Carmela Wallace, Juice WRLD's mother, has written a touching message to her son on what would have been his 23rd birthday.
"I never imagined you to not be here today celebrating your birthday when you were born 23 years ago," Carmela writes in her letter. "I still think about you every day, even though it's been over two years since you've been gone, and losing you has changed my life forever." I'm happy we always made a point of saying goodbye when we parted ways since we never knew when we'd see each other again."
In December 2019, the famed "Lucid Dreams" artist died after an accidental overdose. Fighting Demons, Juice's second posthumous album, is set to be released on Dec. 10. The Tommy Oliver-directed documentary Juice WRLD: Into the Abyss aired at AFI Fest on the same day as the release of the new album's song "Already Dead" last month.
Carmela, who earlier formed the Live Free 999 charity in her Juice's name, reflected in her letter on a recollection of trying to surprise her son with an MP3 player for his ninth birthday when he was nine years old. Juice, as Carmela stated, discovered the talent early.
"I'm sure we'd have reminisced about prior birthdays, and I'm sure we'd have joked over the mp3 player once again," she remarked. "Like I usually did on your birthday while we were together, I would have attempted to get as many birthday wishes in as possible."
Carmela also mentioned in her son's birthday letter on Wednesday that his work continues to have an impact and that admirers continue to come out to her about how his music has helped them get through moments of melancholy and anxiety.
"I pledge to carry on your healing message and to utilize Live Free 999 to mainstream the discourse about mental health and substance abuse and to assist others who suffer in silence," she stated.
The entire letter is available to read below. The photo above, taken on October 17, 2019, is Carmela and Juice's final shot together.
“Dear Jarad,
When you were born 23 years ago, I never expected that you would not to be here today celebrating your birthday. Although it has been nearly two years since you’ve been gone, I still think about you every day, and losing you has changed my life forever. I’m glad that we always made sure that we said goodbye when we left each other because we didn’t know when we would see each other again.
If you were here, I am sure that I would have said something like how it seemed like just yesterday that you were born. I know that I would have told you how proud I was of the man you became and your commitment to changing lives. I miss celebrating your birthday and all the good times that we shared. I have so many wonderful memories of you that will live in my heart forever.
I remember when you found your birthday gift the year that you turned nine. It was a white mp3 player that I hid in my closet. When you found it, you were too excited to hide the fact that you found it and proceeded to share with me how much you wanted a white mp3 player for your birthday. I thought about taking it back to the store and surprising you with something else, but I decided to give it to you anyway. As time passed and we talked about it, you realized that you would rather wait for the surprise than find your gifts early.
You and I would have reminisced about previous birthdays and I’m sure we would have laughed once again about the mp3 player. I would have tried to get as many birthday wishes in as possible like I always did on your birthday when we were together.
You touched the world through your music with honesty and transparency. You shared a message of healing and sincerely desired to make a difference in the lives of others. I still receive messages from fans saying how your music helped them with anxiety and depression. I promise to continue your message of healing and use Live Free 999 as an avenue to normalize the conversation around mental health and substance dependency and help those who suffer in silence.
Happy 23rd Birthday Jarad, I love you dearly. I’m thankful for the time that we had and will forever cherish every moment that we shared.
Love,
Mom”
Carmela and Grade A (Lil Bibby's label) said in a joint statement released accompanying a Fighting Demons teaser last month that the new album is meant to honor the artist's 23rd birthday.
"We encourage those of you who are fighting addiction and mental illness to never give up," the joint statement said, directing followers to the Live Free 999 website.