindest most hardworking people” he ever worked with and “the only reason anything got done in the last years” of the beloved band. “She absolutely kept us sane for way longer than we could have on our own.”
Elsewhere, MCR biographer Tom Bryant called Valencia an “absolute rock” and Mindless Self Indulgence bassist Lindsey Way (married to Gerard) shared that she was able to spend time with her friend on the eve of her passing.
“I held her hand yesterday and today she’s gone,” Lindsey Way said. “I was able to tell her how much I loved her, how much better my life was because she was in it. I was fortunate to be able to do that. Please don’t wait, you may never get the chance.”