Jimmy Kimmel is grieving a personal and professional loss.
The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host’s band leader Cleto Escobedo III, who held the role since the late-night talk show’s debut in 2003, died Nov. 11, Jimmy announced on social media. He was 59.
“Early this morning, we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III,” Jimmy wrote in a post on Instagram. “To say that we are heartbroken is an understatement.”
While the comedian did not share a cause of death, he noted that his close bond with the late musician extended far beyond their work ties.
“Cleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old,” Jimmy, 57, continued. “The fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true.”
“Cherish your friends,” he concluded the heartfelt message, “and please keep Cleto’s wife, children and parents in your prayers.”
Five days earlier, the Nov. 6 taping of JKL was postponed while Jimmy dealt with a personal matter. The ABC series—which previously faced a temporary suspension in September—returned to the air Nov. 10, though the TV host did not address the last-minute scheduling change.
In addition to Cleto’s late-night duties, the musician also toured with the likes of Paula Abdul, Marc Anthony and Earth, Wind & Fire. In fact, Jimmy previously described Cleto as a “child prodigy,” noting that he fought tooth and nail to bring his best friend aboard his namesake talk show.
“I was nervous, because I thought they'd say, ‘We don't want your friend to be the band leader,’” he told ABC7 Eyewitness News in 2015. “So I took the president of ABC to see him play with his band, and he loved it.”
Fortunately, Jimmy got his way in the end, hiring his first—and only—pick for the role.
“Of course I wanted great musicians, but I wanted somebody I had chemistry with,” the host added said. “And there's nobody in my life I have better chemistry with than him.”