After nearly six months since the death of Garret Lockhart, known artistically as  i_o, was reported, a coroner has now ruled that the artist died of natural causes.

In a statement shared by his family on social media, it stated that the artist suffered from  late-stage Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disorder that causes chronic inflammation of the thyroid gland, which caused a “sudden and fatal arrhythmia.” This was confirmed by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner’s report.

“After 5 months of testing, the conclusion is that, while Garrett did suffer from depression and anxiety, he did not take his own life. It is our hope that Garrett’s premature death can be used to create and normalize conversations surrounding mental health issues, realizing there may be underlying disease of conditions requiring medical attention.”

Please see below for the complete statement shared by the family over the cause of i_o’s tragic death.

Garrett Falls Lockhart, more commonly known by his artist name i_o died on November 23, 2020. He was an American dance music DJ /producer whose rapid rise to fame started at the start of his career in 2017.  The artist released music on deadmau5’s mau5trap label and Andrew Rayel’s inHarmony while remixing a number of tracks for prominent dance music figures including Above & Beyond and Armin van Buuren.  Over the past two years, he released three EPs that comprised an album called 444 and in 2019, the artist appeared on Grimes’ hit single, “Violence.”  He also headlined major music festivals including EDC Las Vegas, hosted an underground warehouse event, ACID RAVE in downtown Los Angeles, and sold out his 444 album tour.

Written by Natalie Wicks Artists, News